Keyword-Rich Domains – A Cheap Google-Friendly Romance
You have the most amazing web design on the Internet, but no one is visiting your site. Millions of potential clients looking for your products and none of them are finding you because to Google you are invisible. You have heard the terms SEO, keywords, social networking, Twitter, web designs, metatags etc. It all seems so confusing, too much to remember. “Why even bother?” The Answer: Because it is worth it. Well worth it; that is, if you take it one step at a time, and don’t become overwhelmed.
So you ask yourself, “Where do I start?” There are many answers to that question. Perhaps you already own a domain and web site and it is not producing as you had expected. Let’s start with the basics. When buying a domain you might ask, “Just buy or register any domain?” The answer is no. You want a domain that, if possible has keywords that “Google rewards”. For instance if you are in the insurance business, you want the name of your firm and the word “insurance” next to it. You can also buy other domains and point them to your site such as “WorldsBestInsurance.com or TopTenInsurancecompanies.com (that is if they are not taken) and point them to your website. These are the kind of phrases that people often type in when looking for “the best” and they often find you first. Google seems to prefer .com sites over .net or .tv, etc. so purchase the dot.com if it is available.
Buying phrase based domains offers you extra protection too, especially if people forget the name of your firm. For example the name of your firm is Bloomberg, Smith, and Allison Insurance. Chances are BloombergSmithAndAllisonInsurance.com is not taken. But chances are also people are not going to want to type that long a domain name into Google to find you. So why not buy the domain, but buy a few more. After all they average about $10 each at most. How about BSAInsurance.com (if it is not already taken). Another might be CheapestPeoriaInsurance.com (if you live and work in Peoria…and have great prices on insurance) etc. SEO was custom-invented for “lack of memory”. If someone just remembers what you do; and know you have the cheapest insurance in Peoria; they will remember that domain name also pointing at your site.
Some companies such as General Electric own up to a hundred or more domains pointed at GeneralElectric.com. They do so because they make so many products, often people remember the product, but don’t remember that general electric makes it. Whether you are the size of General Electric or Joe’s Pawn Shop on the corner, please remember, not only do people remember you by your domain name (and many more use the Internet even locally than the Yellow Pages to find you, using a keyword-rich domain name, or names is a very smart start). And Google, who is still “King of the Net” seems to agree.
You do not need an Internet “Guru” to accomplish a bit of basic SEO for yourself. Domains are a simple way to get you noticed and to assist your clients when they search for you. Imagine you are looking for your company. Think of several three to four word phrases you might type when searching for your own company on Google. Those will be the perfect domains for your web site and all for less than a tank of gas.