How Do I Choose A Domain Name?

You’ve decided to start your own business and figured out that you need a website. Great, but now what? Next step is to pick out a domain name, which will generally be your business name. Here’s a quick heads up - make sure to check and see if the domain is actually available before setting in stone your business name. It isn’t always easy finding the right fit for a name, so check out our tips on choosing a good domain name.

Pick A .com

There are any number of top level domain names out there, but .com is the preferred choice and most recognized among users. If you can’t find an available .com that you like, choose a .net or .org as your second choice. Most other domain extensions are not appropriate or too difficult to say, so it’s generally a good idea to steer clear of those.

Shorter is better

Shorter domain names are much easier for people to remember, not to mention typing into their browser. Try to stick with names that are 10 letters or less in length.

Make Sure Your Name Is Easy To Pronounce

There will come a point when you share your domain name with someone over the phone, at a trade show, or in person and you need to consider how easy or difficult it is to say the name you want to use. Is it easy to pronounce? Can people spell it without you having to tell them? Take into consideration the spelling and make sure it is a name people will be familiar with. Also, while it is okay to use dashes as part of your name, it is best if you don’t. People may not remember to include that when they are typing your name into their web browser. If you do use a dash in your domain name, register both the dashed and un-dashed versions.

Search For Your Name On Google

When you have a prospective name in mind, turn to Google and search the name. The idea is to make it easy for people to find you and have a name that has the fewest existing matches on Google. When people search for your site, you want to come up first.

Your Name Should Be Distinctive

A good rule of thumb to follow is that your name should be memorable. A popular trend right now is to combine words and make up a new name (i.e. YouTube). Play around a bit and think of words that have relevancy to your company or service and try adding endings to see what you can come up with. But keep in mind tip number 3 - it should be easy to pronounce and not hard to spell. 

Avoid Domain Trademarks

Perhaps the most important tip we can give you is to avoid using names that include well-known trademarks. You can bet your last dollar that if you register a name with Amazon somewhere in the title, you will be receiving a phone call from Amazon.com’s legal department. In order to avoid the hassle, choose a unique name that is yours alone and doesn’t infringe on another business.

Your name is already taken

It happens often that the domain name you have chosen is already taken. What next? The most obvious choice would be to choose another name. However, sometimes you can try buying the domain name from the current owner. There’s no guarantee that this will work and it can be very expensive if the owner is willing to sell. Unless you have your heart set on a particular name, our advice is to move on, put on your creative hat and come up with another name. 

Keeping your name

Now it’s time to register it with a domain registrar of your choosing. Be sure to use a valid email address when you register your domain so that when it comes time to renew your domain, you will get the notification from the registrar. It can be costly to renew an expired domain, not to mention that someone else might grab it if it becomes available, so also keep on top of your registrations and make sure they renew in a timely manner.

You can start your domain search by going to www.JubileeDomains.com.