Picking The Right Domain Name For New And Old Sites

[Starts with Dave talking within web site with music bed, slow zoom inward - similar to Tech Know EP304]

If we all had the foresight in the 90's we would have all purchased the most [cut to prices below] sought after domain names available - and then sold them today for millions.

[Cut back to Dave, out of web site mid shot]

Well, maybe not all of us could be that lucky. But owning the right domain name can be HUGE!

Good domains are like real estate, [cut to below, slide each line item in one at a time] there is only one owner, they appreciate in value over time, and the good ones go quickly and for a lot of money.

[Animate an upward stock graph behind the word appreciate in red]

[Below bring fade in each item one at a time] Your domain can say a lot about who you are and what you do - without a client or customer even visiting your site.

[Cut back to just Dave, mid shot]

In this segment we are going to show you how to pick a good domain, and avoid the most common mistakes.

Whether are you looking to [slide Dave to the left and slide in items from the left as well] replace your old confusing domain you've had for years, or you are looking to buy your very first one and need a little help.

[Fade off graphics with just Dave framed center]

Just because all the best domains are taken doesn't mean you can't buy one that works well for your business, so let's take a look at the guidelines and play the domain game.

Next...On Property Web Tips...

[Opening Sequence - Just like Tech Know]

Let's start with the length of the domain. You basically want it as short as possible. As a rough guide if you are going over 14 characters before the dot, you might want to rethink your choice.

Let say you want people to know that you do property management in Orlando, so you might be thinking that OrlandoPropertyManagement.com is a good idea. [Cut to below, show typing last few characters] Coming in at a hefty 25 characters; that domain might drive you and your clients nuts each time you have to type it in for years to come.

[Slide in top text from top, then the Google screen from the bottom]

Owning a domain that is the same keyword phrase that you would like to rank for will give you an slight advantage in Google and other search engines. [Cut back to just Dave, mid shot] However, it is advisable to go with a shorter domain and out rank your competitors using some some techniques at go well beyond the scope of this episode.

Next try to get a .com domain, if you can't - well try again. Why, because .com offers two big advantages over .net, .info, .org etc. First reason is a person's memory, [Cut to below, typing .com instead of .net then browser going to competitor] when you tell someone your domain and later they type it in to a browser they might remember the first part, but they will mostly likely type .com instead of the .net like you told them. [Cut to 2nd below, having the results pull up for Denver Lofts] The second reason is trust. If your domain comes up next to a competitor with the same domain except yours is a .com and theirs is a .net, they will select and trust the .com more.

[Cut back to just Dave, mid shot]

It has to be easy to spell; this is where short domains play a roll. If you are using your personal name and you know people can't spell it - don't use it. If they can spell only your first name then something like DavesRentals.com might be a good choice.

Watch out for distasteful hidden words within the domain. [Cut to below, bring the words together] Rentals Hit .com might sound innocent enough, but when you take a closer look at what word it contains at the end [Cut back to just Dave, mid shot] ... well you get the point.

Avoid using numbers in your domain. [Dave wave hand with all 5 fingers] Take 5 Properties.com might sound like a cool vacation site name, but people will always wonder if they need to spell out the number 5 or not.

[X out each each one at a time]

Avoid dashes, dashes are yet another place to confuse people. [Cut back to just Dave, mid shot] People will by default leave dashes out which probably means they will end up on your competitors site. If you do need to use dashes, don't go overboard, Google has been known to penalize spammy sites when they find a domain with more than 4 or 5 dashes.

Be careful of trademarks. For you Realtors, using DallasRealtor.com might get you into trouble, while DaveRealtor.com probably won't; you will need to check with the company that holds the trademark.

Be creative and be short. In my rental ad industry many of my [cut to below, slide in each name] competitors have similar generic names. Even after years of talking about them I still jumble their names today because they are all so similar. [Cut back 2nd image below, slide arrow under each part discussed] When picking the RentVine.com domain I skipped the generic names my competitors have and went after a Zillow, Amazon or Monster unique name approach - but since I knew I would never become a household name I went with a mixture of both generic and unique.

After you have a few top picks, call at least 5 friends on the phone and ask them to repeat and spell the domain back to you. It won't take long to figure which ones don't pass the phone test. If you need to weed them out even further, try the test on a cell phone.

[Zoom out for a large shot of Dave]

And finally, take your time when picking a domain. A few extra days asking what your friends think will be time well spent.

[Duration about 5:00]

[Push property web site template in credits]