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Your domain name is your identity on the Internet.
It is the unique name identifying a Web site, located at
the right of the @ sign in an Internet email address.
Domain names always have two or more parts, separated by dots,
as in www.yourdomain.com. Domains are tied to name
servers, which direct to which IP address the domain should
point.
Looking for the perfect domain name to define your presence
on the Web? Here are some guidelines to consider when choosing
the best name for your needs.
 | Select an
appropriate name for your site.
If you are creating a Web site for your business, choose
a domain name that evokes what you want your online presence to
accomplish. As a first choice, try to match your business
name with your site.
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| Keep the name
short, but not too short.
Shorter names can be easier to remember, but only up to a
point. Be careful not to abbreviate your name so much that it
becomes generic or unrecognizable as having anything to do with
your business. Focus on one or two words in your name that
have the most impact, and work your abbreviations around those
words.
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| Make it catchy.
The most successful companies on the Internet have catchy
names that are easy to remember. The easier your domain
name is to remember or the more fun it is to say, the more
people will talk about it. Word of mouth is still one of
the most cost-effective ways to boost site traffic.
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| Consider
registering other similar names.
Protect your identity! If you are registering a
.com address for your business, secure the .net and .org
versions as well to keep them out of the hands of competitors.
You may also want to consider securing similar-looking addresses
that contain alternate spellings of your name or common typos.
Many companies also discourage slanderous sites by registering "MyBusinessBites.com"
or similar disparaging names. Those whose sites reach an
international audience may want to register their domain with
various country code top-level domains. Minimize missed
clicks by pointing all of these domains to your site.
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| If possible, put
a keyword in your domain name.
For an online flower shop, having the word "flowers" in
the domain name may help boost your site's rankings on search
engines and directories. On the other hand, if squeezing
in a keyword causes your domain name to go against tips 1-3
above, you may want to reconsider.
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| Try to register
the .com version first.
When people look for your site on the Web, they are
likely to first try your company name with the .com suffix.
"Dot-com" has become almost synonymous with e-commerce, and that
is not likely to change soon.
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| Don't forget the
other top-level domains.
If you have a domain in mind that is immediately
recognizable as your company's name, but the .com, .net, or .org
versions aren't available, try the new top-level domains .biz,
and .info. Alternately, you could register it using .cc, .tv,
or another country code top-level domain.
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| Hyphens can help
you get the name you want.
Hyphenating a multi-word domain name can help if the
unhyphenated version is unavailable. Those searching for
your site on the Web may find the hyphens less logical, but on
the other hand, having the separated keywords in your domain
name can help you in the search engines. |
For more information, contact us at:
Information Management Resources
Lake Orion, MI 48360
248-814-8481
sales@infomr.com
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