Selecting the right domain name for your business or organisation can make a lot of difference to how memorable and easy to find your website is. So how do you go about deciding upon a name?
For some businesses this is easy – they have a relatively short name which easily translates into a good domain name. For others it can be a lot more difficult.
Some tips to get you started
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If you’ve got a straightforward business name, use it!
For instance, Yates is a company well known for gardening products in Australia. I can type yates.com.au into a browser and up pops their website – it’s so obvious that I don’t even need to Google them!
If your website is for your business or organisation as a whole, then try to use this name as your domain – it’s almost always the best choice.
Of course if it isn’t available or your business name doesn’t translate well as a domain name, then you have more thinking to do. You could then consider names which are somehow related to the core purpose of the business.
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Keep it short
All 3 and 4 letter domain names are surely taken or may be for sale for large sums. Even 5 letter domain names are fairly scarce. So while you should aim to keep your domain relatively short, there is a limit!
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Keep it simple
Avoid adding ‘ptyltd’ to your domain or anything else which doesn’t add to the name other than complicating it. As a general rule, avoid numbers, hypens and acronyms if you can.
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Keep it memorable
Personally I think a domain name that is easy for people to remember is more important than keeping it short. Try to ensure that the domain name is easy to say out loud – there’s more chance of people talking about it then!
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Make it easy to spell
Sometimes using clever spelling in a domain name can work really well – Flickr being a great example. However, generally try to avoid domains which your visitors will find difficult to spell unless you plan on spending a lot of time marketing the name or if your website will be your business (rather than being to promote your business).
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Ensure it’s appropriate
You don’t want to give the wrong impression of your business or organisation, so consider any alternative meanings of your name.
Also be careful that if you have a combination of words in your domain that they can’t be read a different (and very inappropriate!) way. For example, www.therapistsite.com – Therapist Site – can be read a very different way.
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Check for similar domains
Just because a .biz version of a domain is available, that doesn’t necessarily mean you should register it if the .com is already taken. Check what sorts of sites are using similar domains and think about how you’d feel if your customers or clients found them instead of you!
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Decide what extension you wish to use
If you’re an Australian-based business or organisation with largely local stakeholders then a .au domain is the best option – most commonly .com.au for a business or .org.au for a non-profit.
However, if you have a more global focus then I would suggest you consider a .com or .org if these are available.
There are many other types of extension available these days: .biz, .me, .info, etc.. Generally you are best to pick one of the more obvious .com or .org extensions, but sometimes these alternatives can be a clever option.
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Break the rules!
The above are guidelines only which generally are appropriate to most situations, however, there are always exceptions to a rule which work well. Bear in mind that most creative domain names which break some ‘rules’ are generally best used for web-based businesses.
If you’re ready to start looking for a domain name, I’d recommend going to GoDaddy to help with your search for a global domain or MelbourneIT for a .au domain. You can also use these companies respectively for registering your domain/s.
Finally, I strongly suggest that you keep your domain name registration separate from other aspects of your web presence, such as design or hosting. Your domain name can become a critical asset of your business so it’s worth protecting and not risking any problems with it should any other issues arise.
Good luck with your search!
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