Choosing a Domain Name
The best domain names are:
- Short
- Include the company name
- Include major keywords that potential clients may search on
- Memorable
- Available (an increasing difficulty with most short names taken)
The above list of requirements is usually impossible to satisfy completely, and so a compromise must be chosen for the best domain name(s) to use. Many businesses try to register both the .com and .co.uk domain names to avoid confusion with competitors.
Although having major keywords within your domain name is beneficial to natural search engine optimisation (SEO), this is only one small part of SEO and should not be the only criterion for choosing a domain name.
Domain names and branding
If you have a well known company name, then using this in your domain name makes good sense, as your website will be easily identified and your company name strengthened.
For businesses and organisations with a less well known name, choosing a generic domain name that describes the product or service you offer will help market your website in the sort term. But this will be at the expense of longer-term branding or recognition of your business or organisation name. The best choice depends upon your overall objectives. With domain names being relatively cheap, many organisation register several so the others can be used later.
