How to choose the perfect domain name

How long should a domain name be?

There can sometimes be a tricky balance between getting a domain name that is too short, or one that is too long. Here are a few pointers:

• It should be short enough for your customers to easily remember
• It should be short enough to fit on your printed stationery or on the side of your van
• It should be short enough that it’s not a mouthful when said out loud
• It should be long enough to include your business name in it, to improve brand recognition
• It should be long enough to tell potential customers who you are and what you do

A related factor to consider is whether it is easy to spell. Unless your business name and the way it is spelt is widely known, you should ensure that your domain name doesn’t contain words that could easily be mis-typed.

TIP: If your company name is often mis-spelt, consider registering both the correctly spelt and wrongly spelt domain names, to ensure you’re not missing out on any potential new customers.

How domain names affect SEO

A domain name is essential for customers finding you online, but unless you have the right domain name it may be hard for them to find your particular one amongst everyone else’s. The Internet is growing all the time so it’s important you stand out from the crowd and get found by the right customers. Here are some tips that will help you choose a domain name that boosts your SEO and online visibility:

• If you’re a UK business targeting UK customers choose a .co.uk domain
• If you have international customers or want to extend your reach, then pick a .com domain
• If you only serve a specific city or area, then consider including it within the domain name
• If you are in a particular trade (eg plumbing) then register a domain name that includes that word

Google will often use keywords from the domain to understand what your website is about and how relevant it is to location-based search queries. For example, if you’re a plumber in Guildford then having ‘guildfordplumbing’ in your domain name could cause your website to be displayed for users in Guildford that are searching for a plumber.

In short, to make yourself as visible as possible you need a domain name that is suitable for your market, as well as one that clearly shows who and where you are.

How the right domain name can help your brand

Consider the following: someone sees one of your vans going around town, they type your company name into Google and you’re not on there. That’s a potential customer you’ve just lost. Or what if, even worse, they type in your company name but end up on a competitor's website? That’s another company profiting from your hard work.

Here’s how to make sure your domain name helps your brand:

Register more than one

Register your domain name in as many relevant extensions as you can, in order to avoid a competitor doing so instead. A good starting point is to register .co.uk, .uk and .com. For any UK business, those are probably the three most essential ones.

Both .co.uk and .uk will showcase the fact that you’re British, and .com can introduce you to a wider audience. In some web browsers, if you don’t type in the domain extension, it will actually default to .com, so if you don’t have the .com you could be missing out there.

Remember — three domain names doesn’t mean three websites. You put your website on the primary domain (.co.uk if you’re a UK business) and then forward the other two there.

Register any common mis-spellings

If your business name is commonly mis-spelt, there’s a good chance your domain name will be too. Think about how people that aren’t familiar with your business might possibly spell it and make sure that you have a matching domain name.

There are many words in the English language that sound the same when said out loud but are spelt differently depending on the context. For example: ‘weather’ or ‘whether’; ‘buoy’ or ‘boy’; ‘pain’ or ‘pane’ etc. If your domain includes such a word, consider registering the alternative spelling as well.

Add a website and email

Registering the domain name is just the first step. You want to make sure that when people type it into their phone or computer there is something for them to look at. For this to happen you’ll need a website plan adding to the domain. It doesn’t need to be a top end one - even a basic website will do the job. It’ll let people know you’re open for business and give them a way of contacting you.

And with an email address as well, your contacts will see your domain name every time they receive an email from you. It’ll look far more professional and make a much more memorable first impression.

Your brand name is one of your most important business assets, so by protecting it online you’ll be securing it for yourself and making it work for you, whilst also denying it to others.

Legal checks before you register a domain

A key step that some businesses often overlook when registering their domain is whether it could infringe on any existing trademarks. This is important, as not doing these checks could open you up to costly legal claims.

You can search for a trademark on the government website, by entering relevant keywords or terms. Any existing trademarks that contain those words will be displayed to you. If the words you want to include in your domain name are very similar to an existing trademark, consider altering your domain name.

You should also try to avoid domain names that could potentially mislead or confuse customers. This could happen by making them think you are something you're not, or that you're associated with a well-known brand or person. Here are some examples:

• If you're not a bank then avoid putting the word 'bank' in the domain
• If you don't work with Amazon then don't have 'amazonservices' in the domain
• Don't use names of celebrities or well-known public figures

In short, your domain name needs to be an honest representation of yourself or your business. It shouldn’t give a false impression, mislead people or attempt to capitalise on the brand power of a global company.