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Top tips for choosing a domain name

Give your website a name that's both professional and memorable.

Domain name registrations across the globe hit 82.9 million in the second quarter of 2005, a new record. If you don't already have a great domain name, you need one... and fast.

A domain is the home of your website. Even if you have no intention of having a website yet, a domain name is worth securing and owning a domain name will automatically give you access to the appropriate email addresses for that domain. This is important especially if you want to create a professional perception of your business.

Using your own domain name email addresses will contribute to building a solid impression of you and your products or services and with the low cost of domain names, there is no real excuse for not having one.

What's in a name?

It's important to choose the right domain name. Choose a name that people will remember. After all, the right domain name will increase visibility, inspire trust and attract buyers.

Keep it short and memorable.

Short memorable brand names are effective, especially if relevant to the personality of a business brand. Short and snappy domain names are also less likely to be misspelt and more likely to be remembered and passed on via word of mouth.

Your domain name should be chosen to best represent your company's interests, bear in mind the brand, what you offer, your USP and consider the implications of being listed alphabetically too.

Use different domain names/websites to target specific niche audiences.

Operating multiple niche sites does tend to work better than having a broad range in one store. Remember it is possible that your business may grow into different areas of interest, therefore it may be an idea not to make your domain name too specific to one area of your expertise.

Use your company name, a relevant solution-related name, or even your own name.

Try domain names that solve a problem, or you could opt for a name that describes the products or services your company provides e.g. 'Marketing Solutions'. Either way, your name will help drive targeted traffic to your website if you take this approach.

Finally, to ensure plain sailing:

  1. Check the availability of your domain name before committing to it, this sounds obvious but do check the various suffixes/ variations to ensure that they are all free too. You can search availability of domain names at the registrar you intend to purchase it from, or direct from the UK registry.
  2. Register various suffixes (.co.uk, .net, .org) This will ensure that no-one else can come in at a later stage and capitalise on your brand name using another major domain name type.
  3. Ensure that your domain name is not a commonly known brand name or trademark. Domain names can only contain letters, numbers, and dashes. Spaces and symbols are not allowed. Domain names are not case sensitive.
  4. If you intend to buy a number of domains, try to 'park' them with one single domain name company. Make sure you keep a note of when your domain registration is due and renew it in good time. The provider of your domain should remind you of this but not all providers do.

At Nildram, we take a personal approach to help you register your domain name, we:

  1. Announce it to the Internet and configure it to your particular needs.
  2. Maintain it efficiently on our dedicated domain name servers.
  3. Automatically renew your domain registration when due.
  4. If you already have a domain name registered with another organisation, we will advise on how this can be configured to take advantage of Nildram services, such as e-mail and web space.

Domain hosting and transfer services are available at Nildram from only £3.33 per month! Call 0800 0720 405 for further information.