How Important is Your Domain?

Many bloggers and business owners alike are choosing to create their own websites. This is a very practical and smart business tactic proven effective to draw in business, ultimately generating increased income. However, often times one of the most important aspects goes unthought-of: choosing a domain name. It may seem as if this is just a silly little matter. However, there are several people and businesses that will tell you that their biggest regret regarding their website is their domain name choice. Let’s take a closer look at why this is such an important factor to consider.

Think of your most frequented website. Most likely, the website you thought of was a .com. This is the most memorable and most trusted domain. When opting for something other than .com, such as .net or .biz, it’s easy for the consumer or reader to forget which domain it was, making it difficult to locate your site. The same goes for the spelling of your domain name. If you don’t choose the proper spelling of words, such as changing what would normally be an “s” to a “z,” you may inadvertently direct traffic to someone else’s site instead of your own!

It’s important to remember that your domain is a marketing tool. You want to choose a name that is catchy, short, and easy to remember. Using the name of your business is also a good idea if you wish to do so. Another idea is to buy up all domain name extensions (.com, .net, etc.). This cuts down on the risk of having someone else snatch up your domain name and using a different extension. You can redirect all extensions to your preferred one (remember, I recommend using .com), maximizing your website traffic! You want to keep in mind that not everyone will be at a computer when they hear your domain name. They may hear it by word of mouth or by seeing it advertised.

Another valuable marketing concept is the use of keywords within your domain name. For SEO purposes, this makes it as easy as possible for people to find your website when they put a key phrase into their search engine. Just remember to keep it short and to not use excessive hyphens to avoid being perceived as spammy. Keep all of these tips in mind when deciding on your very own domain name. It would be extremely frustrating to spend ample amounts of time and effort into creating your website just to find that you chose the wrong domain name!