It’s important to give your website a credible domain name, but this is especially true if your site is a web store; after all, if people are going to give you their hard-earned money, they need to be assured that their money is being well-spent. Before you sell a single product or service, you’ll first have to sell potential visitors on your domain name. Here are some tips on how to give your ecommerce site the perfect name:
1. Keep it short.
The longer your domain name gets, the more difficult it will be to remember. It can be tricky finding a short domain name, but it is well worth the effort. A short domain name is far easier to recall, and can also make your online shopping site seem more credible.
2. Branding > keywords.
The days of cramming keywords into your domain to trick search engines into ranking your website higher are long gone. Google has gotten much better at favouring websites that people actually click on and find useful. The fact that you’re reading this article is partially thanks to you being more comfortable clicking on hover.com; chances are you would not have clicked had the URL started with buy-find-cheap-domain-name-url-for-website.com.
3. No dashes, numbers or alternate spellings.
Unless any of these are a part of your name, don’t add extra characters or spell words differently just to get a domain that’s closer to the name you’re searching for. It’s better to use different words to get a credible-looking domain that people want to click on rather one that’s kind of close but looks spammy.
4. Passes the radio test.
After discovering your domain name, you may only get one chance for a person to try going to your website. If a potential visitor hears your domain name, it needs to pass the radio test: people need to be able to remember and correctly spell it. If you’ve been following along so far, then you’re in great shape.
5. Use a relevant domain extension.
Your first inclination may be to search for a .com domain name, and while that’s an excellent choice if your name is available, there are hundreds of other options to choose from as well. Using a different domain extension will increase your chances of finding a domain name with your exact brand name, and also do a better job of communicating what can be found on your website.
Here is just a small sample of the 400+ domain extensions you can use for your online store:
Retail
These extensions are perfect for nearly type of any ecommerce site.
Niche
There is a good chance that there is an extension for your particular industry. To see if your niche has any relevant options, check out our full list of domain extensions. Here’s just a small sample of what’s available:
6. Keep your domain separate from your site builder.
As your online store grows, your site’s needs may change as well. Most ecommerce site builders will offer custom domain names, but pay close attention to the terms that go along with this; some will only provide your domain as long as your website is with their service. This will make it difficult (or even impossible) to transfer your domain name out of their service and bring it to your new one. By registering your domain with a separate domain provider (ahem, Hover), you’ll ensure that your domain name will go wherever your website does.
