One question we all have when starting an online business is how to find the perfect domain name for our website. This is an important process to go through but don’t get stuck on it for weeks, mainly if it is your first business. It is more important to make imperfect steps and keep moving forward every day.
Use your name
If you are part of the lucky people whose name is still available as a domain name, you could use it if you provide a service as a personal brand.
There are several advantages for using your name:
- It is independent from the service or product your offer: if you decide to change your service, the name can still remain the same
- If you have multiple services and websites associated to them, you can still use your name as the main brand where you list all your activities if needed
- It helps others remember your name until you are famous
Match the domain with your website as much as possible
You can’t always perfectly match the domain name with your website name but make sure that the names are similar.
For example, if your website is Great Healthy Eating and your domain name is goodfoodtips.com, people might not remember the URL of your site.
Perception from your audience
How would you like your audience to perceive the name? Is it an informative name related to your business? Is it a word that makes people feel a certain way?
Get feedback from your audience and ask them what the name evokes to them. See if it is aligned with your business values.
Make it short if possible
This is practical but nowadays a good short domain name is hard to find. The longer your domain name is, the more mistakes people can do when typing it online.
Don’t worry too much about the length as most of the time your audience will probably access your website by clicking a link that they received from you or found on Google.
It is rare that someone would type entirely your URL in their web browser without having seen it somewhere else.
A short domain name makes it also easier to type your email address. However, this is not critical: as mentioned above, your contacts will most likely answer one of your emails or use their address book.
Make it memorable
Find a name that is catchy and easy to remember.
You might be influenced by companies that use words that don’t exist but remember that they worked hard until their name became well known. This is something you can afford doing when you succeed with your products.
If you are starting your first business and are challenged to be seen online, use existing words and help your audience remember the name easily.
Check the Social Media Accounts
See if existing social media accounts already use the name.
This is not something important because you can always find workarounds to have a slightly different name but it is practical if you can use a consistent name for all your social media accounts.
Test your name
Test if people can spell the name correctly the first time they hear it.
Mention the name to people who don’t know about your business and notice if they ask you to repeat it a second time.
Don’t be afraid of asking total strangers, you will get valuable feedback from neutral people or engage in discussions that can help clarify what you do.
[Tweet “Test your domain name by asking people how they spell it and what they think your website is about.”]
Get out there
As your business evolves, it is possible that you don’t feel aligned anymore with the name you chose and look for replacing it.
Don’t wait for perfection: go with your favorite name that also fits with your audience.
Keep moving forward on having your business out there, it is how you can receive the best feedback on your work rather than only making guesses.
Now that you have reserved your domain name, if you need help on the next steps to build your website, feel free to download my free checklist here.
If you need some help to select your domain name, click the button below and download the Domain Name Brainstorming worksheet.
I believe that we achieve greater success when we stay true to our core values. My mission is to help you clarify your brand vision so you don’t waste time and money on random marketing activities.
First and foremost I get all the versions of my own name, meaning .com, .net, etc. Luckily I was able to do that. I also choose domain names based on names of programs I create or when I have ideas for programs or ebooks. That way I have it if/when I need it. I usually purchase for one year so I can review it down the road and decide if I still want it or not.
Good point Denise for all the different versions. For example, if people use .fr in France, they should also check if the .com is available and reserve it too.