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Building A Strong Foundation
by Glenn Canady

I'd like to cover some of the essential elements for any successful Internet business. These basics are very important and you'll need to consider them early in the process.

6 Things to consider when picking a domain name

This is a very important topic because a GREAT domain name can make a HUGE difference in your sales. There are 6 things to consider when picking the domain name for your business.

1. Own your domain name! I recommend that you don't even consider building an Internet business unless you OWN your own domain. It's just too much work to take the risk of somebody else reaping all the rewards because they are the actual owners of the domain.

2. Never use a Virtual or FREE domain. First of all, don't even consider using a FREE domain or a virtual domain. Many portal sites such as Yahoo provide free domains. Free domains do not belong to you and can be taken away at any time. How would you like to spend years marketing a free domain and then have the company that provided it go out of business!

3. Dot Com still Rules. I'm still a big believer in getting a .com domain instead of any of the newer ones. Even though it's harder to find a good .com domain name, its still the one people go to first! You don't want to invest all the time and money in a non dot com site and here's why. Suppose you really wanted www.carwax.com but it was already taken so you registered www.carwax.net instead. Here's what will happen. After a lot of hard work, you eventually start getting quite a bit of name recognition on the internet. People start to remember your domain name but some will forget that it was carwax.net and instead end up going to carwax.com! A good portion of your customers will end up going to carwax.com by mistake at some point and many will start buying from that site instead.

4. Make Your Domain name Catchy if possible. If you can make your domain catchy it will really help people remember it. Some great examples of catchy names are Yahoo, Ebay, and Priceline. Notice that these names don't really describe what these companies do but they are catchy so people remember them. Another great example is http://www.doubleyourdating.com. It tells exactly what the site is all about AND it's a catchy name. It's really the best of both worlds. This site is also a great example of Ad copy so make sure you review it.

5. Choose A Domain That Comes Early In The Alphabet if you can. It can be somewhat important to consider what letter your domain starts with because this will determine how the big directories such as Yahoo will display you. Many directories list domains alphabetically so it can be an advantage to start your domain early in the alphabet if possible. Here's another secret. Numbers come before letters in the sorting process. This means that a site called 5starshine.com will come before even the A's! Coming up at the top of the list with a directory such as Yahoo can give you a LOT more traffic so it's definitely worth considering. You should also consider naming your company and product early in the alphabet because some directories will order you by these names instead of your domain name. Please keep in mind that while it's nice to have your domain name toward the beginning of the alphabet, it's not critical by any means so don't worry too much if you can't do it or if you already have a good domain name etc. With the advent of the Yahoo selling so many of its positions and their new layout, being alphabetical isn't nearly as important as it once was anyway.

6. Use Your Keywords in your domain. If at all possible use your keywords in your domain name. Your keywords are the words that people would type into a search engine to find you. Many search engines give a higher priority to a site that has keywords in the domain name when those words are searched for. Some examples of using keywords in your domain name are:

www.bestcarwax.com
www.gorillawebsitemarketing.com
www.doubleyourdating.com
www.promoteyourwebsite.com

Build a Site Rich in Content!

The most important thing to remember about first rate websites is that they are always rich in content. For example, if your site sells widgets, then include as much relevant information as possible about widgets on the site. Make it easy to navigate around your site, tell about all the benefits of your widgets. Finally, make it extremely easy for somebody to buy your widgets online with a minimum of effort.

The home page of your website is without question the most important page of the website. It should contain enough information so that someone can tell immediately what you do. Make sure that you have at least a brief paragraph or two that explains your products on this crucial page and not just pretty graphics! Your first page should be a concise introduction about your company and products. The details can come in the later pages.

Tell Your Customers How To Reach You!

Great websites have multiple means for their customers to give them feedback. I remember a phone call I got recently from a distressed website owner that couldn't understand why she hadn't gotten a single phone call over the last month. After a quick check of her website I discovered something amazing! She didn't have a contact phone number listed on her site and when I clicked on the email link there was a script error. Apparently she had recently changed her web hosting and never bothered to check her email script. She had a great website but no way to make sales or to take customer feedback!

Make sure that your website has some type of 'Contact Us' link that lists your company name, e-mail address, mailing address, phone number, and fax number. People really like to be able to talk to somebody on the phone when they have questions. If they can't reach you on the phone, they will move on to a company they can reach! I also believe in listing your phone number and e-mail address at the bottom of your home page for easy access.

Wishing You Success!

Glenn Canady is the author of Gorilla Website Marketing which is chock-full of new and exciting ways to get to the top of the search engines and increasing your site traffic.

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