Six Rules for Finding a Great Domain Name | GreatestFart

Finding a Great Domain Name

What should you do when someone already owns the ideal domain name for your web presence? It takes some creative thinking and a little research, but here are six rules for finding a great domain name.

1. Wordplay

When they came up with the name “Google” Larry Page and Sergey Brin were playing with the word “googol,” which is the math term for the numeral “1″ followed by 100 zeros. Since then the word has made its way into our language and is now virtually synonymous with the notion of any Internet search.

If your business or brand name is taken, play around with the words or consider adding a word or two. It could be that adding something like “planet” or “zone” to your name will result in a domain that hasn’t been taken, sticks in people’s memories and is easy to type.

Maybe you’ll come up with the next “Toys ‘R’ Us” or “Pet Smart.”

2. Tack on a keyword

If the exact name you want is already taken, do a little research and make a list of the keywords people are likely to use when they are hunting down the product or service that you provide. Examine the list and find the one or two that would dovetail well with your name.

In addition to providing you with a domain name that hasn’t yet been claimed, this approach may also give you somewhat better visibility in the search engine world. This tactic is especially useful if your business will depend on organic searches to generate visitors.

If you sold spoons on the Internet, for example, you could explore domain names like “silverplatedspoons.com” or “bestspoonsource.com.”

3. Forget keywords and go with a concept

Perhaps the “idea” of your business is more important than a long list of keywords. Can you state that idea in a short phrase that will make an excellent domain name? This, by the way, is also a great way for you to really focus on what you want to accomplish with your website and sharpen your business plan.

Where would you go if you were in a hurry but knew you needed to get the oil changed in your car before you headed out of town? I’d immediately think of Jiffy Lube and to find the nearest store, I’d go to my computer and plug in jiffylube.com.

If you can capture the idea behind your business with a short phrase, it could make a huge difference in the success of your website.

4. Size matters; keep it short
You can have a domain name that is anywhere from two characters to 63 characters in length, but the rule here is: The shorter the better. I would recommend fewer than 20 characters, and ideally a lot fewer than 20.
Further, unless you’re starting the next NCAA, stay away from abbreviations or acronyms. It is always best if your web address is the same as someone would speak the name of your business or brand.

5. Cautiously consider an alternative Top Level Domain name
The Top Level Domain (TLD) of a web address is what sits on the right-hand side of the “dot.” I think we all know that “.com” is the most common TLD and the most likely to have already been taken by someone else when you decide you want it.

When you start the process of finding and buying a domain name, you’ll probably have alternative TLDs thrown in your face like “.net,” .co,” “.biz,” “.me” and many others. Don’t immediately take the bait.
Some of these may make sense for you. TLDs associated with different countries could work well if you’re looking for visitors from those areas. And, depending on your business plan, TLDs such as “.tv” or “.info” might make sense.
Be careful and know exactly where your prospective visitors will end up if they accidentally type in “.com” when they’re trying to navigate to your site. Will they end up doing business with a competitor?

6. Hyphenated names
Lots of marriages today result in hyphenated family names. That’s fine, but it’s not such a great idea for websites. As with different TLDs, if your first choice in a domain name is already taken, they will probably suggest a long list of hyphenated names.

Unfortunately, Internet users often leave out the hyphens when they are entering a URL in their browsers. A name like “north-southtravel.com” might make sense but something like “very-reliable-used-cars.com” is over the top. Be very careful and know where people will land if they forget the hyphens.