What’s in a name?  Well, as you probably know, quite a lot!  An attractive and compelling “corporate image” for your small business can attract customers and ensure your business makes the best impression possible.  You want to have a professional looking logo, great letterhead, a striking slogan, and, needless to say, a short, memorable domain name.  And you can—but don’t rush into anything, or you could risk losing customers.

On the surface, nothing could be simpler: you need something short and memorable that, ideally includes your company’s name.  Your company’s name becomes synonymous with your Web address, and your customers can easily find you and also easily pass on your correct URL to their friends.  Your business prospers and everybody is happy.

That cheap reliable hosting companies readily allow you to use the domain names of your choice just make the issue simpler.

If your first choice of domain name is already taken, though, you may have to make other plans.  You can always try to purchase the domain name from its owner, or you may have to wait until the registration expires, and then purchase it for yourself.

If that’s what you’re considering, though, you’d better be sure that this name is worth the trouble.  Changing your URL after you’ve already begun doing business can be confusing for your regular customers—not to mention a pain in the neck for you.

If you’ve already got business cards or other promotional materials printed with your original URL, lots of landing pages that point to it, and these and other marketing materials are all set up to go out through your automatic responder email software, changing horses midstream with a new URL may not be worth your while.

If you’re just starting to think about how to build a website, and your first choice for a domain name has been taken, it may be more practical to just go another way.  Spend some time brainstorming with your friends, family, colleagues, and business partners about alternate domain names that may work as well.

You never know!  You may end up with a new domain name that you actually like better than your original idea.

In any event, spending time considering the best domain name possible is never a waste.  A poorly chosen domain name can actually discourage customers, like having an unfashionable address for your brick-and-mortar shop.  An unmemorable domain name is also problematic.

In addition to general considerations like brevity and memorability, you should also try to pick a domain name that would appeal to your target market.  If you’re selling largely in the UK, for example, when you go looking for SEO keywords you’ll want to use a keyword tool UK, not a general one or one intended for the US.  In the same way, when thinking about a domain name, think about the geography, culture, and demographics of your target market.

Above all, you should trust yourself and your instincts.  You can read about effective branding and corporate identities, you can study it online, you can even attend a conference if you wish.  And, if that’s an aspect of being in business for yourself that you enjoy, you should.

If not, and you’ve thought about these basic principles and have them in the back of your mind, you’ll know that right domain name when you see it.

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