It’s hard to find a good domain name these days. There are people out there that scarf up all the domain names and then try to resell them. But there are still some good domain names out there that you can get and this article should help you.
Make it Memorable
The first thing you want to is create a domain name that people will remember after you leave. One of the things I’ve seen lately is domains that are actually phrases. They are less likely to have been picked up already and they are easy to remember.
Buy Your Domain Name at GoDaddy
I have been using Go Daddy (www.godaddy.com) for several years and have dozens of domains with them. They are one of the cheapest name registrars out there and they have a good interface for making changes. I wouldn’t recommend their hosting, however. And I would stay away from Network Solutions. They are about $35 per year, while Go Daddy is about $9 per year. Don’t even look up a domain name on Network Solutions because they will put a hold on it for at least four days and not allow you to register with another domain name registrar.
Make it Easy to Spell
Your domain will be all over the place and you’ll want to make it as easy to spell as possible. You’ll want to be able to tell someone over the phone without repeating 15 times. It’s not a good idea to put numerals in the name because it is difficult as well to communicate verbally.
Make it Short as Possible
Ditto to previous point, except that the longer the domain name, the more likely they will spell it wrong when typing in.
Use Your Company Name if it’s Short
It’s okay to use to the name of your company if it’s not too long. This is good for branding your company in print and in your emails.
Stay Away from Dashes and Underscores
Dashes and underscores can also be hard to explain over the phone or in a conversation. I have used a dash in one of my domain and has consistently been on the front page of Yahoo for “business articles”
The search engines like sites that have been around for a while so you can actually buy used domain names that might still have traffic coming to it. You can go to a place like pool.com or useddomains.com to find a domain name that might fit your business.
So, I’ll encourage you to get a domain that is short, memorable and easy to explain. Once you’ve nabbed the perfect domain name keep it for ever. Put it on every piece of documents, email and PowerPoint presentation that you create.