How to Choose a Domain Name
Your domain is your brand’s home on the internet. Like choosing a business name or a logo, finding the right domain name creates a positive first impression with your target audience. That lays the foundation upon which you’ll establish customer trust, nurture relationships, and build loyalty to support your growing business.
Understanding the Importance of a Good Domain Name
To understand the importance of a good domain name, let’s start with what a domain name even is. A domain name is the series of letters and words we humans use to find specific website addresses across the internet. If we didn’t have domain names, we’d need to type in the series of numbers and characters that make up a domain’s IP (internet protocol) address instead.
And, just like you might choose a version of your name—a nickname, or maybe your middle name—that better represents you in the world, your domain name represents your brand online. A good domain name matters in the same way a solid introduction matters, affecting that oh-so-crucial first impression.
The Role of a Domain in Branding
What can a custom business domain name do for your brand?
It’s all about consumer trust, and the bottom line is that people are more likely to view a brand as professional and credible if they have a custom website hosted on their own domain.
When you’re hiring a contractor to work on your home, do you want the person with a generic email and maybe an outdated social media profile? Of course not. You want the person with a robust website, at a domain named for their brand, that describes their services, pricing options, and maybe a testimonial or two.
How to Choose the Right Domain Name
There’s not one right answer when selecting the best domain name for your business. However, there are a few best practices for choosing a domain name.
Keep it short and simple.
The ideal domain name is short, easy to spell, and easy to pronounce. Aim for fewer than fifteen characters.
Align your domain with your brand.
Since your domain name will be everywhere—your business cards, landing pages, emails, advertisements—it should reflect your brand, telling the story you want the world to know. Use natural language that matches your brand’s tone and attitude.
Choose the right TLD (top-level domain).
Today, there are thousands of possible top-level domains (TLDs) for you to choose from. Forty years of .com dominance means it’s the most recognizable domain extension, but the overcrowding might make it tough for you to get the domain name you want with that specific extension.
That’s where newer TLDs come in, and those little extra characters can say so much. .shop and .store, for example, tell you straightaway that you can expect to make purchases directly from the site. .org is commonly associated with nonprofit organizations doing good in the world, but .foundation or .charity can be more specific.
Plus, there are fun ones! Do you run an event planning business? There’s a .party for that. Got a restaurant? .menu. Just want a spot to show off your family vacation pictures? .photos.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Choosing a Domain Name
Just like there are best practices for choosing a domain name, there are common errors you’ll want to avoid. Here are a couple of them.
Using numbers or hyphens
Numbers and hyphens work against your new brand’s memorability and ease of spelling, so don’t use them in your domain name. Plus, you don’t want to risk customer confusion if you’re using numbers as a substitute for letters, like 4 instead of four (or for).
Failing to check for trademark conflicts
Run a trademark search early in your brand development. The last thing you want is to invest serious time and money into developing a business, registering a domain, building a website, and adding all the bells and whistles just to get slammed with a trademark infringement claim that forces you to change it all.
If you need help with trademark registration for your brand, Registered Agents Inc can do that.
Other Branding Considerations
Once you have a shortlist of creative domain name ideas, there are just a few more questions you might be asking yourself about how to pick a good domain name.
How do I choose SEO-friendly domain names?
Instead of trying to cram keywords into your domain name, lead with your brand and become known for the keywords that customers will use to find your business. While something like bakerynearme.com might be clever, chances are good that you’ll be competing against titans in your industry for specific keywords. Set yourself up for success and only use them if they make sense for your brand.
Should my domain name match my business name?
Absolutely! If you’re just starting your business, snag your domain name at the same time you’re choosing a business name. With hard work and a little luck, this baby of yours is going to grow. Keeping it cohesive makes it easy for customers to find you the first time and keep coming back.
Pro tip: if you hire us for Business Formation or Registered Agent services, you can get your domain name free for a whole year.
Should my branded domain name match our social media profiles?
A solid brand identity thrives on consistency, so check to see whether your desired domain name is already being used as a social media handle. It’s a good idea to check even if your target audience doesn’t frequent a particular site. Even if you don’t use the social profile, claiming it will prevent someone else from doing so.
And if your top choice isn’t available on some of the biggest platforms, you’ll need to do some tinkering. Either change up your domain name strategy, or adjust your social media handles to complement.
Any other domain name tips?
Check with friends and family, and consult your market research, to see whether the name you’d like has any associations that could be detrimental to your business. Check it with translation services too—even if you’re inventing a word from scratch, or using an acronym, you want to be aware of any potential pitfalls that could result from soundalike words and phrases.
And, since domain names can be recycled and resold, check the history of the one you want. You don’t want any nasty surprises.
How to Check Domain Name Availability
The easiest way to see whether your domain is available is to run a quick domain name search. Try it out:
If your domain name comes up as available, excellent! Lock it in by adding it to your cart and heading to the checkout.
What to do if your domain name is taken:
If the domain name you want is taken, you have a few options.
Try a variation of your brand name. Tweaking the domain name while staying on-brand opens up new possibilities in your domain name search. Instead of example.com, you might look at forexample.com, or even something like frex.com if it matches your brand’s vibe.
Try a different TLD. A different top-level domain might be the right move for your business. It might even be a more brandable domain name! So example.com is taken. Try example.co, example.vip, or example.pro. When you use our domain name search, you’ll be able to compare domain extensions and find one that’s perfect for your business.
Buy it. Got your heart well and truly set? Check the site for contact information, or look for advertising suggesting it might be for sale at the right asking price. Domain aftermarket sites might also have it listed for sale. If all else fails, conduct a WHOIS search to get information on contacting the registrant. Even if you get generic contact info from a domain registrar offering WHOIS privacy protection (like us), any messages you send should be passed along appropriately.
Putting It All Together
Finding a domain name is an exciting first step in building your brand. If the process feels like more drudgery and doom than generative and thrilling, reach out to our experts. We have over a decade of experience helping entrepreneurs launch their dreams, and we’re ready to help you find the perfect fit for your project.