D-I-Y SEO Series - Tip 2: Use Keywords in Your Domain Name

Comments

January 16, 2007 at 8:47 am

(1) Nicole St.Martin says:

Hi Randy – I have been in the search engine optimization biz for a long while now and my two cents is this –

Domain age is a very important factor in search engine algorithms (how long your domain has been registered)so in most instances I would never recommend dumping an old domain for a new one, it will set you back pretty far when it comes to ranking well in the search engine results pages.

An older domain will benefit you more then a domain with keywords. To get credit for keywords you have to use dashes to seperate them out, otherwise a search engine see’s one big word

Example:http://www.search-engine-optimization-services.com

This makes for a pretty hard URL to remember. Search and what’s best for your website is dependent on so many factors, not all of them will be applicable to the best interest of your website and it’s users.

January 16, 2007 at 3:38 pm

(2) Randy4HmBiz says:

Hi Nicole –
Thanks for you comment. Yes, I agree I should have modified my statement a bit. If you already have a website and it’s going nowhere or if you’ve only had it a little while you could consider changing the domain name. You’re absolutely right that domain age is a factor.

I”m a bit confused by your statement on the hyphens. I’ve always thought the hyphens would help the engines, but after testing and reading other resources, I don’t think it matters any more. Everything I read today suggests that you should do what’s right for your potential customers/clients – what’s easy to remember, and most don’t think about hyphens.

I’m inclined to think that most SEs really don’t need the hyphens, which would seem to suggest that the domain name itself is carrying less weight now than it used to.

Randy