Reserve Your Domain name Now!
"The Secrets
to a Great Domain Name in 5 Easy Steps"
by Joe Chapuis
Before you register another
domain name, here are a few things you should know that will save
you some time and money:
- what your domain name should REALLY say
- how to find a great name that will get you noticed
- where to register a domain name for about the price of a pizza
For starters, don´t think of your domain name as simply
a title for your business or web site. You should think of it
as a headline - something that appeals directly to the wants,
needs, and desires of your target market.
It probably doesn't hurt to use "your" name (BobsPlumbing.com).
But, you really should be thinking about a name from the perspective
of your clients and prospects. I hate to tell you, but they don´t
care about your name (or you, for that matter). People want benefits
and solutions, and you should be telling your prospects what benefit
they will receive by doing business with you - in a great domain
name.
Despite what you might think, all the good ones are not taken.
Granted, generic one-word names (i.e. business.com, computers.com)
are not available or are very expensive if for sale - but that´s
OK. There are alternatives, and good ones.
Step 1:
Brainstorm some ideas. Make a list of keywords related to your
business. Include some powerful, emotion-stirring adjectives,
or at least words that might pique one´s curiosity. Put
them together in two or three word combinations. Get creative.
Step 2:
Go to NameBargain.com,
where you can search up to 30 names at once for free - a HUGE
time saver. I´ve had good experiences with them. You can
register names through them for $9.99 (unfortunately, they've
got a ten name minimum for the first purchase.) Also, try Whois.net
where you can look for hidden gems among the millions of recently
deleted domain names (names that were once registered and are
now available). You can also search by entering multiple keywords,
and combinations of these words are automatically checked. Nifty.
If you´re really serious about finding good domain names,
visit Softnik.com.
They offer a wonderful program called Domain Name Analyzer which
can help you quickly and easily locate a great name. It belongs
in the toolbox of any online professional - and it´s free.
Step 3:
When you find something you like, before you take the plunge,
ask a few people what they think. Get an objective opinion from
someone who could be your customer. How does it sound if you say
it out loud? If you advertise on the radio, you better make sure
it's clear.
Remember: this isn´t 1994 - you can only be so choosey
when it comes to selecting names. The one you really have your
heart on may be taken. If it is, but doesn´t appear to be
in use, contact the owner and ask if it´s available. Detailed
name and contact information can usually be found by doing a search
at BetterWhois.com.
Once you locate the owner, don´t offer anything up front,
just inquire (Remember this important rule of negotiating: The
first to name a price usually loses). To get an idea of how much
similar names are going for, first visit one of the good domain
name auction sites like http://www.afternic.com.
Step 4:
Before you register a name (especially if you´re in the
U.S), you may want to do a free search at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office web site. It´s a good
way to see if your proposed domain name may potentially violate
a registered federal trademark. Don´t assume that because
it is available, it´s not trademarked. I've seen it happen.
It could be a costly mistake if you assume and you're wrong.
In addition, there are also state and international trademark
issues to consider. Internet and trademark law can be a bit overwhelming
to the uninitiated. Here´s a good summary of trademark-related
questions: Trademark.com. Check this one out for more info on “CyberSpace Law”.
Other considerations and recommendations:
- Stay away from hyphenated names unless you also own the unhyphenated
version (no one remembers the hyphen, and people will accidentally
visit your competitor).
- Opt for “.com” if possible. There may be more options
with “.net” and “.org” (or any of the other
zillion new extensions), but “.com” is still king. People
remember “.com”, and again, you don´t want to
send prospects to your competitors.
- Stay away from numbers (i.e. Websites4you.com) - sounds and
looks cheesy; plus, it creates confusion if you advertise on the
radio.
Step 5:
You´ve done your homework, you´ve found a good, “benefits-focused”
name, and you´re ready to buy. Here are few places you may
want to register your domain name (I haven´t personally
tried these, but the prices look good):
GoDaddy.com -
$8.95
Joker.com -
approx. $11
OrderYourDomains.com - $12
Dotster.com -
$14.95
Keep these tips in mind, and you´ll soon be on your way
to finding a great, memorable, traffic-generating domain name
(for about the price of a pizza).
Wishing you much online success...
Joe Chapuis
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> Working from home, Joe Chapuis is a self-employed internet
> business consultant and online publisher who swears he'll
> never work for someone else again. His free report:
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Copyright 2001 Joseph P. Chapuis - RequiredReading.com
Visit Domain Tutorial Blog
How to Drive Traffic With Domain Names
by
Michel Fortin, Ph.D. The Success Doctor
In my business development consulting
practice, I teach others about the tremendous importance
of communicating credibility. To a prospect that is receiving
your marketing materials for the first time, your company
may have little or no believability because you may well
be totally unknown to your prospect. Along with the increasing
population of new online businesses, the hypercompetitive
nature of the Internet will make credibility an even more
important issue.
One of John Naisbitt's "Megatrends" in his extraordinary
book of the same name is the fact that our society is edging
towards the "hi-tech/hi-touch." In other words, the fact
that we are advancing technologically and the business process
is fast becoming almost entirely automated will parallel
the need for a more human approach in the business process.
Today, we see that need being filled more and more through
niche marketing, personalized services, customer service,
and specialization. And due to the lack of human interaction
on the Internet, building relationships with your prospects
will, as time goes on, become an element of greater importance
in the success of any online business.
IT ALL STARTS WITH IMAGE There are many ways to build credibility,
namely through the use of testimonials and guarantees. These
may be the final steps in getting many stubborn prospects
to commit to your product. But the first step, however,
is sometimes the most obvious -- and that's the image you
project, for it is the first thing that is perceived by
your prospects and the first step in building relationships
with them. Although your goal may be to put your business
on auto-pilot, you must always remember that you are dealing
with real people. There are many fly-by-night businesses
and get-rich-quick schemes on the Internet, so anything
"new" to today's skeptical prospect will likely be questionable
in the very least.
Therefore, your marketing strategy must also include branding
your Web site, which is just as important as branding your
company or product. When I started online 3 years ago, I
began with a free host and a free e-mail account. I didn't
see the need to invest in my own domain, having an already
profitable offline business at the time. But little did
I know, however, that the lack of credibility they projected
was to a great extent the reason for many lost sales. Today,
as a result of simply branding my site, http://success-doctor.com
is generating far more unique visitors and sales per capita.
The reason for this is manifold. In today's world, we are
constantly inundated with marketing messages. In his new
book The New Positioning, Jack Trout states that a child
in the UK will have seen over 140,000 TV commercials by
the time he or she reaches 18 years of age -- and the US
"is just warming up." The Internet is surely no different.
It's literally filled with Web sites that range from sheer
advertisements to others that are sponsored by them. Everywhere
we turn, it seems, we are faced with some form of online
promotional propaganda.
Our job as consumers has therefore become so immensely challenging
that choosing a business from which to buy has become a
dizzying process. For an online business to survive and
thrive in today's hypercompetitive marketplace, it takes
more than mere advertising to make a Web site successful
(the kind of advertising that says "I'm open for business").
As marketing guru Dan Kennedy once said, "Institutional
marketing is high-risk marketing," for the message needs
to be repeatedly advertised in order to work -- if it ever
does.
BECOME A TRAFFIC MAGNET Although advertising is the lifeblood
of any business, today's marketing message must therefore
stand out among the commercial quagmire. And it must also
do so in such a way that it creates not only traffic but
also a need for its products or services. In other words,
a company's advertising message must go from being "in"
business to being "the" business of choice. Where people
used to ask "Why should I buy this product or service?"
today, that question has changed to "Why should I buy this
product or service FROM YOUR SITE?"
Simply put, today's consumer will choose one company over
another because the perceived value in their choice is greater.
However, people are given an increasing multitude of choices
on the Internet. Moreover, they no longer have the time
to sift through all the information that is thrown at them
(let alone the time to shop around for the best product
from the best company at the best price). So, how can a
company communicate that its Web site is "the" site of choice?
How can it heigthen the perceived value in what they have
to offer and stand above the competition?
Ellis Verdi, the once president of the "National Retail
Advertisers Council," coined the term "top-of-mind awareness"
as the most effectively provocative form of marketing now
available. The idea is to create, within the subconscious
minds of prospects, a psychological "anchor" that causes
people to choose, when a need presents itself, a company
over another instantaneously. The goal, therefore, is to
market one's site in specific ways so that it stays at the
top of their minds at all times.
In other words, since people no longer have the time to
shop around, when they do have a certain need they will
go to (or search for) the site that happens to be at the
top of their minds at that very moment; the one that sticks
out the most, especially from all the marketing messages
that are so desperately fighting for their attention. Consequently,
top-of-mind awareness on the Internet begins with the most
important element of Web site marketing, which is the domain
name itself.
ELEMENTS OF A GOOD DOMAIN NAME First, realize that a "good"
domain name that sticks in the mind requires more than simply
using a fictitious vanity name. However, it is imperative
to note at this point that registered names have the ability
to stick in the mind more effectively. Jack Trout once wrote
that "The mind hates confusion, complexity, and change."
Therefore, simplicity is of colossal importance since long
or obscure URLs can be easily forgotten.
For example, rather than having a name with too many words,
such as http://www.domain.com/subdomain/yourname/~subfolder
or http://names-with-too-many-hyphens.com, you should
get a very simple http://www.yourname.com. In fact,
more and more companies and commercials are dropping the
"www" from their URLs. Most Internet addresses can simply
use yourname.com," which is an even better alternative.
In essence, the simpler it is, the better.
The importance of having your own domain name goes without
explanation. It is the same as branding your business or
product. But there are 3 reasons why you need a good, simple,
and memorable domain name. First, there is the mnemonic
factor. Instead of going through the inconvenience of numerous
search engine results to get exactly what they want, most
people will attempt to go to your site directly by guessing
your domain name and typing a plausible URL in their browsers.
Mnemonics are words (or a combination of words) that are
easy to remember. A repeatedly visited Web site is one whose
URL, for example, includes the use of mnemonics. If it sticks
in the mind, even if the URL is bookmarked, the site can
be easily retrieved and will be visited often. "Yahoo!"
http://yahoo.com,
"HotBot" http://hotbot.com,
and Time Magazine's "Time" http://time.com
are perfect examples of mnemonics at work.
The second element is the credibility factor. People often
associate long URLs with free Web sites or sites of lesser
quality. People have a natural tendency to make what I call
UPAs (or unconscious paralleled assumptions). In other words,
if people notice that your site is hosted by a free or cheap
provider, they will unconsciously assume that a parallel
exists (i.e., that your product or service is just as cheap).
Your domain name is like the headline of an article, and
people will likely judge and visit your site according to
its domain name.
Always remember that perceived truth is more powerful than
truth itself. And a vanity domain name tends to heighten
the perception of the Web site's value. As such, the UPA
visitors will make with a domain name will often be one
in which they conclude that the quality of the Web site
will be as good as the name implies.
Finally, the third reason is the the actual positioning
process. If your domain name reflects your site's core benefit
and instantly communicates how different you are from others,
your URL will be positioned above the competition in the
minds of your market. Since this element is the most important,
let's deal with it a little further.
BENEFIT-BASED DOMAIN NAMES People usually make a buying
decision based on the kind of information that instantly
communicates a specific benefit; one in which there is an
implicit added value in making the purchase. Therefore,
does your domain name intrinsically reflect the result or
benefit of that which you provide and does so in an instant?
It should. I am astounded to see many domain names that
are still called by ordinary or blatantly unappealing names,
such as with hard-to-spell words, numbers, abbreviations,
or acronyms like "www.mgf.com."
Let's take the example of two different Web sites that promote
similar products: Investments. One's address is "wealthwise.com"
while the other "mgf-investments.com." Now, with all things
being equal and when placed side-by-side, which site will
be the one more likely to be chosen first? In essence, your
domain name must be able to drive traffic to your site on
its very own. It must also communicate how different and
unique you are when compared to competitor sites, even before
your site is ever visited.
As mentioned previously, people would far more want to skip
the inconvenience of going through numerous search engine
results. But if people do have to resort to an engine, their
search will be greatly simplified and vastly more efficient
if your domain name intrinsically reflects the core benefit
if not the nature of your Web site. Remember that most searches
are conducted by major topics or themes and not by names.
Therefore, if your site's most popular keyword or benefit
is within the domain name itself, that URL has greater chances
of being in one of the top search engine results.
Therefore, play a word association game with your Web site.
Look for the word or words that would instantly pop up in
the minds of people when a need presents itself, a need
your site likely fills. For example, http://free-stuff.com,
http://allergyrelief.com,
http://morebusiness.com,
and http://fastcar.com
are great benefit-based domain names that effectively create
more top-of-mind awareness (and thus more traffic).
DOMAIN NAMES THAT DRIVE TRAFFIC If the name you want is
taken, then you can use your company or product's tagline
(or part of it) as a domain name. A tagline is that small
sentence that follows your business name, such as "You deserve
a break today," "Roaches check in but they don't check out,"
and "It takes a licking but keeps on ticking." Great examples
are http://www.alwayscocacola.com
(a loyal Coca-Cola® fan site), http://www.cavities.com
(Crest® toothpaste), and, of course, http://start.com"
from Microsoft®.
You can also use the site's main theme, feature, or product,
even the site's nature or main business activity (i.e.,
what it does). Ultimately, choose a name that people can
remember quickly and effectively so that, when you advertise
among a thousand of your competitors, your URL stands out
and sticks in the minds of the marketplace.
It is also a good practice to register variations of your
name, including different spellings, product names, taglines,
and associated words. One of the reasons for this is to
ensure that these unused domain names don't end up falling
into the hands of competitors. But more important, when
people attempt to search for your site and enter a variation
of your domain name they will still end up with your site
as a result.
It all boils down to the fact that your domain name is a
fundamental marketing system in itself. Use it wisely and
you'll see your traffic counter soar.
Michel Fortin, Ph.D. The Success Doctor
Check
out our complete Domain Name Tutorial
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