How To Choose a Perfect Domain Name (12 Powerful Tips)

Going to start a website? Cool. But struggling to find the perfect domain name? Don’t worry.

Starting a website requires a domain name & web hosting (Get free WordPress blog setup here). While web hosting is easy to choose & buy, a domain name is quite difficult to choose.

Why?

Because web hosting can be changed. You can jump from one to another. But, this is not the case in the domain name. Changing your domain name affects SEO & URLs to become invalid.

Hence, the domain names should be chosen carefully to avoid the above scenario.

If you are confused about where to buy domain names, I & many professionals recommend Namecheap as you get domain names at a cheap cost with WHOIS privacy.

Tips To Choose a Perfect Domain Name

Here are the tips to choose a perfect domain name for your website. Follow these guidelines & tips to find yourself the domain name you want.

Let’s get started.

1. Go with .com (if available)

Everyone says “Buy a .com domain name.” Why? Because it is a widely used & recognizable domain name.

Almost all websites use the .com extension. It is used by many users. Many users always type .com at the end of an URL because it is popular.

If .com domain name is not available, go with other popular TLDs such as .net, .org, etc.

2. Avoid Weird Extensions

Over these years, new extensions have been introduced like .xyz, .space, .live, .club, etc.

If you have chosen your perfect domain name but if it is not available, you may consider these extensions. But, you have to avoid these extensions at any cost.

Why?

Because they are new & are difficult to rank in search engines (as compared to TLDs). Furthermore, people are comfortable with .com & if you use these extensions, they may think your website is spam.

3. Consider ccTLD

If you are targeting an audience from a country, consider using country code TLD. Why? It will help your website to rank in that country.

For example –

• .uk for United Kingdom,
• .in for India,
• .us for USA,
• .eu for Europe,
• .ca for Canada, etc.

But, it is not necessary to use ccTLD only. You can go with .com too.

4. Buy Other Extensions Too

You have chosen a domain name & bought the .com domain. Consider buying other popular extensions too such as .net, .org, etc.

Why? Because you don’t want to lose your audience.

What if someone bought the same domain name with another extension? Part of your audience will go to the other website.

For example, if your domain name is sample.com, buy others too – sample.net, sample.org.

Again, you have to pay a much higher price if someone has already bought your domain name with other extensions.

5. Buy Misspellings Too

If your domain name is complicated or difficult to spell & you think that typos may occur, buy the names that you may think people will type.

For example – separate/seperate, necessary/neccessary, etc.

Again, if you are using homophones (same pronunciation, different words) like ‘write’, people may type ‘right’. Hence, buy both names.

Other examples – buy/by, piece/peace, plain/plane, etc.

6. Keep it Short & Simple

Short domain names are easy to remember & easy to type. Preferably, keep it under 15 characters. A short domain is always better than a long one.

Choose simple names that are easy to pronounce. Avoid hyphens, numbers, weird words that people don’t know. Avoid long & hard words that are difficult to type or pronounce.

7. Check For Trademarks

You bought a domain name only to know that the name is trademarked & owned by someone. Guess what. Legal actions can be taken that can cost you money.

Hence, check if the name you selected is trademarked or not. If it is not trademarked, go ahead & buy it.

Once you buy your domain name & set up your website, register your name (trademark it if you are looking to build a brand ahead).

8. Check Domain History

What if your domain name was owned previously by someone who has done something illegal (spamming) on it? It may be already banned from search engines.

Therefore, do some research on your domain name. Check when & how it was used. Whether it is banned from search engines. A spammy domain is difficult or impossible to rank.

9. Check For Social Media Usernames

If you are building a brand, a presence on social media is necessary. Thus, check if your name is available on popular social media platforms.

You can do this easily by using the Knowem tool. It shows you whether your name is available on social media or not. It also shows if it’s trademarked or not.

10. Use Domain Name Generators

If you are struggling to find yourself a perfect domain name, consider using domain name generators.

Some of the popular generators are Nameboy, LeanDomainSearch, etc.

11. Use Keyword

If possible, consider using a good keyword related to your website’s niche (topic). Why?

Your website may rank better in search engines for that keyword. There are many examples of this.

If your topic is technology, use ‘tech’, ‘gadget’ keyword in your domain name. If topic is health, use ‘health’, ‘fitness’, etc.

12. Act Fast!

Completed all the above steps & found your perfect domain name? Then what are you waiting for? Go ahead, buy it before anyone else grabs it.

You can buy from Namecheap at the cheapest rate. The good thing is that you get WHOIS privacy protection for free (which is compulsory).

You can also get a free domain name along with web hosting on Hostinger, Bluehost & HostGator.

Conclusion

So, these were some tips to choose a domain name. Hope you have got your domain name.

Following these tips will ensure that your domain name is secure & rankable.

Good luck!

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