As a digital marketing agency, we can’t stress the importance of picking a strategic domain name and URL enough. Not only is this where your website will live, but it plays an important role for your site’s search visibility. While today’s domain selection is larger than ever, there are still some tips you should consider if you want your website to see better traffic and other metrics.
If you’re in search for the perfect domain name for your website, keep these tips in mind when deciding where to send your digital visitors.
Start with Keyword Brainstorming
Before you start searching for available domains, you need to go in with an action plan. That’s why we recommend beginning your domain process by brainstorming keywords. Think of four to six keywords/phrases that define what your business does. Mix and match these with your company name or industry and see what sticks.
An example of this could be a local women’s clothing boutique. Some words you may play around with could be your city’s name, clothing, fashion, boutique, shop, and so forth. You can even play with suffixes and prefixes and have something like tomorrowstrendyboutique.com.
Aim for a .COM
While there are plenty of .fitness or .technology URLs out there, a .com website will give your business the best chance to build a long-term digital brand presence. That’s not to say your current .org or .net websites need to go, but you should have them redirect to your .com or equivalent top-level domain (TLD) for your targeted country.
The main reason why a .com is the best choice is because of your visitors. It simply carries the most trust, and some users are unaware that .fitness or .technology URLs exist. These kinds of URLs could lead to them not clicking on your website at all, so it’s best to instill trust by having a .com.
Don’t Fall for Trends
At GreenMellen, this rule applies to all things we do in digital marketing (especially when it comes to web design). Like every industry, trends come and go, and this also applies to domain names. Steer clear from weird spellings and an abundance of hyphens or numbers. Keep it simple and memorable, and you’ll be successful.
Make It Simple, Short and Relevant
If you can take away one point from this post, let it be this: simple, short and relevant domain names are the most compelling for any audience. If your URL is complicated or hard to type, people simply won’t do it. Shorter URLs are easier to remember and allow more of it to show in search engine results pages (SERPs) and business cards. Lastly, you don’t want to have a domain name that’s completely unrelated to your industry, so don’t buy catsmeowingoncars.com if you run a barber shop. As long as you keep the user experience in mind when picking out your domain name and URL, your website will get the attention you want.
Remember, when it comes to any marketing, cohesiveness is crucial. Even if your URL is simply your business name (hey, that’s what we did), it will meet the expectations for an effective domain name and your marketing efforts.
Purchase Misspellings of the Domain
Once you have selected your perfect domain name, it may be wise to purchase common misspellings of it and redirect them to your main website. Canonicalization is the correct term for it, and it will bring a lot of benefits with it including your Google rankings!
If you have questions about choosing your best domain name, contact GreenMellen today and let us help you get started!
