10 Tips for Choosing the Best Domain Name

 Choosing the right domain name for your website is crucial for your success. If you choose the wrong domain name, then it can be a hassle to switch later on without hurting your brand and search rankings.

That’s why it’s extremely important that you choose the best domain name from the start.

When first starting out, it can be hard to come up with catchy business name ideas with a perfect domain name.

In this article, we’ll share all the tools and tips you need to get domain name ideas, choose the best domain name, and register your new domain (for free).

 

10 Tips for Choosing the Best Domain Name

When starting blog, choosing a domain name can be stressful because you don’t want to make a mistake.

To make the process easier, we have a simple 14 step framework that you can use to pick the best domain for your website.

 

1.     Use keywords in your domain name search

2.     Keep your domain name short

3.     Make it easy to pronounce and spell

4.     Keep it unique and brandable

5.     Avoid hyphens in domain name

6.     Avoid doubled letters

7.     Leave room to expand

8.     Research your domain name

9.     Use domain generators for clever ideas

10. Act quickly before someone else takes it

      Let’s take a look at these tips one by one with more details.

 

1. Use Keywords in Your Domain Name Search

Keywords play an important role in a domain. By using keywords in your domain name, you tell the search engines what your website is about. Together with quality content and good user experience, keywords in your domain can help you rank higher in Google.

It is very hard to find a good domain with your target keywords, that’s not already taken.

You will need to be creative and combine your keywords with other words to make your domain stand out.

2. Keep Your Domain Name Short

While keywords are important, don’t go overboard with domain length. It’s better to have a domain name that’s short and memorable.

We recommend keeping your domain name under 15 characters. Longer domains are harder for your users to remember.

Not to mention, users will also be more prone to entering typos with longer domain names which can lead to loss traffic.

That’s why it’s a good idea to keep your domain length short.

3. Make Your Domain Name Easy to Pronounce and Spell

You should be able to easily share your domain name when speaking as well as writing. You never know when you’ll be asked to share your domain name in person.

If you’re planning to use your domain name to create a professional business email address, then it definitely should be easy to understand and spell for any listener.

4. Keep it Unique and Brandable

Your blog domain name must be unique, so you can stand out in your readers’ minds. It’s smart to research other blogs in your niche and find out what domain names they’re using.

You don’t want to accidentally use a trademark name or get accused of copying another blogger.

You can also choose to pick a domain name that’s more brandable.

Brandable domain names are unique, catchy, and memorable. For example, “Amazon.com” is a much more brandable name than “BuyBooksOnline.com.”

5. Avoid Hyphens in Domain Name

Never create a domain name with hyphens. Hyphens can be a sign of spam domains which you do not want to be associated with.

Hyphenated domains are also prone to typos. If you choose a domain name with hyphens because the domain you want is already taken, then your users will likely end up at your competitor’s site if they forget to type in the hyphen.

6. Avoid Double Letters

It’s a good idea to avoid domains with doubled letters, because it increases your chances of losing traffic to typos. For example, a domain like Presssetup.com will be more prone to typos, and result in lost traffic.

Avoiding doubled letters will also make your domain easy to type and more brandable.

7. Leave Room to Expand

It’s smart to choose a domain name that’s related to your industry / niche because it gives users some idea of what your website is about. But you also don’t want to limit your long term options too much.

For example, a florist might choose a domain name like orchidblog.com, but then they may want to start blogging about other flowers beside orchids. In that case, the domain might prevent you from attracting readers interested in other flowers.

Properly moving your site to a new domain can be a frustrating process, and it can cause you to lose search rankings if you don’t do it right. That’s why it is important to pick a flexible domain name from the start.

8. Research Your Domain Name

Before you register a domain name, try to find out if there is already a registered business using the same name.

You can perform a trademark search to see if there is already a similar or exact name already trademarked.

 

You can also perform a Google search and check for the name’s availability on top social media websites like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc.

A similar or matching name would not only cause confusion, but it could also have severe legal implications which may cost you a lot of money.

Once you have your own website up and running, you can learn more about how to trademark and copyright your website name and logo.

9. Use Domain Name Generators for Clever Ideas

Currently, there are more than 360 Million registered domain names. This leads to many people saying that all good domains are already taken.

Searching for individual domain name manually can be very time consuming.

This is where domain name generators come in. These free tools automatically search for your defined keywords to find hundreds of clever domain name ideas.

We recommend using Nameboy, which is one of the oldest and most popular domain name generator tool online.

You can also use WPBeginner’s free Business Name Generator tool, or IsItWP’s domain generator to find more domain name ideas.

10. Act Quickly Before Someone Else Takes it

Each day thousands of new domain names are registered from all parts of the world. If you have found a domain name that you like, then don’t wait too long.

Domain names are like real estate. Thousands of people are actively looking for good brandable domain names that they can register for better rates in the future.

If you don’t act fast, then someone may go ahead and register your domain idea.

Since domain names are relatively cheap, we always recommend our readers to act fast. If you change your mind later, then you can simply let it expire.

BASIC FEATURES OF FREE WEB HOSTING

 

Looking for a free web hosting solution is an imperative decision. Try to identify a reliable web host can be a daunting task especially with so many service providers and options available nowadays. Throw in the feature sheets and promises, the task can be that much more intimidating.

But it doesn't have to be. Let's take a look at some of the most common features a good free web hosting provider should offer:

DISK SPACE AND BANDWIDTH

Disk space refers to the amount of storage space assigned to you by the free web hosting provider. This space will be used to store your web site files, including text, images, audio, etc. files you use for your website.

Bandwidth refers to the amount of traffic that is allowed to access and leave your website. Access means every time a visitor types in your website name in their browser. Leave means every time a visitor receives something from your website, whether it be viewing a photo, listening to an audio clip or downloading a file.

For example, if your website has a lot of graphics (ie. photographs) then you will require higher storage and greater bandwidth.

WEBSITE CREATOR AND FTP

If this is your first website and you have limited or no scripting experience, then look for a free web hosting provider that offers a free website creating application where you can create your website simply by choosing a template and adding in your own text and images.

FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. It is the protocol for transferring your website files from your computer to your free web hosting server, or vice versa. This allows you to upload your finished website files (including images and other multimedia files) from your computer to your service provider's server. It also allows you to download your files from your web hosting server back to your computer. A good free web hosting provider should offer 24/7 unrestricted FTP access.

EMAIL

Yes, your free web hosting provider should provide you with email services - so that you can setup @yourdomain.com email accounts. In addition to a webmail interface (so you can login and manage your emails using your web browser), the email service should also include POP3 and SMTP access so you can setup and access your @yourdomain.com emails using your mobile devices.

SUPPORT AND UPTIME

You should always choose a free web hosting service with free, reliable telephone and email support.

While no host can offer a 100% guaranteed uptime (think problems out of their control, ie. city power outage), they should provide "just-in-case" measures to limit website and email downtime to a minimal. These measures may include 24/7 server and network monitoring, redundant hardware and network configurations, and onsite backup power supply. While you might not completely understand the technicalities of these, look to see if your free web hosting provider has these listed somewhere on their website. If not, ask them about it.

PRICING

If you're looking for a free web hosting provider, then you should expect to pay absolutely nothing for all the basic features listed above. You shouldn't have to compromise pricing with banner ads. Any free web hosting providers that forces ads on your website is a no-no.

How Do I Choose A Good Web Host?

 

A good, shared Web host must provide reliable and reasonable quality of service. Many times, a consumer will sign up with the least expensive provider only to experience many technical difficulties and the inevitable and frustrating experience of changing Web hosts. To avoid this experience, it is best if the consumer chooses the right hosting company. Ensuring that a shared Web hosting firm has the following characteristics will increase the probability of consumer satisfaction.

Quality Server Technology:

The use of quality server technology is important. Since shared hosting services utilize multiplexed equipment, consumers must ensure that the server and server technology used can accommodate the number of users on your particular server.

System Administrators: Make sure that knowledgeable system administrators are operating your hosting company's technology.

Network Redundancy: Your shared hosting package must have multiple connections to the Internet. Network redundancy ensures that if one Internet connection goes down, traffic can be re-routed through another connection.

Network Connectivity: It is important to find the fastest Internet connection possible. Since you are competing with other users for resources in a shared hosting environment, you should ensure that you have at least T3 connection that is using less than 50 per cent of available bandwidth.

You should also consider the following factors before selecting any type of shared hosting solution for your Web site. By considering these factors, you will save money in the long run by selecting a solution that grows with your business.

Purchase only what you need: Select a Web hosting solution that corresponds with your business needs. Only purchase services that your site will require to provide your specific content. Don't sign up for an all-inclusive account with a hosting firm if you won't use most of their services. This will unnecessarily increase your costs.

Select a scalable solution: Make sure that your hosting solution can grow as your site grows in complexity. Ensure that you can upgrade your site to accommodate increased bandwidth and other demanding resource requirements such as server-side scripting, database support and multimedia streaming.

Find prompt tech support: Only use a host that provides prompt and knowledgeable customer care. A dependable host should offer 24x7 toll-free technical support rendered by experienced and professionally trained technicians.

Check references: Before you commit to a particular hosting firm, ask for references. Make sure to canvass other webmasters running sites with similar specifications. Browse their Web sites and measure response times at both peak and non-peak periods.

Watch your billing and keep your receipt: Many hosting firms are notorious for their horrid billing practices. Check your credit card statements to ensure that you are not being overcharged or billed at an incorrect frequency. Most purchases occur online, so make sure to print out your receipt. Most companies will require you to remit that receipt by fax in order to cancel.

Back up all your data: Do not depend on your host to recover any data you publish on the Web. Most hosting firms are only equipped to recover files in the event of a system failure. Ensure that you have a copy of any data that you post to the Web on your own hard drive.

Own your own domain: Make sure that your Web host will not hold you hostage to their service by exercising administrative control over your domain name. Your host should only be listed as a technical contact. You should exercise administrative control over the domain name from the point of purchase.

Do extensive background research: Find out whether a host is real or whether it resells hosting solutions. Also check what payment processor the host uses to run credit card transactions. Determine who owns the hosting company and whether they possess the technical expertise required to run it effectively. All of these factors impact upon the credibility and reliability of the host and the services you provide your customers.

Obtain assurances: You should obtain assurances concerning service quality before you sign up for hosting services. A quality Web host should assure some form of service quality and compensation if you experience an interruption in service.

Understand your obligations: Before you sign up with a Web host, you must understand what your obligations are concerning payment for service and permissible behavior. Certain hosting companies will not permit high traffic content, such as adult material. Other hosting companies will permit such content, but only if a special hosting service package is selected.

Establish an exit strategy: Always have a backup plan in case your host goes belly-up or experiences an unrecoverable failure. Redundancy should always be a priority if you are running an Internet-based business. Remember that any service outage can completely compromise your source of income.