Wednesday 22 August 2007

Domain names - the long and the short of it

Your domain name is your website address.

Choosing and registering a domain name for your website is one of the most important tasks when setting up your website. Firstly because it lets the world at large know what your site is all about before they log on. Secondly because you don't want to be stuck with a website name you grow to hate.

It's not considered best practice to have an enigmatic elusive metaphorical name for your website.
Apparently to be well placed on the search engines, your website name has to 'do what it says on the tin'.

There seems to be a trend to include the main keywords of topic of a website in the domain name (or website address).
This can lead to some really bizarre concoctions like
www.buy-your-chocolate-@our-candystore.com or www.get-best-knick-knacks-from-Pickers-Wicker-Store.com

When choosing domain names, my preference is to go for something short and snappy. Or something that I won't feeling embarrassed telling someone on the phone.

Long domain names can also be a hassle if you're advertising your website through leaflets or word-of-mouth.

From what I've read, domain names need to:

  • State the obvious (for the Search Engines)
  • Be shorter rather than longer (so that people can remember it)
  • Capture the theme and tone of your website (to attract your target visitors to your site)