Your domain name is very important to the “brand” for your organization. It’s important to think carefully about the name you choose for your domain.
Your domain name should be:
- Memorable
- Easy to type, spell, and pronounce
- Reflect your website’s purpose
- Not conflicting or easily confused with other websites
Think about how you will be promoting your website. Perhaps you’ll want it on radio spots – so it should be short and sweet, and easy to spell. It could be the name of your company or organization, but doesn’t have to be.
How about the extensions? What do these .com, .net, .org, .edu extensions mean – and are they enforced? Here’s a quick guide:
.COM
By far the most common of all extensions (about 50% of all domain names), many people think “companyname.com” is the only extension out there. It defines most corporate websites and is appropriate for many other organizations as well.
.ORG
This extension was used for charities and non-profits exclusively prior to 2019. Now anyone can designate a .org extension.
.NET
This extension can be used when “.com” is taken – but beware, your clients may mistake you for “samename.com” if you choose “samename.net”.
.APP
If you’re building mobile or web apps, this may be the perfect extension for you.
.EDU
Educational institutions use the “.edu” extension.
.GOV
Only government agencies are allowed to use the “.gov” extension.
There are other specialty extensions that I can suggest for your purpose.
Keep in mind that you may wish to purchase multiple names – and link them all to your home page! You can get an edge in your market niche by purchasing companynm.com, companynm.org, and companynm.net, for example.
