A lot of thought needs to go into choosing a domain name for your website. After all, you will have to live with that choice for a long time. To make this rather daunting task a bit easier, here are five things you must consider when choosing your domain name:
- Keep it short – Length matters due to fluency and memory issues. Domain names that have fewer characters are easier to type and recall, too. Likewise, they will be easier to say and share. Besides, long URLs typically get compressed or may not fully show on certain platforms, like mobile and social media.
- Make sure it can serve as a brand name, too – Your domain name must be marketable and ‘brandable’. This means it should sound like a brand in itself. Try saying it out loud to determine if it sounds like a brand itself or if it sounds generic or strange. Hyphens and numbers may prevent your domain name from sounding like a brand. Make sure that it is memorable and stand-out, too, so you may want to avoid generic strings of keywords on the domain name.
- Make sure it is easy to pronounce – It is important for your domain name to be easy to pronounce by anyone, including yourself. That way, anyone can easily get it when you tell them how they can find your business online. Keep your target audience in mind, the language they speak, and the countries or regions where they live in when determining if your domain name is pronounceable.
- Avoid a domain name that sounds like another company or business – You need to be careful when choosing a domain name to make sure that it will not infringe on another business or entity. If your domain name sounds like another business, it may confuse your customers and they may end up typing the URL of the other business.
- The web host – Choose a domain name registration specialist that can help you pick your domain name. Make sure it can provide services like DNS management, domain theft protection, 24/7 support, and a free email account.
