Choosing a domain name, at first glance, would appear to be the simplest of things to do when starting out on a new venture. However, before choosing your domain name, just take a few steps back. Speak to our domain and design team first. There is more to it than simply choosing and jumping straight in by registering a domain name.
As you can possibly imagine the internet has been in existence for many years now, so the chances are, unless you are extremely lucky to have a unique and catchy USP or brand the chances are someone else has either thought about it, registered it or even used the first domain name that you choose. Your first instinct would be to choose a variation that might perhaps include the use of the hyphen. Nice and simple and only costs a few pounds to register your new domain.
Web Design Derby
But.. let’s give an example, say you wanted to start a Web Design firm in Derby. What do you choose? You want “www.WebDesignDerby” but it’s taken. Don’t forget domain names don’t use capital letters.
If you are extremely lucky the use of the hyphen in a domain name might work for you. So you opt for “WebDesign-Derby”.
Now you come to use your domain as your email address. Try telling someone your email address when it has the hyphen within the domain, plus perhaps your full name: john.smith@webdesign-derby plus of course the .co.uk to make up the domain extension.
Frankly, you will be quite astonished to know that there are a lot of people do not actually know where the hyphen is on a keyboard. So you start using the word “dash” to explain your domain name or email address. You will hear people say “do you mean the little line”, so to make it easier next time you will say the “the little line”. People will then say is that the one in the middle or at the bottom. You thought choosing a domain was easy!
So now your domain name is quite lengthy and difficult to explain. Don’t you wish you spoke to our design and domain team first?
You can see why choosing your domain name is far more complex than it first seems.
Choose the right Domain Name
Once you have overcome the desire to use a hyphen, you have to think about the search algorithms that Google and other search engines use. Will Google recognise you have brought two or maybe three words together. As we said domain names don’t use capital letters. What if Google gets confused. “Webdesignderby” was taken, you didn’t want to use the hyphen so you chose webdesignersderby. But wait, where is “Ersderby”, maybe Google actually sees “WebDesign ErsDerby”.
Still, you go for it, you register “webdesignersderby”. Two years later your business is very successful. You start designing brochures and leaflets for clients. Perhaps you start to offer web hosting. But your domain name only says you are webdesigners. You have not mentioned these other services you provide. How is Google going to find you and suggest you as relevant for web hosting if your domain says “webdesign firm in ErsDerby”
So now we have to think of the longevity of the company and the future plans…. This very straight forward process of registering a domain is suddenly more complex that you ever realised. Talk to our domain name and branding team. Don’t get stuck in ErsDerby…