How to choose a domain name

Here are some pointers we have collected to help you decide when registering a new domain name or buying an existing one.

1. The name passes the so-called “radio test.” By this is meant that the domain name can be understood if said on the radio. Try to avoid domain names with dash or hyphen (”-”) or underscore (”_”) as part of the names. One needs to spell out the whole domain name with the dash, hyphen or underscore which sometimes sound very awkward.

You must have heard of radio commercials of websites where the site names are spelled out. This is because they have the names with hyphen or the names have been so over-stylised that they need to be spelled out. For example: Some domain names use “ozzie” instead of “aussie” that the owner or whoever is saying it has to tell the listeners the domain name letter-by-letter.

2. Easy to remember. Like any product name, the domain name should be easy to remember. Which one would you easily remember? ONLYINAUSTRALIA.COM or ONLYINAUST.COM?

3. The domain name is descriptive. The domain should at least give an idea of the type of site it is. For example, a site name like INTERNETPROPERTIESBROKER.COM is quite descriptive.

4. The domain name contains keywords. SEO experts claim that getting a website listed higher in search engines is made easier if a domain as well as its content contain searchable keywords. And the less keywords a domain contains, more instances of it will be shown in search results. Example: SENDMAIL.COM.AU could generate more traffic than FASTSENDMAIL.COM.AU

5. If you have a choice, choose a .com extension (or for a regional TLD, example, .com.au) as this extension stands a better chance of being searched than the same domain name with different extension. This is simply because most people are more familiar with .com over other extensions. The .com has become sort of a household name. That said, it does not mean that other extensions will not work well. We know a number of successful websites using other extensions like .net, .org, and .info. An example of a successful website with a .net extension is TEXTCAFE.NET.

By the way: The websites operating under the domain names SENDMAIL.COM.AU, ONLYINAUSTRALIA.COM, INTERNETPROPERTIESBROKER.COM, and TEXTCAFE.NET are affiliates of this website.

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