Domains: Choosing Domain Names

"Karol K" wrote several articles that have been published at WinningWP.com.

Here are my take-aways from those articles:


Of course, I recommend that you read the articles, or at least follow up on what I've highlighted below:

22 Essential Tips

1. Always go for the .com
2. Experiment with local TLDs if it makes sense
3. Consider experimenting with non-traditional TLDs (.design, .club, .ly, .it, and others)
4. Consider buying the other main TLDs
5. Choose a brandable name (unique, easy to memorize, easy to pronounce, sounds trustworthy)
6. Keep it short, simple, and predictable
7. Buy the common misspellings of your domain name
8. Use a thesaurus for domain name ideas
9. Help yourself to some domain name generators
10. Choose a domain name you can legally own
11. Don’t sweat it if your perfect domain name is taken — contact the owner to try to get it
12. Don’t sweat it if your perfect domain name is taken and can’t be obtained
13. Be careful when buying existing domain names
14. Check the domain history via Wayback Machine
15. Check the domain history via who.is
16. Register your corresponding social media handles
17. Pick a trustworthy domain registrar
18. Shop around to find the best price
19. Lock the domain so it can’t be stolen
20. Always register your domain name by yourself
21. Consider enabling domain ID protection
22. Set your domain to auto-renew

I really like [1] "Always go for the dot-com" because that is the automatic, go-to extension people type after they type in the name. It's an automatic response. If someone gives you a toll-free number, you'll probably enter "1-800" then look up the remaining 7 digits and completely ignore the "1-888" printed in front.

[4.] Other TLDs and [7.] Common Misspellings are two points that go hand-in-hand, along with another tip Karol didn't list: "Similar Names." Examples:

• I register ...(name)theater.com and ...(name)theatre.com when working with sites for live performances. The former is most commonly used in the US, but the latter is preferred by theatre fans.
• Many people are familiar with the Drudge Report, and will visit the site at DrudgeReport.com. However, someone registered Drudge.com and set up a site titled "Drudge Retort." An unsuspecting visitor might end up at the wrong site from time to time. (I have!)

Obtaining social media handles [16] should be the first thing you do after your domain name registration is confirmed!

[17.] Trustworthy and [18.] Price depend on how much you value your time. Domain registration is now pretty much a commodity purchase. [Waring: a Rix Analogy ahead] You can buy milk in a lot of places, from a convenience store to a grocery store, and even some drug stores! How much time are you willing to drive between them to shop for the best price for something you only buy once a year? In her Price example, the author found a $25 difference between the lowest and highest price. (I do agree with one visitor's comment that GoDaddy is not a good choice.)

[20.] Register your own domain is something I fervently believe in!! It's for your own protection. I am a domain registrar, myself. If you visit A Better Computer Inc. you'll see constant references to creating a free account for yourself. This is so that if we do work together at some time in the future, my work will be done in your name. Always. 

You can register your domain through me at ABCInc Domains. My prices are on par with GoDaddy, but the premium add-ons are cheaper. Add-ons are "sold separately," and include domain forwarding, privacy protection, [21.] (recommended!), and static IP addresses.

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If you still need help researching the perfect domain name for your business, Karol has reviewed 10 websites that can help you. Here are the sites, and the link the Karol's review is at the bottom.

1. Lean Domain Search
2. Business Name Generator (by Shopify)
3. Name Stall
4. Nameby
5. Domain Maker (by Bust-a-name)
6. Domain Puzzler
7. Impossibility!
8. Domains BOT
9. Name Mesh
10. Domain Typer

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Bibliography

All links open in new tabs:

• "22 Essential Tips for Choosing the Best Possible Domain Name for a Website (2018)"
• "Top 10 Best Domain Name Generator Tools for Finding the Perfect Domain Name in 2018"
• "Do You Really Need The .com Domain Name? Plus Other Options!" Added 2020; bottom line "Google might not penalize you for using a different top level domain, but we strongly recommend sticking with the .com anyway. Most people will search for you using the .com first."
• Domain Registration
• ABCInc-Domains.com 
• NameCheap.com