Tips on Picking a Domain Name

By Jim Hingst

Photo by Alexlmx | Dreamstime.com

Picking a domain name is just as important as choosing a brand name or a name for your business. An ideal domain name is a part of your company’s branding, your internet identity and can help someone find you on the web. Here are some tips to keep in mind as you choose a domain name:

● Ideally your domain name should be the name of your business or your brand name, unless someone else has already purchased it. Using the name of your business or your brand is much more effective than selecting a generic name. For example, a domain name, such as www.orafol.com or www.oracal.com,  is unique and much more memorable than www.vinylfilms.com.    What’s more, an appropriate name can also make it easier for someone to find your website.

● Keep it Simple. Your domain name should be short, easy to remember and easy to pronounce and spell. Longer names are often difficult to remember and are often misspelled. How will anyone find you on the web if they can’t spell your name.  Examples of a couple short names, which are easily recognized in the sign industry, are www.Arlon.com and www.rtape.com.

● If the domain name that you select is frequently misspelled, consider registering the misspelled version of your name, along with the name spelled correctly.

● If your shop serves a particular geography, use it in your domain name.
For example, the domain name for Chicago Signs is www.ChicagoSigns.com. The name says it all. It tells you what the shop does and the geographic market that they serve.

● Do not use hyphens or numbers in your domain name, if you can avoid it. The reason is that can be difficult to remember to type the hyphens and numbers. The problem is that many of the really great domain names, which are not unhyphenated and may be perfect for your business, might already be taken.

● There are many domain name extensions available.  You don’t need to purchase everyone available, but buying domain names with common extensions, such as .com .net and .org, may be a good idea, because it lays claim to a name before a competitor can.

● Incorporate a keyword in your domain name, which is consistent and relevant with your corporate identity. This could help your search ranking, which can increase site traffic. For example, the domain name for Sign Builder Illustrated is www.signshop.com.    

● To avoid any legal problems in the future, make sure that the name that you select does not infringe on a trademarked brand name used in your market, before you register it.

Conclusion. Give the selection of a domain name careful consideration. Develop a list of possible names. Before settling on a name, solicit advice from associates, whose opinions you value. Once you decide on a name, whether it is a business name, brand name, website or domain name, changing it years later is rarely a good idea, because can result in confusion and lost traffic to your site. Any equity that you have accrued over the years is lost when you make a change. 

For example, when RTape changed the name of its subsidiary, Coburn Graphic Films to CET films as well as changing the domain name from www.coburn.com to www.cetfilms.com and  the well-known Coburn Vinyl brand to VinylEfx, they caused confusion in the marketplace. Sign makers still refer to the company as Coburn and the films as Coburn vinyls. The company lost a well-known brandname, and lost its domain name.  

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About Jim Hingst: Sign business authority on vehicle wraps, vinyl graphics, screen printing, marketing, sales, gold leaf, woodcarving and painting. 

After fourteen years as Business Development Manager at RTape, Jim Hingst retired. He was involved in many facets of the company’s business, including marketing, sales, product development and technical service.

Hingst began his career 42 years ago in the graphic arts field creating and producing advertising and promotional materials for a large test equipment manufacturer.  Working for offset printers, large format screen printers, vinyl film manufacturers, and application tape companies, his experience included estimating, production planning, purchasing and production art, as well as sales and marketing. In his capacity as a salesman, Hingst was recognized with numerous sales achievement awards.

Drawing on his experience in production and as graphics installation subcontractor, Hingst provided the industry with practical advice, publishing more than 150 articles for  publications, such as  Signs Canada, SignCraft,  Signs of the Times, Screen Printing, Sign and Digital Graphics and  Sign Builder Illustrated. He also posted more than 500 stories on his blog (hingstssignpost.blogspot.com). In 2007 Hingst’s book, Vinyl Sign Techniques, was published.  Vinyl Sign Techniques is available at sign supply distributors and at Amazon. 

Slides of Jim's Artwork

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