Rules for Choosing a Great Domain Name

Primary Rules

There are nine main rules for choosing an effective domain name. These include:

• The domain name should be the website name
• The domain name should be the brand name
• Shorter domain names are beneficial
• Select a name not easily confused with others
• Avoid hyphenated names
• Avoid plurals
• Avoid copyright infringement
• Don’t follow the latest trends
• Use an Ajax domain selection tool

A common debate is shorter versus longer domain names. Shorter domain names have the advantage of being easier to remember and easier to type with less of a chance of misspelling a word. Similarly, it’s good practice to select a domain name that cannot be easily confused with others. Slightly changing a word or adding letters, punctuation and short words confuse customers which deplete the site’s brand image.

These are the most important rules for initially selecting a domain name. As more names are chosen, naming conventions will change to allow new website owners to stand out over the competition. These basic rules will remain consistent for domain name choices.