The very first question most people will have after deciding on registering a new website usually is: “What should be the name of my website?” or  “What is the best domain name for me?”

We here at Rackset believe choosing the right  domain name is a very important aspect of setting up a website. It is a decision that will affect the success rate of your site and business and it’s a name that you will likely be using for a long time. That’s why it is crucial to make the correct choice early on in the journey of starting your website.

With that in mind, we’ve decided to look at some of the more important tips you have to remember before choosing your domain name.

So, let’s start!

1. Your domain is your brand

The name of your website will likely become your brand and it will be what others know your company by. Think of all the major websites in the world: Google, Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, etc. All of these domain names are chosen carefully in order to become the leading brand of the company, even if the company is offering hundreds of different services (like Google), the domain name is what company is going to be known by all around the world.

2. Choose the right Top-level domain (TLD)

Most of the time the best TLD to go with is .com which is the top domain in the domain name system of internet. But why is that?

• .com is the most popular and widely used TLD in the world. It roughly has 75% of all the registered domains.
• It is used by most of the major websites around the world.
• Because of its popularity among the major websites, it is more likely that visitors will trust your website and view it as a credible business.
• The .com extension was created so it could mainly be used by commercial entities. That’s why if your website is a business, it’s always best to go with .com

Having said that, picking specific TLDs is not always a bad choice. For example, if you’re running a business that is completely targeted towards consumers in France, it would be a wise choice to pick .fr as your TLD.

The most important thing is to choose the TLD with a clear reasoning and strategy behind it; not just because it makes the domain seem unique.

You can register different extensions of domains with Rackset. See the list here.

3. Easy to type, Easy to remember

Your domain name should be a unique name, but it should also be a name that most people are able to spell and write down.

If your domain is complicated and difficult to remember or spell, it could affect the rating and page views of your website.

A good way to create a new and memorable name is to combine two words. Take LifeHacker.com, for example. It’s not exactly a short and concise name, but it is a combination of two words that make a memorable domain name that is both easy to remember and easy to spell.

4. Check the availability of the name on social media platforms

Before domain name registration, check whether the name you have chosen is available on different social media platforms.

Because you will be building your brand around this name, it is much prefered to have the same name on all social media accounts. This makes it much easier for your customers to find your website and business on social media, with little to no hassle.

5. Choose a name that allows you to expand

Let’s say you’re planning on starting a digital marketing company and you’re looking for a domain name. To your surprise you find that DigitalMarketing.com is available! (It really isn’t, but let’s just pretend) So you decide to go ahead and purchase it as soon as possible.

Even though DigitalMarketing.com might seem like a no-brainer choice, you have to make decisions with a more long-term view in mind. What if in a couple of years time you decide to expand the operations of your company to SEO and web design? Or domain name registration and web hosting? Then you’re left with a great domain, but an irrelevant brand which doesn’t speak for the entire operations of the company.

It’s always best to leave room for future growth and development.

6. Make it short

Making your domain as short as possible is always a good choice. Shorter names are more likely to be remembered and make an impression on people, although it is very difficult to find short and memorable domain names that haven’t been taken yet. It’s still worth the try to aim for the shortest name possible. You can search for the domains here and check their availability.

7. Register the name with other extensions as well

Once you have fully decided on your website and domain name, it would be wise decision to buy the new domain name with different extensions.

Take a look at the domain name list and try to register the main extensions.

For example since we own rackset.com, we also go ahead and buy rackset.net, rackset.info, rackset.org etc.

8. Use keywords when possible

If possible, try to incorporate some of the more important key names within your domain name. This of course might damage the domain name if it ends up looking too typical and common, so you have to walk a fine line between becoming a boring and common name, and having a strong and unique name with good keywords.

Now for a quick round, here are some things NOT to do while choosing a domain name:

Avoid hyphens: rackset.com is much easier to remember than rack-set.com. You don’t need to explain to others that there is a hyphen between the words “rack” and “set”.

Avoid double letters:  When you use double letters (example: rackkset.com), your domain is in danger of being misspelled by potential visitors.

Avoid numbers: using numbers in the domain is generally not a good idea as it makes it harder to remember. Although if the number is a central part of your brand, then you can obviously ignore this advice.

Don’t use acronyms: They’re usually hard to remember and in most cases not very memorable.

Conulusion:

That’s generally some of main points you have remember before registering your domain name and starting your new website. We hope this article has helped you in some way.

You have a wide choice for variety of different domain extensions that you can register with Rackset.com. Since you’re going to be needing a web hosting service as well, take a look at our starting plans.

If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact us at support@rackset.com

Author: Ali Foroughi

October 31th, 2018