SEO Branding, or Just Choose a Brand Name You Like?
Have you tried and tried to choose a brand name based on keywords? I chose my website's domain name that way.
Lately I've wished I would have gone with something else; that domain name that better matches what my site is about, that I didn't think of when I was thinking SEO.
Here's an interesting article I just read on Quora about branding. After reading this, I'm thinking I may have to create a new website using that domain name I thought of after the fact. I wish I could just put my new name on my old website and have all the ranking come with it!
Please tell me what you think! Should I keep what I've already developed, or start over with the catchy name that is low-ranking now, but because it does relate to my topic, might be the next Zappos .com? (Zapatos is Spanish for shoes.) What's the best way to go about it? Or the best way to "look" at it? Opinions, please.
Best,
Rori O
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The best example I can think of where a company chose it's domain name based on keyword search terms is B&Q here in the UK.
For those who don't know who they are, they are a major Do It Yourself company. When DIY became popular in the UK in the 80's B&Q would have had to compete, as they still do, with the many similar companies out there.
Bring on the internet and this is where B&Q stole a march on their competitors by adopting http://diy.com as their Domain name.
Anyone in the UK searching on line for anything DIY related and who uses that as a search term finds themselves walking into a virtual B&Q store.
Things have evolved but this must prove that there is still merit in using that strategy when we choose our domain names.
Eyecatching domain names would surely be an effective compliment to this when advertizing offline to promote our brand in the more 'traditional' ways such as newpaper and shop window ads, leaflet drops, etc. Just an educated guess from a relative newbie! :-)
Yes, but I would like to transfer everything to the new name and focus on the new site without losing all my past work.
So I bought the domain name because I figure I can either play my two sites off each other, or add the new domain name as a subdomain without anyone else getting my new domain. It is the title of my book, hero-v-heroin . com You like?
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I am one of the believers in "brandable" names. Cheers, William.
Thanks, William. I went ahead and bought the domain name, Hero-v-Heroin. My topic is the growing heroin epidemic, and my older site is about successful living strategies. Now I'm debating if I should add a subdomain of the same name to my success site, or play the two sites off of each other. Pros and cons to both, of course! Your thoughts?
Thank you for asking Rori .. I think the answer depends on where you see your Success Site going. For me, if I was developing a Success Site, I would not incorporate heroin or other addictions to any significant extend. I suspect the audience of a Success Site are looking for a different message and input. So personally I would separate them and maybe occasionally only deal with addictive personalities and addictions.
The Hero-v-Heroin is the vehicle that you can use for your passion in helping people in this area.
Hope that helps with your choice.
Cheers, William.