Domain Name Advice

I'm debating on two domain names. One is 11 characters and contains my most critical keywords, while the other is only 6 characters and is easier to remember.

I know this is a very common question, but I'd be curious to hear some fresh debate from people in the know regarding modern SEO techniques.

 

I guess you should think about your customer as well. Don't just pick domain name for search engine, at the end of the day visitors are the main target. If they can't remember the domain name, you may lose returning visitors.

 

Depends on how you plan to generate traffic. If organic I'd go with the keyword in the domain, it'll give you an advantage in ranking and getting your listing clicked on. If it's PPC then the shorter name might be better if you're planning on capturing their email and branding yourself. If it's both then I'd probably get both, but that's just me

Just a thought, but having the keyword in the domain would also help to get your ads clicked in PPC to.

 

i'd go with the domain with the exact match of your targeted keyword, not only you will get a HUGE seo advantage, but also a better Click-through rate too, people click on exact keyword domain matches more, so you get more traffic, and with time when google notice that people are clicking more on a website which is in position #6 (your website) than the websites in the top 3, it will take your website and put it in the top 3 too, the user behavior is very important in rankings, that's why the exact keyword domains dominates the serps.

 

Basically, this is the right way you can choose.

 

I still think domain with critical keywords have some advantage.What's more,domain only makes a part in SEO work.
There are still other elements for you to consider.So you should think it over and choose one domain finally as your
main domain.You can still use redirection or addon domain technology to use both of the two domains at present.

 

In my opinion, domain names are important for SEO - however, if you want a branded site then I'd go for a unique name that maybe doesn't mean anything at all. Like Facebook, Twitter or Google - well Google actually stands for something and maybe those others too but the point is that they are easy to remember and stand out as oppose to "socialmessaging.com" (<- don't know if that site exists ).

So, it comes down to your objectives - for a niche site it's perhaps better to opt for more SEO firendly domains in order to monetize better.

 

My opinion is to use SEO friendly domain name. There is a direct SEO benefit to using keyword rich hyphenated domain names (and directory/filenames). Google will give every page of a site a fair boost for singular and hyphenated words within the domain name.

 

I would suggest you to go for a short and easy to remember domain name

 

It is always recommended to go with the keyword phrase, as people use keywords to search for Urls

 

get both! one for search engines, one for customers and put the site on both URLs as a live replication

 

That's a good point regarding Branding vs SEO. It's for a local real estate office, so branding is an important consideration since the domain name will be printed on business cards, stationary, etc. But on the other hand I know how many thousands of local buyers and sellers are looking for information online, and I'm hoping to capture some serious organic traffic. The longer domain name inlcudes the name of local region (the most important keyword, when combined with terms like "real estate," "homes for sale", etc.)

 

I will prefer the domain name which contains the keywords.Since you need traffic and quality visitors to get business through your website.So prefer the main keyword in your domain.

 

domain should be very easy and understandable.

 

I suggest you go for a domain which contains your keyword, as it is more likely to be clicked by your potential customers. XD

 

pick a domain name that:

1. is easy for Web users to remember and find
2. suggests the nature of your product or service
3. serves as a strong trademark so competitors won't be able to use a business name or domain name similar to it, and is free of legal conflicts with trademarks belonging to other businesses.


How to Choose a Good Domain Name

To help your website and business flourish, pick a domain name that:

1. is easy for Web users to remember and find
2. suggests the nature of your product or service
3. serves as a strong trademark so competitors won't be able to use a business name or domain name similar to it, and

is free of legal conflicts with trademarks belonging to other businesses.


What makes a good domain name?

1. Good extension - If a person is surfing around looking for a site, and they know its name, most people will try .com. So, for the web site owner who wants their site to be found, the rule is: if at all possible, get a .com name.
2. Short - Less than 7 characters, ideally. A simple name will roll off the tongue more easily in conversation, look more professional, and have less chance of being mis-typed.
3. Easy to spell - Make sure it passes the phone test: if you were to say the domain name of your website to a friend over the phone, would your friend be able to spell it correctly the first time without your having to spell it for them? If not, you’ve failed the phone test and should likely try a different domain name. Also, be careful about double letters. Take CyberRodeo, for example. Their domain uses a double R, as you might expect, but there is an uncertainty there. The two R’s together look a bit strange if written without capitalization, and a good name will not force the user to assume anything about the name. If you must have a double letter, the best solution is to buy both versions of the domain. Avoid using dashes in your domain name.
4. Descriptive - A good site or business name will describe exactly what the site is about. In most cases it's important for a person to be able to get some sort of sense what the website is about just by reading the domain name. Of course that logic doesn’t work for sites like ebay, amazon, ivillage, etc, but then again you likely don’t have a multi-million dollar budget to help you brand your name and teach people what it means.
5. Keywords – Include descriptive keywords that describe your business, product or mission in your domain name. This will play a very small part, in some cases, in increasing your search engine ranking for search phrases that include the keywords used in your domain name.