A Good Domain Name Is Essential to Success

One big mistake that people new to internet business make is the wrong choice of a domain name. It is so tempting when you think you have a great idea to go off and register a name. It's quick, and cheap and probably the easiest part of building an internet empire, but if the domain name is wrong, then it can mean the difference between success and failure.

Of course if you are starting a business and you will be branding your own products, you can choose a snappy name like Yahoo, Google, or Amazon. You can't tell from any of those names what these companies do, but everyone knows these billion-dollar enterprises. Why? Because they had a massive budget for advertising and marketing, and I doubt if you have pockets that deep to promote your little site selling used ball gowns. Sure TwiceAroundtheFloor.com is a great name but when the search engines come across it, they are more likely to get the idea that your site is about floors and not ball gowns.

No, the most effective domain name, dot com name or URL - whatever you like to call it, should be based on some serious keyword research. You will probably know without looking that BallGowns.com was taken a long time ago, but UsedBallGowns could be available. Problem is, the term "used ball gowns" in Google's keyword finder only gets 140 local (US) searches a month, so your niche is the smallest of micro niches and you may want to think your whole niche again, this one is not going to make you any money!

If you are thinking about building niche sites for Amazon products, your search for a good domain name may be a little easier. Let's look at Cuisinart food mixers, these are extremely popular and some models get enormous amounts of positive feedback on Amazon. It will be difficult to keep writing good keyword-rich articles about Cuisinart food mixers, but once established you could add a lot of recipes for use with their mixers. If you include the brand name Cuisinart in your domain name, you should not suddenly decide to add information about other brands of food mixers to your site.

Most companies do not mind you using their brand names in a domain name, you are promoting their products and will hopefully be making them money, but once you start comparing different mixers on your site Cuisinart may get upset that you're saying another mixer is better, and you could be in danger of losing your site altogether. They will write and ask you to take the site down - or else.

If you are building affiliate sites promoting products from, say, Commission Junction, be sure to read the terms and conditions before you apply to a company's program, they may expressly forbid the use of their name in your domain name.

Let's say for sake of argument that UsedBallGowns is a popular search term and you can't find any name available that is appropriate, punch UsedBallGowns.com into the address bar and see what comes up. You may discover that the name is for sale and there will be a place card saying the site is for sale through a company whom you can contact. Some used domain names sell quite cheaply, and if it is the perfect keyword-rich domain name for your business it may be well worth investing a couple of hundred dollars in the name you really want.

There are a number of sites that offer expired domains for sale. These are often an excellent investment and a great way to get your site off to a flying start. If the site has already been around for a number of years, is listed in Dmoz or the Yahoo directory (which costs $299) you may find it has already established backlinks and if you are really lucky has a good page rank. Check the history of the site before you buy though. You can do a quick check of the site's history by using thewaybackmachine.org which will show you snapshots of the site in the past - you do not want a site that has been used for porn or anything nefarious, Google simply won't like it. Only buy the site if it has a good history and has never been "dropped". That means that the name registration has never lapsed before.

Although there are dozens of extensions for sale today, such as.co,.me,.us, you really should aim to get a.com extension with a second choice of.net, Google appears to attach more value to those extensions.

It is going to take a lot of research, and the shorter the name and more memorable and to-the-point the better. Many people say that long domain names are not a good idea, but I don't think the public actually jot domain names down on bits of paper any more, if they like your site they will probably Tweet it or email a link to their friends. I personally like dashes in domain names, it's a great way of getting the name you want, so you could get Used-Ball-Gowns.com easily. There is no mention anywhere in Google's Webmaster help section that dashes are a no-no. The only danger is that someone may forget to add the dashes and go through to a competitor's site.

A good domain name is going to be part of your brand, especially if you are going to build a large website on one particular subject, so spend some time researching and do it right.

Gabriele Cramer-Knebel is the Founder/CEO of Internet Marketing Training and is an experienced internet marketer helping new entrepreneurs to build a successful online business. You can find more out at http://gabrielesinternetmarketingtraining.com/

Copyright © Internet Marketing Training 2011. All Rights Reserved.

Web Success Series Number 2 - Choosing Your Domain Name

A good hosting provider recognizes that our success depends on your success so, as part of their core corporate culture, they provide all the tools you need to build, launch and manage a successful web-based business - including the information you need to do it RIGHT!

So welcome to the second in a series of "how-to" articles on topics related to web success. Well keep it simple, eliminate the techno-babble and provide, not only the tools, but the know-how to achieve web success.

Your success is our success.

#1 Choosing A Domain Name

Your domain name is your on-line address. Your full address will be http//www.your domainnamehere.com or.org or.edu or some other extension.

You choose your domain name. In many cases, it'll be the first business decision you'll make so weigh the choice of domain name carefully. A good domain works for you. A bad one can doom your on-line venture the day you register it.

Some dos and don'ts about selection.

1. First, it costs a few bucks to register a domain name.

Your domain and information about ownership of that domain will be dutifully registered. Your ownership information will appear in a directory called Whois, an index of domain names that is public information. Anybody can find out who or what business entity owns a given domain.

Consider this when you enter personal information while filling out your registration. You may want to use a PO box instead of your street address or register the name in your company name rather than your personal name.

In any case, it costs a few bucks to register a domain name and the name has to be re-reregistered annually.

Some web hosts register your name free for the first year and send reminders that your domain is up for re-registration so pay the fee. Either way, (1) the few bucks it costs to register a domain makes the web available to any one with a couple of dollars and (2) don't forget to re-register your domain name each year. It's possible (easy) for domain hounds to snag a domain that has expired and take over your client base simply because you forgot to re-register. So, re-register.

2. All the good domain names have been taken.

If you mean names like lawyers.com, cars.com and firstaidsupplies.com, yes, someone owns the rights to those domains - domains that was probably registered 15 years ago before most businesses even knew what a domain was.

A lot of site owners have turned to made up words for domains. Examples? ning.com, zoho.com and yuuguu.com. They're catchy, though, and that makes them easy to remember.

If you're opening an on-line business (that's why you're reading this) use your imagination. Your name should be keyword dense, even if it's long. Your name should tell people and search engine bots something about your websites so if "amazing chocolate delights.com" is taken try "really amazing chocolate delights.com" or "incrediblechocolatedelights.com." Keep trying until you find a domain name that says something about your business.

If you're service provider - a local insurance agency or certified financial planner, choosing a name is simpler. Use your name and title: "DrJamesMillerMD.com," "PeterHughsCFA.com" and so on. This is how people in your service will know you - Dr. James Miller or Peter Hughs. These are good, solid domain names - especially for businesses and individuals seeking local business using localized search.

3. Skip the punctuation.

You're determined to have "amazingchocoloatedelights.com" as your domain name but it's taken. So, clever you, try "amazing-chocolate-delights.com" with hyphens in between each word in the domain name. Don't do it.

Search engine users often forget these punctuation symbols and you end up sending visitors to amazingchocolcatedelights.com (without the hyphens) and losing a sale. Instead, come up with a domain name that's easy to remember and doesn't use any punctuation.

4. Choose the right extension.

You can be a.com, where com stands for company or commercial (depending on who you listen to). You can be a.org - usually indicating a not-for-profit or an advocacy group, though more and more professional service providers are using the.org extension.

If you teach something, or sell materials to institutes of higher learning, go with a .edu extension - indicating an education or educational site. This is especially important for sites that provide continuing education units (CEUs) for professionals that require on-going education and training.

For example, private detectives in some states must accumulate a certain number of CEUs each year to keep their licenses active. So, a web site that offers on-line courses (CEUs) for private detectives would be better off with an edu extension to clarify exactly what the site is about - education, as in "privatedetectiveeducation.edu." Now that's a domain name that's keyword rich.

5. Consider registering similar domain names.

If you come up with a really good domain name, some people may try to piggyback on your cool domain name by registering similar domain names. You can protect yourself from this type of activity by registering similar sounding domain names and simply parking them on your server. No charge.

6. Don't be cute.

Amazon.com is a well recognized name. Interesting that the name says nothing about what Amazon is or does but it sure is easy to remember.

Check it out. Domain goofs register misspelled variations of Amazon to collect visitors who weren't... ummm... paying attention. So they register Amozon, Amozan and variations hoping to get search engine users who enter misspelled domain names.

You're wasting your time and your money. Visitors will bounce once they realize they aren't on Amazon and you don't build a whole lot of trust and good will by taking advantage of the mistakes of search engine users.

7. Take your time.

Your domain name is that important.

If you need some help, call your web host for some advice. Any good web host, like Green Host It will help you through the registration process. In fact, we might even recommend the name you ultimately choose.

Think before you choose because once you choose your name, you'll live with it for a long time. You'll build your business around it. It'll appear on business cards, invoices, TV ads - anything and everything to do with that business.

So don't rush because you THINK you have a good idea. Bounce your choice off of friends and family. Do they "get it?" Do they understand why you chose it? If so, it's probably a good choice for a domain name. If they don't, keep working on it.

Before you do anything - before you develop a business model, a revenue model, a purpose of the site, before you establish your company's core values and develop a tag line for the company, think long and hard about the best name for your new W3 enterprise.

Choosing the right name can mean the difference between world wide web success and another web failure.

What's your choice in green web hosting?

Ms. Rosendahl has over 19 years experience in systems analysis, hosted applications, and management as well as 13 years experience in web hosting and Internet marketing. Ms. Rosendahl has a Bachelors from Houston Baptist University with a double major in Computer Information Systems and Business Management. Stephanie is the founder and CEO of Austin, Texas firm - GreenHostIt.com green web hosting.