What is a domain name?

A domain name is used to locate an organization on the internet, it identifies one or more IP Addresses or a particular Web page. Every domain name has a suffix that indicates which top-level-domain (TLD) it belongs to. Examples of TLD’s are gov, edu, org, com, net, com.ng etc.

Finding out how to choose a domain name is the first step in starting your website, and getting it right is mandatory to the success of your website below are some tips to choose a domain name that not only defines the purpose of your website, but can easily be remembered or indexed (by search engines). Remember that these are suggestions, not rules.

Use your brand name

You might think that your domain name must be some generic name like “clothes.com” if you are selling clothes. Witness, ask yourself, did you not have a brand in mind when you were looking for some clothes? www.gucci.com or www.prada.com rather than just www.clothes.com.

For that reason, I personally feel that a domain name that matches your brand name is very important. The very name that you use to advertise your product is the name that you will want for your domain, because that is the first thing that people will try in their browser. It is also the easiest thing for them to remember, and whatever that is easily remembered, will be more likely to be tried out than the obscure domain name.

Try to use Dot-Com available domains

The .com TLD (top-level domain) is obviously the most widely accepted extension for a domain name. It is also the easiest to remember. Most people who want to visit your site will go for the name of your business alongside the “.com” TLD

But if the .com TLD of your name of choice has been taken, is best not to get an alternate TLD for that same name as yours, doing so may drive traffic to your competitor’s site. For example, if your company name is Fab Hair and there is already a company using the domain name www.fabhair.com, do not try to get www.fabhair.com.ng, instead try getting another name.

If you eventually get a domain name with a suffix other than “.com”, make sure that you promote your business or website with the full domain name. For example, if your domain name is www.fabhair.com.ng, make sure that when you advertise your site or business, call it www.fabhair.com.ng not “Fab Hair”. Otherwise your clients will navigate to the “.com” extension, visiting your competitors instead.

Read More: http://www.anatech.com.ng/how-to-choose-a-domain-name/