If you’re going to create a blog or website you’re undoubtably concerned about what domain name to choose.
For some reason, choosing a domain name seems to create a lot of controversy, so I thought I would quickly clarify a few things to help you make an informed decision.
First, I want to clarify one point. Websites or ‘sites’ are officially defined as being static, whereas blogs are defined as having ongoing and updated content.
For this article I will interchange the words arbitrairily because my advice is applicable for both.
Points for how to pick a domain;
- There is no prejudice against any domain names or extensions these days; those days are over.
- All domain extensions are treated equal by all search engines. So, feel free to grab whatever extension you prefer including, ‘.blog’, .’biz’. ‘.net’, ‘.org’, or even a country specific one like, ‘.ca’ (Canada) or ‘.com.au’ (Australia).
- Even country-specific extensions will be listed globally if your site offers globally interesting content.
- Subdomains are also treated just as fairly by all search engines. A subdomain would be something like, ‘yourname.wordpress.com.’
- So, yes, using WordPress dot com IS a viable alternative when starting a blog or site. In fact, starting on WordPress dot com is often the best alternative for new bloggers or businesses. This platform is easy to use, and it will teach you a lot about how to set up a site and blog. It is also a very secure environment.
- No, WordPress dot com will not ‘steal’ your content!
- Anyone who tells you that you have to self-host your site to be ranked or taken seriously is misinformed.
- Those that strongly recommend going with a self-hosting provider right from the start are most often affiliates for the hosting provider that they recommend. They’re just trying to make some cash with their recommendation. Enough said on that point.
- You can call your blog anything you want, and it doesn’t have to match the domain name!
- For example, you could call your blog or site, Susie’s Yummy Recipes and the domain could be ‘sillystuff.tips.’ In a case like that, the search engines will show and rank your website as ‘Susie’s Yummy Recipes.’
- Just a few examples of very successful websites that have different domain and blog names include Mark Schaefer’s blog ‘Marketing. Strategy. Humanity. – Mark Schaefer, ‘ which is ‘bussinessesgrow.com’ and Erik Barker’s blog, ‘Barking Up The Wrong Tree‘ which is, ‘bakadesuyo.com.’
- Lastly, there is no magic length to domain or blog names. Just don’t make it ridiculously long.
So, my overall advice when choosing a domain name is relax. It’s what you put on your blog that matters the most, not how the actual domain name reads.
I hope that helps.