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Choosing a Keyword-rich Domain for Your PPC Campaign

A domain name can provide a plethora of benefits.  First, it gives your potential audience a glimpse of what your site is about and in theory, makes it easier for them to find you online.  It can really be advantageous from an SEO aspect for someone who is trying to leverage traffic from the search engines.  When it comes to a Pay Per Click marketing campaign, the importance of a keyword-rich domain becomes clearer with each day.

Why is it so Important?

Marketing products and services through Pay Per Click campaigns has proven to be effective but these days, almost everyone is doing it.  Because of this, it is important to implement any method you can to lower your cost per click.  One if the best ways to lower your cost per click and increase your click through rate is to enhance your visibility on elite search engines such as Google, Yahoo and MSN.  All throughout the web, successful PPC advocates are raving about the importance of registering a keyword-rich domain name to improve marketing efforts.

A keyword-rich domain name can be a very effective weapon in your SEO arsenal when it focuses on the three critical areas of a PPC campaign: the headline, the ad text and the clickable URL.  Keeping this in mind, here are some factors to consider when choosing a domain name to aid in your Pay Per Click marketing scheme:

.com TLDs are the Best

Whether it is for a PPC campaign or other endeavors, you want to register your domain with a .com extension if at all possible.  It just tends to resonate better with internet users and also makes you look a bit more established.  On the other hand, extensions such as .net and .biz have been doing well as of late with PPC campaigns so these would definitely be your best alternatives.  In the end, choosing a good domain name with relevant keywords is more important than the extension you decide on.

Get Innovative With Your Name

With keyword-rich domains becoming more scarce, you might need to get a little more creative when registering a name.  Something as simple as adding a hyphen in between your keywords could get you that much closer to your ideal domain name.  Although some don’t recommend it, this proves to have little to no negative impact on a PPC campaign.

Capitalize Your PPC Keywords

After settling on a good domain name, you need to optimize your ads in a manner that makes them more attractive in the eyes of the search engines.  When it comes to PPC campaigns, MyProduct.com can be far more effective than myproduct.com.  Check the statistics and you will likely see that you get more clicks by doing this.  Though it seems quite simple, the difference can end up being more than a 300% difference in your click throughs.  In the end, it can raise your PPC quality score and lower your cost per click as well.

Registering a keyword-rich domain is only practical for a Pay Per Click campaign.  When coupling the tricks in this article with a few others, you should notice results in a very short time.  In the highly competitive world of online marketing, one must take advantage of all they possible can.

Enter the World of Mobile Domains

It seems as if the bar is being raised on technology every year.  Advancements are coming so fast that even the most sophisticated gadgets aren’t as surprising as they should be.  Some of the more notable technological upgrades relate to wireless technology and cellular phones.  The average phone these days is anything but, coming with the ability to play music, surf the web, pull up directions and more.  Even with everything technology has thrown our way, most would probably agree that they didn’t see mobile domain names coming.

What are Mobile Domains?

The mobile domain is a fairly new concept on the domain name market.  As wireless technology becomes more tightly integrated with the internet, webmasters are increasingly trying to target a new audience – mobile web surfers.  If you are looking for innovative ways to increase your visibility, you may want to consider a domain name strategy centered around the fast growing traffic surfing the mobile web.

In 2004, a case was made for adopting DotMobi as a new Top Level Domain.  In 2006 .mobi became a reality, now standing alongside TLDs like .com and .net.  The major difference is that this extension is exclusive to delivering the internet to mobile devices.  This is not to say that .coms and other popular extensions can’t be viewed over a mobile device.  The advancements in web technology essentially means that any website can be developed for mobile browsing.

Interoperability and Usability Problems

While any given domain can be optimized to provide the internet experience via a PC or mobile phone, integrating the technologies isn’t as easy one may think.  Despite all the advancements, most mobile devices do not support key web elements such as Javascript or cookies.  And because 3G is still only present in a small number of devices, the mobile internet as a whole lacks the speed needed to surf the web effectively.  For this reason, the development of mobile websites must be handled on a separate scale for now.

The Bright Side

The issues of incompatibility does not mean that the technologies will never work in perfect harmony.  For now, you may want to consider leaving your existing website as is and then optimizing another for mobile internet traffic, giving yourself the opportunity to embrace audiences on two separate webs.  Now is probably the best time since using the mobile internet to increase visibility is a new strategy altogether.

One should keep in mind that mobile domains and the mobile internet are both such new concepts that they will require some fine tuning in order to catch up to the much more mature internet.   So, even though mobile technology has come a long way, there is still a while to go before we truly enjoy a seamless browsing experience like we do on a PC.

Mobile domains represent an exciting period for the internet world.  Technology has taken us so far yet we have barely even scratched the surface.  When it comes to mobile web surfing, the possibilities are endless.

Understanding Domain Name Transfers

There may come a point in your internet life when you need to transfer a domain name.  Perhaps you are unhappy with the current service and want to take your domain to a new registrar.  Whatever the reason is, you should know what to expect in order to ensure a smooth transition.

What is a Domain Name Transfer?

A domain name transfer describes the process of taking the name you registered with one registrar and moving it to another.  This simply means you only want to switch your domain name service provider.  Everything about your website and actual domain name remains the same.  Keep in mind that a domain name transfer isn’t the same as transferring your website from one server to another.

The Transfer Process

The first step in transferring a domain name is initiating the transfer.  While it is up to you to make the request, only the new registrar can initiate the transfer.  After purchasing an account and getting set up with the new registrar, you should see a link or button that reads “transfer domain”.  In most cases, you will be prompted to enter the domain name, confirm and click “OK”.

What you don’t see behind the scenes is the email exchange between the new registrar and the WHOIS database regarding your domain.  The transfer process moves along once the WHOIS administrative contact accepts the transfer by clicking on a link in the email.  Once the transfer has been approved, the new registrar sends notification to the TLD Registry (Top Level Domain) for further approval.

In order for your domain name to work, it be must active.  If it is inactive, pending, or locked, you will not be able to make the transfer.  This is why it is recommended to transfer your domain name well before the expiration date to avoid such issues.  If your domain is active and registered for 60 days or more, the TLD registry will inform the new registrar that the transfer can continue.   From there, the registry lets the old registrar known that a transfer request has been made.  The old registrar generally has about five days to respond to the TLD registry.  If they do not respond in the given amount of time, the registry will automatically assume approval by default.  While this helps you make a transfer from a hesitant registrar, it also increases the potential of domain theft.  For this reason, it is advisable to sign up with a registrar that offers domain locking and other protective features.

If the registrar actively approves the transfer, they will do so by responding to the TLD registry.  The registry then takes the name from the old registrar, notifies the new registrar and adds it to their account.  That is the domain name transfer process in a nutshell.  As long as you know what to expect, it can all be a painless task.  Although most support staff members are more than willingly to walk you through the process, it is always good to understand what goes on for yourself.

How to Choose a Good Domain Name

When deciding to create a presence on the web, one of the first steps you need to consider is picking a domain name for your website.  This name will represent you by tagging your website with a label that resonates within the minds of visitors.  The name can be up to 67 characters in length and consist of letters, numbers and hyphens.  One of the most important parts of a domain name is the extension or TLD (Top level domain).  Some of the common TLDs include .com, .net, .biz, .org. .edu. .gov., .mil and the list goes on.  While domain names are not exactly extinct, any observer will tell you that there is a shortage of good ones.

To the current day, well over 128 million domain names have been registered throughout the world.  Research shows that thousands of new registrations are being purchased on a daily basis.  The crave of domain names is what makes it so much harder for the newbie to acquire the name they truly want for their website.  If you came up with something simple and catchy such as Buy.com or Fixit.com, forget about it – those domains were gone a long time ago.   The sad part of it all is that many domains are just sitting there inactive, waiting for someone to come through and make a bid.  It’s a crazy game but no need to fret.  Instead of getting frustrated about the domain name shortage, get creative.

Keep it Short …

Even though you get up to 57 characters, using the maximum amount for your domain just isn’t practical.  In fact, anything over 10 characters is actually pushing it.  You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to know that shorter names are simply easier to remember.  They are also less vulnerable to typing errors.  There are however, exceptions to this rule.  Let’s say the name of your business is sort of long and you want to shorten it up with MWWF.  In this example,

Midwestwritersfoundation.com could be easier to remember than the abbreviated version.

Keep it Simple

If you find that your domain name isn’t available, you may be tempted to get clever and come up with a neat variation.  Let’s say Midwestwritersfoundation.com isn’t available.  In this case, you could decide to go with midwest-writers-foundation.com.  Although symbols can help you get closer to the name you actually want, there are some drawbacks.  For one, symbols hardly ever resonate with internet users. If anything, they will omit the symbols and end up at the site of the website owner who beat you to the original domain. Secondly, your potential visitors could easily forget exactly where the symbols are to be placed in the URL, especially if you use more than one.   If at all possible, refrain from symbols.

Be Unique

Sometimes, finding a good domain is simply all about thinking in ways others don’t.  This means coming up with different combinations of your ideal name, adding or subtracting words like “the” and focusing solely on your business.  The market you’re involved in may consist of thousands of businesses but only few, if any, will have the same name as your company.

What Makes a Good Domain?

Many people simply do not understand the importance of a good domain name.  Those who do are struck with the harsh reality that a vast majority of the good domains have already been registered.  If you are running a website, not only will your domain be prevalent in the internet world, but in print as well.  It acts as your identity, and is an integral part of any branding strategy.  If you have made the decision to try and establish yourself online, taking the time to find a good domain is an absolute must.

What makes a good domain?  The following tips should sum it all up for you.

Memorable

A domain name isn’t serving its purpose if no one can remember it.  Sure, it would be ideal if everyone bookmarked their favorite websites, but the fact is that most people do not.  For this reason, it is best to choose a domain that resonates and makes an impact.  Avoid complexity by keeping the name straightforward and easy to remember.

Short and Sweet

While the experts say that a good domain should be no more than 20 characters long, 10 is even better.  Having a long domain name will only complicate matters.  Short and sweet is the key here because if you go over the 20 character mark, you could end up burying yourself in the deep dark corners of the web.

A Good Extension

Extensions or TLDs (Top Level Domains) represents the three letters that come after your primary name.  There are several extensions available including .com, .net, .biz, .org and the list goes on.  Keep in mind that some extensions are reserved for certain entities.  For example, .gov is reserved for government sites will .mil is for the military.  As the most popular extension, .com is what you should strive for.  If you can’t find this TLD, then .net would be the next best alternative.

Spelling

When choosing a domain, try to stay away from names that are difficult to spell.  Many people are not good at spelling, thus, if you pick something more complex, your potential visitors could end up at a competitor’s site.

Avoid the Flash

One of the worst things you can do is try to glamorize your domain with fancy symbols.  After all, most web surfers don’t pay attention to symbols anyway, so even if you do pick something that is memorable, your over zealousness could still lead them to another site.

Be Unique

A good domain name is one that is unique, very descriptive and tells a story in just a few characters.  What this means is that the name should instantly strike a cord with visitors and potential customers by giving them an idea of what to expect.  For example, if the website revolves around your business, using your business name for the domain would be a good idea.  If you are marketing yourself rather than a brand, don’t hesitate to go with your given name.  Besides, you have a much better chance of securing a domain under your own name than anything else.