Domain Names Tutorial

© 2003 Blaine Krietzberg

Got a Small Business? Choose the Right Domain Name

Choosing a domain name can be daunting. Research the subject (after all, you're the type of marketer who researches, right?) and you'll be hit with a landslide of opinions, most contradictory. There are, however, two points that everyone agrees on:

1. Pick your domain before you launch your business. This is especially true if your market niche has lots of competition. Research your domain before you commit to a business plan.
   
   
2. Don't wait too long if you like a domain. While you're researching, you'll likely come across a couple of domains that attract you. You might be tempted to wait, since you haven't finalized or refined your business plan. Don't. A handful of domains isn't going to cost you much at an affordable registrar like GoDaddy, and once they're gone, they're gone. Chances are you can even resell the rejects at cost, if not a profit. Or "develop" them with unique content and point them to your main site for extra traffic.

Which TLD (top-level domain) is best?

If you're a juggernaut in the business world with a giant ad budget, the answer is dot-com (.com). If you're a smalltime business struggling for search engine positioning, the answer is still dot-com.

People do disagree on the value of a dot-com TLD. Some assert that dot-coms have no particular value in the search engines, which may be true.

However, the fact is, if you haven't yet seared your brand on the collective brow of the planet, dot-com makes you easier to remember. If you give up on dot-coms (they're harder to get), then in some deep dark place inside, people will remember you as "that hard-to-remember URL with the ending that isn't dot-com." What's worse, if you pick an otherwise memorable domain name ending in dot-net, -us, or (God forbid) -tv, some of your traffic will end up at that competitor who snagged the dot-com version of your domain.

Okay, that's settled. Now for the controversial stuff. Which is best: the "keyword" domain, or the "creative-genius, snappy and brandable" domain?

Keyword Name vs. Creative-Genious Brandable Name

A Keyword Name is the boring, workhorse kind of domain. You see them everywhere. They bristle with hyphens: "best-anchovy-pizza-in-siberia.com." Or "super-labrador-accessories-and-golfballs.biz." On the face of it, they're hard to brand. They're hard to fit on business cards. They're really hard to explain over the phone to Aunt Martha.

On the other hand, a Creative-Genius Brandable Name is the sexy kind. The successes are sparkling: Yahoo!, Google, Amazon.com. You can shout these URLs across the room and the other guy will probably get it right. But note: the dot-com road is littered with hip, snappy business who failed to brand their product successfully, or get listed high in the search engines. Now their URLs all point to the same page: "server not found …"

The debate rages on, but the first question you must ask yourself is:

How will people find you?

It was recently reported that "direct navigation" web traffic has started to outnumber search engine traffic. In other words, more people visit sites by typing in the URL directly than they do by combing search engines for results. So more gurus are recommending ‘brandable' domains.

But think about this. As a small business owner, how will people find you? Word of mouth? Billboards on I-95? "Corporate sponsorships" on hockey arenas? Probably not: they'll find you through search engines. They'll type in "cheap purple widgets," and as a smart marketer, you will offer them a website optimized for the keywords "cheap purple widgets."

Still, this doesn't imply you should automatically pick a keyword domain. There are pros and cons to both types.

Brandable: Advantages

The brandable domain is great for business cards. In fact, it's nearly compulsory if you're planning on offline marketing. In other words, if you're printing up stationary at Kinkos, you want a brandable domain name.

If you're also a marketing genius, this is a fit challenge for your talents. Finding a memorable, apt domain to brand your business is something no software-driven suggestion tool can do.

Most "hybrid" domains -- ones that are really crosses between keywords and brandable names -- are long gone. But if you create a unique idea for your brand, you can probably snag the dot-com name for yourself. Now all you have to do is burn that brand onto the world's collective forehead. If you do, you'll benefit from type-in traffic. That means that if someone hears about you, they can probably find you just buy typing in your domain.

Brandable: Disadvantages

The brandable name requires solid marketing skill, research and luck. Your name should be so catchy, it's almost viral. It should also convey your actual business – or you'll have to work hard (often meaning, spend money) to associate the two. Your name should be "tested" on coworkers, cousins and dishwasher repairmen to ensure it has no undesirable connotations. Finally, your name should be available as a domain, and not suffer from competitors with similar domains. Sometimes, pulling all this off is difficult.

Keyword: Advantages

By keyword names, we're not talking about the glorious generic keywords – the one-keyword kings such as drugs.com or business.com. No, we're talking keyword names you can afford.

This is where you buy the domain name www.cheap-purple-widgets.com in hopes of getting a top search ranking for cheap purple widgets.

Advantages are many. First, more keyword names are available. (They're ugly, and many people feel an aversion to hyphens.) Also, they do help you place higher in the search engines. It's true that search engines only give you a little credit for having a keyword in your domain, but "a little credit" counts.

Second, keyword domains leave no doubt in the searcher's mind about what you're selling. If you decided to call your widget business "Ableeza," a searcher might not get at a glance what it is you're selling, even if your rank is high.

Finally, if you can get people to link to you, those links will be valuable. No matter how Webmaster Joe describes you, the link part will always say, "cheap-purple-widgets." This is a powerful search engine strategy for moving higher.

Keywords: Disadvantages

You won't get type-in traffic for a keyword name. You can't really explain it across a phone. It won't look pretty on a business card, and it's almost impossible to pair up with a cute logo. But if search engine traffic is going to drive your business, the keyword name is worth a long, hard look.

Wrap Up Time

Regardless of which type you choose, don't play guessing games. If you go with a keyword name, use a search tool (like 7search ) to determine what keyword phrases people are searching on.

If you choose a brandable name instead, test it out on a variety of real people first. Pay attention to their reactions. Reserve your domain early, since brandable domains go fast unless they're very unique.

In the long run, both types of domains can work for you, especially if offline marketing is an option and you have a knack for branding. Overall, though, the keyword domain is probably the easiest path to success for the small-business owner.

(How to) Buy a Cheap Domain Name

Domain name registrars all do pretty much the same things: register domains. Yet they vary in price by quite a bit. Why?

Generally, the reason has to do with reputation and name recognition. Older, more established registrars get to charge more. Newcomers drive traffic by undercutting their competitors and trying to over-deliver on services.

In fact, the vast majority of the eighteen bazillion registrars you see today are really domain name resellers. Resellers buy in bulk from a handful of official ICANN registrars, which include such stalwarts as eNom.com, Register.com and Dotster.com. You can find a current list of actual registrars (not resellers) by checking out this list at the Internic. Not a long list, is it?

TIP: When investigating an unfamiliar reseller, see if they report how many TLDs (top-level domains) they handle. They should have well over 1,000.

ICANN originals, relying on cachet and name recognition, usually charge more than resellers. Cheeky Register.com doesn't even display its fees until you click on the tiny "Pricing" link at the bottom ($35 per domain, it turns out). eNom is only slightly less rich-blooded at $29.95 — though they throw in a flexible "domain package." (To its credit, eNom has many adherents — many of whom are professional domain name buyers, who get a different pricing structure).

Resellers, on the other hand, can often be found selling at the blood-letting rate of $7.95 to $12-ish. This may seem disingenious when you realize that they can't buy domains for much, if anything, less than $7.00. For many resellers, cheap domain names are so-called loss leaders. If they make any money, it's by upselling you on extra services such as web hosting or email packages. Fierce competition between resellers puts you, the buyer, in the pink — but it can put resellers in the red.

So, which to choose: reseller or ICANN registrar? Normally, I'd say reseller. The price is right, and many have terrific customer service — better, perhaps, than ICANN registrars on average. However, resellers can pose the risk of going out of business, however unlikely that may be for any particular reseller. And a few have an unsavory reputation when it comes to saying goodbye — that is, they make it hard for you to transfer domains out, should you decide you prefer some other registrar.

TIP: Whichever registrar or reseller you choose, check for a powerful control panel that allows you to manage your own domains (e.g., lets you change nameservers by yourself).

For these reasons — customer service, pricing, stability and word-of-mouth reputation — my #1 personal recommendation for a cheap domain name is GoDaddy.com. Despite the eclectic name and reseller-style pricing ($8.95 for a dot-com, with occasional discounts and promotions), GoDaddy is actually an ICANN registrar. It also has a reputation for service and professionalism (no surly "goodbye" games) and a good control panel.

I love GoDaddy's features and have had no trouble at all. In fact, they've sailed through some tricky situations, like when I tried to transfer in domains that my old registrar had locked. However, I have heard that it may be harder to transfer domains out.

I also get a little tired of the clutter you face (screens of upselling accompany each registration) when registering new domains. Be sure to have your coffee first, lest you accidentally order a small country such as Lichtenstein when you were merely wanting to grab hold of MyVanitySite.com.

Still, once registered, the features and interface are simply wonderful, as is the price. Therefore I recommend GoDaddy for the "small-time" domain name buyer. (Based on reputation, I would probably recommend eNom for the professional domain name buyer).

About the Author

Blake Kritzberg is a copywriter, web designer, and proprietor of http://www.buy-the-domain-name.com .   This article may be freely reprinted so long as this resource box and URL are preserved. Visit the website for more information on choosing, buying, selling and registering domain names.

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