Having a website is crucial for your company. Many business owners need to know how closely their domain name is related to the success of their website. As a company owner, your domain name determines how readily customers can find your website online and how easily it loses in the crowd.

Businesses often have few genuinely distinguishing characteristics that set them apart. The domain name or company name they utilize is one of those elements. Before everything else, prospective clients and consumers notice the company name. A favorable response to your domain may direct them to you. Thus, a good name boosts your success online.

Mistakes to avoid while choosing your domain name?

Make sure the domain name you pick complements your company and utilizes SEO to make it simple to locate. Make sure it’s memorable and simple to advertise. Additionally, it should be brief and distinct. The mistakes to avoid while selecting a domain name are listed below.

The 10 faults individuals often make while selecting a new domain name are listed below.

1. Avoid using numerals

It’s best to avoid using “2” in place of “to” or “4” in place of “for” or “four.” Even if it’s clever to utilize numbers, it will be hard for most people to figure out your thoughts when registering the domain. It won’t be very pleasant if customers want to visit your website but need help figuring out what the ideal domain name for it should be.

If users don’t guess the correct spelling, they will either go to another website with a similar domain or get an error in their browser, or vice versa.

2. Making an irregular domain name selection

One of the greatest errors you can make while creating your website is choosing the wrong domain name. Your domain name should reflect your brand while still being simple to recall. Your company’s website might gain credibility with a short, memorable domain name that keeps your brand from being buried in the search results.

Still, trying to figure out where to begin? Consider the following factors while selecting your domain name:

• Pronunciation and readability

Your domain name should be simple to read and pronounce. Typically, it is more difficult to remember and correctly write unclear names.

• Clarity

Think of a name that is original, simple, and easy to remember.

• Memorability

Make sure people can quickly recollect your domain. Simple, distinctive domain names are simpler to remember.

3. Avoid using complicated words

Although it may seem like a little issue, it can greatly affect how many people visit your website. People may be less likely to remember your domain name while attempting to access your website, for instance, if it is difficult to spell. Even if they remember it, they could be more likely to type it incorrectly into their browser. As a consequence, users can land on a completely different website.

Choose a domain name that is simple to remember and spell to prevent this issue. It will not only help people locate your website more easily, but it will also benefit your site’s traffic and search engine rankings.

4. Ignoring the link history

Some unethical SEO companies are out there, and not all recommended best practices are always the most effective. Before Google’s Penguin and Panda updates, SEO was essentially unregulated ten years ago. The only standard was whether a strategy was successful on that particular day.

Thousands of domain names were destroyed by SEOs and website owners who preferred link quantity above link quality. Google claims that harmful links shouldn’t transfer with a domain to a new owner.

When purchasing a domain, you must do your research. Before purchasing, you may examine backlinks using Ahrefs, Moz, SEMrush, or Majestic tools. Most provide a free or inexpensive trial. Before beginning a major new online project, it is wise to investigate links.

We should use SEMrush because it provides best-in-class SEO, PPC, content, social media, and competitive research solutions. SEMrush is used by marketers globally. We advise using their SEO Toolkit since it enables you to increase organic traffic. You may find keywords, examine backlinks, do SEO audits, and keep tabs on your search engine rankings daily.

It is essential for everyone who intends to use search as a tool for marketing. To increase your audience quickly, we urge you to try it out. The good news is that you can access the 50+ SEO tools (and more!) for free for 14 days, thanks to our special offer.

5. Selecting an extended domain name

While the length and number of characters in your company name are entirely up to you, a long domain name is not recommended. You need your guests to be able to recall it easily. Keep it brief so people won’t forget or spell it incorrectly. You could shorten the terms to lower the number of characters if your company name is lengthy and you want a domain name that suits it.

7. Paying too much to be a something

Thanks to websites like Amazon.com and eBay, as well as the fact that generic Web sites were already taken years ago, the idea that someone seeking a book or an auction site would first attempt book.com or auction.com is now out of date. Even if it is not always “a mistake,” it is not always beneficial to spend a lot of money on a generic domain name when you can use that money for branding and marketing to distinguish yourself as a unique company with a memorable name.

8. Avoid registering a domain that isn’t a social username

Nowadays, having a social media presence is crucial for companies. Platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram allow you to connect with prospective clients and develop a devoted following. But it’s crucial to remember that consistency is essential for branding. If your company uses several names across various platforms, it could be challenging to establish a unified brand identity and may not be particularly apparent to consumers.

Choose a name for your new company that you can regularly utilize across your marketing platforms. Customers will discover you more quickly and easily if you use the same name across all platforms, which will also help you build better brand identification. That is why choosing a domain name that may be used as a social login is crucial.

9. Not Making Use of the Past of the Domain

These errors so far have focused on preventing issues. But missing chances is also a mistake. If you have a brand-new domain that has never been used, you should take advantage of this liberating opportunity. You have complete control and every benefit.

However, if you purchase a domain name with some history, you should benefit from that history. Google won’t officially acknowledge it, but older domains have an advantage in search. Compared to previously unknown domains, it is simpler to have them shuffled, indexed, and ranked in organic search.

A site with some history has an equal chance of having excellent links, content, and social media history as it has terrible links, content, and history. Similar to purchasing a home. Yes, a new build home may be fine. But it also has its uncertainties and issues. You may find many dated, well-established foundational elements to build upon if you properly examine a historic home. It will have character, an established structure, and maybe, with any luck, some old trees.

Checking domain availability (use this easy domain search tool) should be the next step in your process after you start brainstorming names. Many companies offer domain names for only $0.99 for the first year. Buy any potential domain names as soon as you come up with them. Don’t risk losing out on the perfect name because you procrastinated.

10. Avoid using homophones

Words that have the same pronunciation as another word but have a different spelling or meaning are called homophones. The expressions right/write and break/brake are two instances. Such terms are likely to confuse visitors to your website if it is extremely apparent what your domain name should be. Stay away from them if possible. If not, register two domain names for each word and then point the first one to the second. By doing this, you can be certain that they will land on your website whenever someone types a term.

The greatest spot to remind you to verify how your domain appears and sounds constantly is now. You risk missing anything incorrect and damaging your company if you capitalize on particular terms. Speedofart.com (Speed of Art), Itscrap.com (IT Scrap), and Penisland.com (Pen Island) are a few well-known instances of incorrect names, but if you quickly search online, you will likely discover many more.

11. Search for related domains

Many businesses make the error of selecting a domain name that is almost identical to that of their rivals. For instance, two businesses in the same sector can have “.com” domains. However, clients could find it difficult to recall whose website they visited if one firm has a domain that is notably different from the other. Although it could seem like a fantastic method to attract attention, it might need to be clarified for consumers and hurt brand awareness.

Furthermore, search engines may need help deciding which website is most relevant to a user’s query when there are many identical domains. As a consequence, picking a memorable and distinctive domain name is crucial. To increase traffic, companies should refrain from utilizing frequent misspellings or abbreviations of their domain. Customers will get confused if you do this, and your branding efforts will be less successful.

12. Sounds like another business

Nothing is worse than launching your new website, immediately having the phone started to ring, email inquiries start to pour in, and website traffic starts to pick up, only to find out all this activity is because people think you are another business with a similar name. DOH!

We know this one firsthand. At BoostSuite, at least once a month, we get a call from someone who is looking for Boost Mobile or HootSuite. Fortunately, this is pretty infrequent. But, whenever possible, find a unique, unique name that doesn’t use generic terms while still being short and catchy. Petedge.com sounds much better than dogsupplies.com.

FAQs

Why is it crucial to choose your domain name carefully?

Your domain name is one of the first things people see, and it can impact how they feel about your business and your brand overall. While a poorly selected domain name could have the opposite effect, it may enhance user curiosity and generate online traffic.

Is it important where you get your domain name from?

No matter what provider you bought a domain from, once you register it, you own it. Usually, if a domain name is accessible, you may purchase it anywhere. However, some domain registrars provide benefits or services that others do not.

What do “unsafe domains” mean?

External connections to websites with phishing, malware, or unwanted software are known as unsafe domains. Phishing is when a website imitates another to fool visitors into divulging personal or financial information.

Which ones are prohibited for domain names?

Only letters, digits, the fada character (an acute accent), and hyphens (“-“) are permitted in domain names. The use of spaces and other symbols is not allowed. Hyphens cannot be used to start or finish a name, and the case is irrelevant.

What factors affect domain names?

Your company name and brand should be reflected in the domain name. It is crucial since your email address often includes the same name, making it easy for consumers to recognize your correspondence.

Conclusion:

Gaining a solid corporate reputation requires avoiding these traps. Your prospective customers will see you as more polished, exclusive, and interesting. Proper domain selections are worth the time, effort, and money. It extends the life of your company, and you won’t look back. Make it simpler for clients to browse your website on mobile phones, contact you, and discover information. Finally, learning from others’ errors might help us create better websites. Good luck with your website launch, and remember to learn from your errors!

Do you have any other mistakes to avoid when buying a domain name? Tell us about them in the comments below.

Daniel Smith is Co-founder of BoostSuite.com, BoostSuite allows small business marketers to get more website visitors, sales leads, and customers by optimizing their websites on their own. BoostSuite starts free and successful websites choose from paid plans starting at just $19/month. Get an instant grade and start optimizing your website for free at https://signup.boostsuite.com.

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