![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.uk-cheapest.co.uk\/img\/killerideas.jpg\")
\nToday plenty of people run (or are thinking of running) a small or home based business. You could be one of them. Regardless of the type of business, having a website on the internet is immensely important if you want to reach the right audience. And all good websites start with a great domain name.<\/p>\n
When it comes to registering a domain name we recommend you get the .co.uk and the .com domains where possible as a minimum. This means people will find your site regardless of which extension they type in. If you can get .biz, .org and some other extensions as well, so much the better.<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve put together ten essential points to remember that will help you find the best domain name for your business.<\/p>\n
Keywords can be a strong part of any domain name. Jot down the half a dozen strongest keywords relating to your business and see if you can use any of them in your domain. One idea is to combine a keyword with your brand name, for example.<\/p>\n
If your business already has a name, try and get the domain for it if you can. This will help to build your brand. A good example would be if you own a shop and you want to build a website to back it up online. Even if people don\u2019t know if you have a website or not, the first thing they\u2019ll search for is your business name, so make sure they can find it.<\/p>\n
When you have a domain name you like, check and see whether anyone else is using that name first. Not just as a domain name, but as a business name. It could be costly if you buy a name that is already in use.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t be tempted to go for a domain you think is trendy. Trends pass, but your domain name will be around for some time. Ask yourself this \u2013 will the domain name you choose still sound good and be effective in a year from now? How about ten years? The answer should be yes in both cases.<\/p>\n
Avoid this at all costs. If someone asks you your domain name you should just be able to tell them what it is. You shouldn\u2019t have to say \u2018it\u2019s so and so, but you don\u2019t spell it the normal way.\u2019 Avoid using a \u2018z\u2019 instead of an \u2018s\u2019 and so on.<\/p>\n
The shorter it is the better. Most obvious single word \u2013 and even two word \u2013 domains have gone, but you don\u2019t have to resort to five or six word domains. Keep it as short as possible, because short domains are far easier for people to remember than long ones. You don\u2019t want to have to explain your domain name for people, or worse, struggle to fit it on your business cards!<\/p>\n
This is the easiest way to see whether your ideas are available or not. Once you have the name you want \u2013 and it\u2019s available as both a .com and a .co.uk name \u2013 you can buy it from us.<\/p>\n
Have you ever tried to give someone a domain name that has hyphens in it? You end up saying something like this: \u2018it\u2019s best hyphen new hyphen sports hyphen shoes dot com.\u2019 Phew! It\u2019s a bit of a mouthful, but those hyphens are necessary otherwise the person won\u2019t find the website. So avoid using them wherever possible when you\u2019re creating your ideal domain name.<\/p>\n
If you cannot get the domain name you want, think about combining two particular evergreen words related to your business that will carve you a niche online. Let\u2019s say you sell titanium wedding rings for example. You could combine the words titanium and vows (as in wedding vows) to create a brand from the very beginning.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t choose the first domain idea you come up with. It\u2019s amazing how many people spend only five or ten minutes thinking of a domain name. As soon as they find something that is available and halfway reasonable, they buy it, when there could have been something far better available had they spent a little longer thinking about it.<\/p>\n
Be prepared to brainstorm some ideas for a day or more, and remember \u2013 the domain name you choose could have a profound effect on how successful your business is.<\/p>\n
Choosing a domain name is a serious business, once you start building your brand it is difficult to change it, so put the time in at the beginning to avoid the common pitfalls. It will be worth it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"