Domain Name Mistakes You Don't Want to Make (And How to Avoid Them!)

A blog. A business website. An online store. If you’re setting up any of these, or indeed any other type of website, domain name registration is an unskippable part of the process.

After all, your site’s domain name is what people will use to find and access your site, so it’s not something to take lightly. Indeed, a low quality domain name could make it that much harder to turn your site into a success.

Unfortunately, many people make mistakes when picking their domain names. This guide explores some of the most common mistakes and ways to avoid them.

Too Long

Think of some of the websites you visit on a regular basis, and the domain names they use. Google.com. Amazon.com. Ebay.com. What do they all have in common? Brevity. The best domain names are short, snappy, succinct, and there’s an obvious reason for that – shorter names are much easier to remember and more convenient to type.

Nobody wants to type out an entire sentence just to visit a website. Nor will they necessarily be able to remember an excessively lengthy domain name made up of multiple words. What’s more, on mobile devices with smaller screens, users may not even be able to see the entirety of your domain name in their browser bar if it’s too long.

How to Avoid This

This one’s simple to avoid. Just keep your domain name as short as possible. If there’s a way to shorten it, without impacting its relevance or ease-of-use, then do so. Think of it this way – every character you add to your domain name increases the odds of people misremembering or misspelling it.

Too Complicated or Hard to Spell

Another common trend among many of the best and most successful domain names is simplicity. They’re not just brief, they’re easy to understand, too. Even when they use made-up or unusual words, such as Google, Pinterest, or Twitter, they remain relatively straightforward, reducing the risk of people misremembering or getting them wrong.

If, on the other hand, you choose to register a domain name that people find confusing, that’ll almost certainly have an impact on your site’s future success (or lack thereof). People will struggle to remember the exact combination of letters and words needed to access your page, and it should never feel like a chore or challenge for someone to simply visit your site.

How to Avoid This

Focus on simplicity. That doesn’t just mean making your domain name as short as possible, but ensuring that it’s something people won’t have a hard time remembering or typing out. A good way to test this is to tell your prospective domain name to a few friends. Then, a day or two later, ask them to type it back to you, and see how many get it right.

Try saying your domain name out loud, too, in order to see how easy it is to pronounce, or if there could be any confusion. Many people use voice search nowadays, so you need a name that’s not just easy to type, but easy to say, as well.

Using Numbers and Hyphens

Think again about some of the most famous, successful domain names you type on a daily or weekly basis. Think about how many of them contain numbers or hyphens. It’s probably not a lot, if any at all. Again, there’s a reason for that, and it ties into what we’ve already covered in the previous point – numbers and hyphens add confusion and complexity to a name, making it harder to remember.

Using the number “4” instead of the word “for” for example, might seem like a way to make your name a little snappier. However, it only invites confusion. 

Similarly, if a domain name includes a hyphen to separate two words, that also tends to do more harm than good. Since so many domain names don’t use hyphens, people have a habit of hearing a name and just typing it out. That habit might lead them to the wrong address, making it harder for you to attract traffic.

How to Avoid This

To avoid these issues, never use hyphens in your domain name, and avoid numbers wherever possible. 

Note: there are some exceptions. For instance, if a number is part of your business’ name, it’s fine to keep it in the domain name. A bar called “99 Ales” for example, would be perfectly fine with the domain name “99Ales.com.”

Too Similar to an Existing Name

The internet has been around for quite a while, and lots of popular or potentially successful domain names have already been taken. That makes it particularly tricky to choose a name that is not only relevant, concise, and easy to remember, but also not too similar to any existing names that already exist on the World Wide Web.

If you pick a name that’s too similar to another company’s, especially one of your competitors, that can cause a whole host of problems. It might seem like a bit of a desperate move on your part to try and “steal” traffic from your rival, or it may show a lack of both imagination and professionalism, even if that’s not what you intended.

How to Avoid This

To avoid this, creativity is the key. It’s not easy, especially in certain saturated markets where there are already so many awesome names in use. But you have to do your best to come up with a name that’s fresh and original. Use domain name checkers to see which ones are available, and always double-check that no similar names exist before registering your domain.

The Wrong Extension

When picking a domain name, the extension is arguably just as important as the name itself. For the uninitiated, domain name extensions are like “.com” or “.uk,” for example. They’re also known as top-level domains, or TLDs, and they’re divided into a bunch of categories, like generic TLDs and country-code TLDs for regions around the world.

Most people aim for one of the big generic TLDs, like “.com” or “.net.” Those are the most popular. But some decide to go a different route. They opt for an alternative TLD. Maybe because it was cheaper, or more accessible. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but may trigger negative consequences in some cases. Your site may fail to attract the right audience, for instance, if you pick the wrong TLD.

How to Avoid This

Take your time choosing your extension. Do your research, see what options are out there, and find out how they’re used. .ai TLD registration, for example, is terrific for tech startups.

Note that some TLDs come with strict eligibility requirements – they might only be for specific regions, for instance. Remember, your choice of domain extension impacts SEO, traffic, brand recognition, and more. It’s not something to take lightly.

Avoid These Mistakes to Pick the Perfect Name

Clearly, domain name selection isn’t something to rush. Just like picking a business name or designing a logo, it demands time and effort. The more you put in, the more you’ll get out. By steering clear of these common mistakes, you’ll have a much higher chance of picking the perfect name.