How to Choose a Search-Effective Domain Name

I question I get quite often is the domain name matters when it comes to Search Engine Optimization. As we all know it matters when it comes to user friendliness. It should be short, but still allow the user to know what to find on the site. Too long domain names are easily forgotten or misspelled. For usability, keep it short and let it describe your site.

When it comes to search engines your domain name matters more than one could think. If you have a website about, let’s say traveling in Europe, the domain name should contain some information about this. A good example would be www.travelineurope.com (probably already taken though). It should not be www.lets-go-travel.com, since this does not tell anything about your content. You should really try to have your primary keywords in the domain name in order to make the search engines happy, and they will rank your site higher.

So when you’re about to launch a new site, take a moment and think about it. What is your site about? What are the keywords that you’re going to optimize your site for? If you have no idea what I’m talking about I suggest that you read a bit about SEO (Search Engine Optimization) before choosing the domain name. That will give you a good base to stand on before choosing your domain name.

If you have some ideas of your domain name, you can use this neat tool to find out if it’s already taken or not: www.free-web-names.com.

Good luck with your domain name and your new site!