How To Choose A Domain Name | Best Domain Selection Guide 2021

Choose A Domain Name– One thing about your blog that will always stick around is your Domain Name. Choosing your Domain Name is almost like choosing a name for your company. Just like you can’t randomly change the name of your company, you can not change your domain name once your blog is live with it.

Domain names have a huge impact on your online business. It is your identity on the web after all. So clearly you need to be considerate and thoughtful when you are picking a name for your blog.

In today’s post, I will tell you the points to remember when choosing a Domain name. I will also tell you about platforms where you can register your Domain Names.

What exactly is a good Domain Name?

There are millions of websites in cyberspace and with every minute it’s only increasing. But how does someone locate your website among so many of them?  That’s when your domain name comes in, to serve your purpose. It is the address of your website on the internet.

It is the key element of your website that can either make you or break you. Your Domain name mainly does 3 things :

1. It sets an impression: Your Domain name is the first thing your visitors will see. If your domain name is a good one, it will positively impact your visitors and make a long-lasting impression on them.
2. It affects SEO: Your Domain name has a big role in the SEO of your overall website. We all know how SEO can convert a small business into a big one. The right domain name will help you maximize your traffic.
3. It defines your Brand: Your Domain name can help you increase brand awareness among your visitors.

Also Read: 8 Common Blogging Challenges Deciphered

Let us now move on to our next section and see the points to remember while choosing your name.

How To Choose A Brandable Domain Name?

Choose a Name That Sticks

 

Strategies on your business tactics from day one and right from the time you start thinking about your domain. Think of a name that is not just another boring addition to so many that already exist. Be unique in whatever name you pick. Do not go for something just because it is in trend.

Trendy stuff disappears just like the trend. Classic is what is going to stay forever. You want it to create a buzz and not to add to the noise out there. A great way to do it is to use Blog Name Generators.

Put Your Creative Skills To Use

 

It’s time to find out how creative you are. To be brandable, your name needs to capture the essence of your brand. Try figuring out what exactly your needs are. You can try answering the following few questions before starting your selection.

• What do you want your brand to accomplish?
• What keyword will be the best?
• Who do you want to reach out to?
• What keywords you would want to have in your domain?

Now Sum it up in less than 150 characters. These questions will be enough to let your ideas running.

Keep It Short and Memorable

Another important thing to remember while choosing your name is to keep it short and simple. The longer your domain is the more difficult it becomes for people to remember.

So try to be short and sweet. The domain with the longest number of characters in the Top 100 websites of the world is 17. My own domain name has exactly 17 characters in it.

Use Keywords

 

Your Keyword is one thing that will help you get more traffic. Try including the keyword for your website in your domain. The best way to know your keyword is to know what product or service you will be selling on your site.

For example, I write everything about blogging on this website. So I have tried fitting in the word blogging in my domain. Sometimes it may be hard for you to make your keywords fit in the domain.

And that’s okay, as long as you have something really unique and brandable (even though it’s a good idea to have it in your domain and it is highly recommendable).

Make It Easy To Type and Pronounce

It is a great idea to find a name that is easy to type. Choose a name that you do not have to spell out for people.

Try avoiding names with double letters and abbreviations. For example, it’s not a bad idea to use ‘m’ instead of am in your name.

Doing this might confuse people and sometimes they may never land on your site because they might be redirected to another site. A classic example here can be of the website Flickr.com which was introduced in the year 2005. They had to acquire the domain flicker.com at a huge sum later in order to prevent people from being redirected elsewhere.

Therefore, it’s better that you do not take the chance if you want your online business to flourish.

Avoid special Characters

Including Special Characters and Numbers is not recommended at all. Avoid them strictly. Choose a name that is smooth and punchy. Special characters and numbers can get in their way.

Review The Names and Pick the Best

 

Once you have a list of names in your hand, it’s time for you to review them. Ask yourself if the name hints at what your brand is about. See if your name is right for your business.

You can ask for people’s opinions if you like. But try taking their opinion individually and not in a group.

Now that you have a list of names, it’s time for you to choose the best one. The best one should resonate with your brand without anyone having to think too hard.

Choose .com Extensions First

The next step is to choose your extension.

Try sticking to the .com extension. Research shows that 75% of the websites have a .com extension. It is still the most preferred one as it is the easiest to remember.

Another advantage of having a .com extension is that for anyone looking for your site on an address only searches engines will be automatically directed to your website. This will happen even if the person was looking for the same address with a different extension.

But if you do not find a domain with a .com extension, you can go for other extensions too. I did the same because I could not find one.

Trademark Search and Domain Protection

Once you have your domain the next important step to hop on to is to do a trademark search for your domain. This will help you to find out if you can trademark your domain name or not. Once your result is back, start your trademarking process. This is a slightly long process and can take up to 6 months for your request to be accepted.

Checking Availability And Purchasing

There are various platforms where you can check if your Domain name is available and then purchase it directly from them. Here are a few options that you can use.

1. GoDaddy: With almost 61 million domains registered, Go Daddy leads the way in web hosting and domain registration. I registered my domain from GoDaddy and I loved its services. They are quick and very efficient in solving any problem that you might be facing before or after your purchase.
2. NameMesh: This is the best tool that can help you choose your domain name. It generates various options for you depending on the words you suggest.
3. LeanDomainSearch: This is yet another brilliant tool that you might want to use. It suggests various names for you and then also tells you about places where you can get it registered.
4. NameCheap: Try out NameCheap for your research and registration.

Best & in budget hosting as per my experience is Bluehost and if you are based out in India. I started my blog Travelescape on Godaddy, but have to move out to Bluehost, and then at present, it is hosted on Siteground.

Bonus – Business name generator

I would like to present to you our Name Generator Tool that helps users discover creative business names plus they are able to check available domains.
You can check it out here: Just try it out and it’s 100% free.
https://firstsiteguide.com/business-name-generator/

Over To You

I hope this post was helpful to you. If I have left out at any point that needs to be included here, do let me know through your comments below. I would definitely add your points to our readers.