This is an important one to get right – it’s how people will find you online! Use our top tips to make sure that you avoid costly mistakes while getting the best possible domain name to suit your business, market and audience.
- KISS – Keep It Simple Stupid – ok so ‘stupid’ is not a very nice word but this basic marketing principle definitely illustrates the point. Ensure your domain name is simple to remember, simple to spell AND simple to type – for everyone out there on the world wide web.
- While keeping things…keep it short too. The shorter the better as it reduces the risk of mistyping, misspelling and just not remembering what it was. Short and to the point is the way to go.
- Use keywords – now this doesn’t mean stuff your domain name with all the possible keywords, it still needs to make sense. If you can secure a domain name that includes your broad keyword/s then it does make great business sense and can even improve your search engine ranking too.
- Avoid using hyphens and numbers – they can just be confusing and lead to errors while typing out your URL or your website into a search engine. If you must use numbers (it’s part of your business name for example) then you would be advised to secure the domains with both the numbers and the numbers spelt out – just to cover your bases.
- Make it localised – in order to make the most of Google’s local marketing algorithm and to appeal to your local audience, consider including your region, city or state in your domain name so you are easier to remember and find.
- Be remembered – pretty self-explanatory!
- Use the right extension – while .com is obviously the most popular extension, there are many to choose from (see below for additional information on .com.au and .net.au):
- .biz – used for commercial and business sites such as eCommerce sites
- .co – used for commerce, community and company sites
- .info – used for informational sites
- .me – used for personal sites, blogs and resumes
- .net – used for Internet infrastructure sites and those of a technical nature.\
- .org – used for not for profits, charities and non-commercial organisationa
- Do your research – mark sure that your domain name will work for your business, your audience, your products and services, and it hasn’t already been used, trademarked or copyrighted by someone else.
- Protect what you’ve built – consider securing the domain names that offer variations of your chosen domain name. If you are planning to build a brand based on this domain then it’s imperative you protect it – secure those that both include the numbers and the numbers written in words, secure the region, state AND city to protect your local domination, and consider securing the same domain but with the different extensions.
- Just do it – with more and more websites going live every day it’s important to secure the right domain for your business as soon as possible otherwise it might not be there when you eventually get around to it. You can get started here
In Australia we have specific regulations relating to who is able to register domain names with a .au extension. As an overview, you must meet one of the following criteria in order to register a .com.au or .net.au extension:
- Australian registered company
- Trading under an Australian registered business name
- Australian partnership or sole trader
- Owner or applicant of an Australian registered Trademark
- A foreign company with a licence to trade within Australia
