G'day Forum I am looking at purchasing a domain name, and I am wanting some advice on what I should chose, as far as marketing, remembering, SEO, branding etc. Without giving the actual domain away, in case someone decides to pinch it on me, I have provided an example below of what I am considering. The word i am thinking of using is replaced by the word "Example" 1) www.ewebexample.com 2) www.e-webexample.com Option 1 is available, but it has been used previously, so there is some reference to it already on google whereas option 2 hasnt been used before. If anyone has any advice, it would be mucha appreciated. Also, if I was to purchase both domain names, would it cost me any extra in hosting, of one of the domains simply redirected to main site? Cheers Jake
i dont think redirection will cause any hosting problem...Big hosting sites have ample bandwidth to sustain ur sites...and in future if you think you have too much traffic you can always go for dedicated hosting So i will suggest you to buy both and redirect the 2) www.e-webexample.com to 1st one.
I don't like any prefixes such as i or e, but definately the first example, reduce the number of extra characters and make it easier for users to type.
Thanks for your advice K and CN. In a perfect world, you wouldnt use prefixes such as "i" or "e" or "-", however they provide you with an easy option of utilising a popular key word. If i didnt use such prefixes, I would either have to outlay a large amount of money to purchase the clean one which may not even be available for sale or have a domain that is longer or doesnt represent what my site is about.
Longer Domain Registration Can Increase Search Engine Listings What ever domain you register, register it to the max. years! Google recently filed United States Patent Application 20050071741. As part of that patent application, Google made apparent its efforts to wipe out search engine spam, stating: 'Valuable (legitimate) domains are often paid for several years in advance, while doorway (illegitimate) domains rarely are used for more than a year. Therefore, the date when a domain expires in the future can be used as a factor in predicting the legitimacy of a domain and, thus, the documents associated therewith." Herein lies another opportunity for you to reach search engine supremacy. Domains registered for longer periods give the indication, true or not, that their owners are legitimate. Google uses a domain's length of registration when indexing and ranking a Web site for inclusion in their organic search results. To prove to everyone that your site is here to stay, register your domain names(s) for more than one year and increase your chances of boosting your search ranking on Google. If you are a company, why would you want to deal with renewing your domain every year? Not to mention that you often get a discount for purchasing a domain for a longer term. Google has just given you another reason to look long term. In addition to Google, other major search engines also consider the term of a domain registration as a small part of their algorithm, which is used to determine organic rankings of a Web site in their search engine. The search engine business model provides the most relevant, valuable, and useful Web sites to their visitors. Web site owners who have a long-term business plan and domain registration usually fit this mold. Some Web site visitors also check how long a domain is registered as part of their own due diligence to determine the legitimacy of a business or company by doing a look-up on http://www.whois.net to find out if your domain expires in less than a year. Registering a domain name for a few extra years is a sound investment. Inspired by this insight myself, I just added five additional years of registration to my domain http://www.visionefx.net now set to expire in the year 2011. I plan to be around until then and hopefully much longer. What about you?
Thank you everyone for your help. I am now the very proud owner of my very own domain name. I purchased it through GoDaddy.com and with a coupon i have registered it for 3 years for just over $20. I went with the one that doesnt have the dash. Now that I have purchased the domain, does it hurt for me to share the actual domain i purchased, or am I better off keeping it close to my chest until i arrange hosting and actually have a site to show?
I know the feeling of owning your first domain. But actually you don't own it, you just lease it for a certain amount of time.
Go for the first domain without the hyphen, this only confuses visitors. If the domain has been used for a similar site, then I see no problems, you might even take advantage of already existing backlinks.
Thanks alot. Well it looks like I have got the right domain. I am wanting to start a site/service where i supply detailed indepth reviews on people's websites, and offer suggestions on how they can improve their site, traffic and revenue. The domain i have chosen is www.ewebreview.com.au I am quite happy with the domain name, considering that i got the words "web" and "review" in it, and the only sacrifice i had to make was the "e" at the front of the domain. Do you think that my domain name is ok, or should i be looking for something else. Also, now i have a domain name, should i be trying to build up backlinks, or should i be waiting until i actually have a site?
If those were the only 2 to choose from, you definately made the right decision going with the 1st option.
The first option is much better for branding as people will easily forget sites with hyphens in them.