Choosing a domain name
When choosing a domain name promote your UK business, with a brand that encapsulates your product or services. It pays to depict your business with the same name as the title of a website; or a business brand people will remember and enable them to find you on the internet.
Think before buying about how the website structure will develop. Identify business associated keywords and group these into themes. The names of URL's and sub-directories, should clearly indicate there content. Our analysis for this website concluded, that it should include the word 'website' and the sub-directories 'design', 'search-engine' and 'promotion'. Finally choosing asimplewebsite.co.uk as it is easily remembered and truly reflects our approach.
Alternatively you may be fortunate to own a well known brand and want to use it. If not obtain a domain first, which encapsulates the essence of your products or services and then use this for the title. We use UK REG to check availability and register names. Your first choice is likely to be already taken! Don't give up, if it took you a lot of time and money to establish that brand. Explore buying it at a cost from the current owner or consider another extension '.uk', '.com', '.net' etc.
Long or short - Hyphenate
- A domain should mirror your brand, products or services. Unfortunately very short meaningful ones have in the main already been sold.
- Note the maximum length of a domain is 67 and the extension 4 characters, so it can be relevant and contain a keyword or phrase, which will improve the chance of high ranking. I would avoid an over long name, as these are hard to remember, prone to typing errors and individual page url's can be cut short by some search engines.
- Using a hyphen may get the short name you want and initially provides higher ranking but this is only short lived; as after time search engines recognise keywords within a non hyphenated domain. A considerable disadvantage is verbal communication problems and typing errors sending users to a competitor. The same problem is created with using plurals unless you own the singular version as well.
Alphabetical placement
A large number of the directories which provide information to search engines, list alphabetically by website title. Search engines concentrate on content and ranking; but generally seem to very slightly favour domains which start at the beginning of the alphabet. Some ignore digits and only look at the first letter, so I would avoid choosing a domain starting with a digit unless it forms part of a compelling branding argument; but certainly look at choosing a name starting with A B or C.
What domain extension to use
This is usually a balanced decision between availability of the ideal name and the extension for the market you are targeting. Is your business very country specific or would it benefit from an international audience. In this country people would expect a UK domain knowing the company is based in the United Kingdom or '.com' if it was an international business and think '.org' was a not for profit organisation. Think also about brand protection by securing names with other extensions.
Finally choosing a name to remember
We specialise in simple website design and as part of our affordable managed website service we are happy to help.