In three steps to the right domain name

Two components are always essential for a successful online presence. Firstly, fast and reliable web hosting is required, and secondly, a suitable domain name. But how do you find the right domain name for your own web project and what criteria should you consider when making your choice? We have compiled the most important information on this in the following article.

The domain name is used as an address on the internet so that interested visitors can find their way to your offerings. Whether it's products, services, or information, anyone who wants to be reachable for potential customers needs a suitable domain name. To get the most out of it and avoid potential pitfalls in the name selection process, you can follow these 3 steps when choosing the right domain name.

Step 1 - Determine the Domain Extension

Firstly, you need to decide on one of the numerous domain extensions available. The so-called Top Level Domains (TLDs) determine the ending that appears after the dot in the domain name. You have the choice between country names and generic designations. For website operators targeting an audience in a specific country with their offerings, country code domains are usually the first choice. This is why DE domains are used in Germany, AT domains in Austria, or CH domains in Switzerland. On the other hand, for those planning an international web project, a COM domain or a NET domain may be more suitable.

Since the introduction of the new Top-Level Domains (New gTLDs) since early 2014, numerous additional generic and location-based domain extensions such as .shop, .blog, or .berlin are also available. Although these domain extensions have not yet gained widespread recognition, they could still be an attractive alternative for many website operators in the future.

Step 2 - Find a Domain Name

Once you have decided on a domain extension, the actual part of the name search begins. The following criteria should be considered:

Relevance

The chosen domain name should be as descriptive as possible. Ideally, potential visitors should be able to infer from the domain name what content to expect on the website. This is especially important for small businesses or self-employed individuals who are not well-known brands. With frank-müller.de, no one can make sense of it, whereas fitnesstraining-müller.de is much more descriptive. It is important that the designation in the name corresponds to the offerings. If someone visits the online shop gesund-essen.de, they expect to find healthy food offerings and not a fast-food restaurant.

Of course, one should not limit themselves too much by choosing the domain name. Perhaps one may want to expand their business in the future. If initially only women's shoes are sold and later men's shoes are added, it is better not to start with the domain damenschuhe.de, but rather to be more general from the beginning and use schuhe.de as the domain name.

Simplicity

One's own domain name should be kept as simple as possible. It should be easy to remember and easy to spell. This is best achieved with a short name. Satisfied customers can thus recommend the website more easily. Especially in personal conversations and on the phone, the transmission of uncomplicated names is much easier, as typos and misunderstandings can be avoided. In addition, short and concise names like auto-versicherung.de appear much more professional and inviting in the search engine, compared to long and complicated domains like die-beste-auto-versicherung-finden.de.

Uniqueness

The chosen domain name should also be as unique as possible. This way, confusion with competitors can be avoided. For example, if the domain yogastudioberlin.de is already in use, it would not make sense to choose yogastudio-berlin.de for one's own website. When the name is entered into the search engine or recommended verbally, potential customers could mistakenly end up on the competitor's website. With a unique name, however, one is always on the safe side.

Step 3 - Check Trademark Rights

Before the chosen domain name is actually registered, a careful check of trademark rights should always be carried out first. Many terms are legally protected because they may have already been registered as a trademark by other companies. Therefore, they must not be used by third parties. For example, online retailers are also not allowed to directly use the brand name of offered products for their own domain. Even with similarly sounding names with letter jumbles or typos, one should approach the topic with extreme caution. Legal problems can become very expensive and time-consuming afterwards.

Just like when choosing web hosting, the choice of the right domain name should be carefully considered. The mentioned 3 steps can be used as guidelines to find the right domain name for your own web project.