A Domain by Any Other Name

by | Apr 25, 2009 | SEO | Web Design

I have often said that naming a company is one of the most difficult decisions a business owner makes.  Like your child, if you are successful, you are going to live with the name for a long time.  Even before the internet, it was challenging.  Now with so many of the best names taken, it is harder and harder to find a good choice.

I was talking with Andrew Gouty of DeepRipples (an Indianapolis SEO company) the other day about the characteristics of a good domain name. He had a few tips which I put to  use on a project we were struggling with.  He suggested domain names should:

  • Use .com, .net or .org.  Too many spammers use .biz and .info.  I know he is right, because I occasionally run into issues with www.roundpeg2020.wpengine.com, but after seven years, I have too much invested in the suffix to change. Fortunately, I have enough legitimate content on the site, and elsewhere on the net to overcome the negative perception of .biz.  I would not however, at this point recommend any of my clients choose that suffix starting out.
  • Be as short as possible  – Five Syllables Maximum- Logical, but tougher then it sounds, when the company you are working with is UNCLAIMED FURNITURE AND MATTRESS WAREHOUSE.  Even the initials www.ufmw.com actually equates to six syllables.

To his list, I added  the criteria for the name to be  something meaningful or memorable.  Here are a few of the names we came up with:

  • www.cheapfurniturenow.com
  • www.mycheapfurniture.com
  • www.bestcheapfurniture.com
  • www.cheapfinefurniture.com

These are less meaningful, but shorter and easier to remember:

  • www.goufmw.com
  • www.buyufmw.com
  • www.ufurnituremw.com
  • www.ufmwarehouse.com

None of those were exactly what my client was hoping for, so we went back to the drawing board. I really liked: www.yourwarehouse.net because they do sell more then furniture in some of their stores, but the .net was less then optimal, so we suggested:

  • www. unclaimedshop.com
  • www.shopunclaimed.com
  • www.buyunclaimed.com

The winner: www.shopunclaimed.com. The more I look at it, the more I like it.  The name is short, memorable, and I like the fact it leads with a verb. What do you think?  What other criteria are important when you try to find a domain?

Please contact Roundpeg, an Indianapolis web design firm, for more information.