Need Feedback On Domain Name Please

[sheriesmith]

Background: my blog is http://homeappraisaltips.blogspot.com
Lynn wants me to choose a domain name ASAP and get these hosted on my own site, instead of blogger. (I totally agree!)

Here are the 'facts':
homeappraisaltips.com (already taken)
home-appraisal-tips.com (don't think hyphens do as well)

Two options I'm considering:
best home appraisal tips.com
home appraisal value tips.com

Wordtracker:
home appraisal tips - 78
home appraisal value - 79

Google:
home appraisal tips - 1300
home appraisal value - 6600

I would be adding an additional word to both options (BEST on 1st; TIPS on the 2nd). I'm leaning toward homeappraisalvaluetips.com since there is a HUGE difference in the Google #'s. Wordtracker seems to show them about the same.

Even though I'm adding 'tips' to the end of 'home appraisal value', it still looks like I'd be better to go with homeappraisalvaluetips because of the Google #'s. Am I correct?

Thanks everyone,
Sherie Smith

[AlexNewell]

Loads of SEOs agree that using your best keyword as your domain name gives you a boost in the search engines. It is called the exact match boost and it must be an exact match -so try to find a good keyword that is not taken.

if the hyphenated domain is available then grab it - there is no problem with domain names using hyphens. You could even redirect it to any other domain name you like.

Get an up to date keyword list from Google adwords tool and see what you can come up with and get any top level domain - dot net / org or com - it is search engines that will find you and they do not care about your domain extrension.

All The Best

[sheriesmith]

Alex, these are current research #'s, from this morning actually. Thanks for your ideas.

[lisamariemary]

I think he's saying to get a list of more keywords to brainstorm about - from Adwords.

And also, Alex - as far as the dashes go, 'people' don't like them, but, search engines do, right? I know that's kind of an old thing to do (several yrs ago) and people aren't doing it anymore, but, it's still good for search right?

[Engage]

Please remember you are trying to create a brand. Personally, I favor hyphenated domain names simply because they are far easier to read, especially as the number of keywords grows beyond one or two.

Ideally, someone should be able to read your domain name, and know immediately what you have to offer. If they can't actually read your domain name, this is lost.

Best of luck!

[lisamariemary]

I got my husband http://reliable-home-repair-and-remodeling.com and he hates it. LOL And his customers can't stand it. They said they love the name - that's why they call - but, they don't like the domain. (When he had an ad in the paper, that is.)

I bought him the non-hyphenated version, but, it is messed up right now.

(Kinda funny that non-hyphenated is, in fact, hyphenated. Heh.)

[chickblogger]

Hey, Sherie:

If you're going after home appraisal tips and I gather you are. How about homeappraisaltipsblog.com? If available. I did not check.

Yes, its kind of long. 4 words. But unless you change your main keywords, it will have to be 4 words.

Let us know what you decide. And great question.

p.s. Nice touch with the videos on your blogspot blog. Very web 2.0

Cheers,
Missy

UPDATE: I did check and the dot com is available.

[marksierra]

While hyphenated names are not necessarily user-friendly, search engines don't care. I wouldn't go so far as to say that they LIKE them because they're hyphenated, it's just that they don't care.

Also, while there is some benefit to having a domain name that people can get the meaning of, that alone is not going to cause your business to fail, unless of course you name it something REALLY off the wall or offensive.

Consider: Google, Yahoo, even ClickNewz. What do those names mean? Answer: who cares? They're all very successful sites whose names don't convey what they hold behind them.

So anyhoo, back to your domain names...

Boy, this one is a tough nut to crack! I did some research on my own and was disappointed in the search numbers for practically the whole lot.

And while adding "tips" to "home appraisal value" makes it unique, you're still competing for a keyword phrase that's pretty competitive by my calculations.

BUT...

There is one keyword phrase that's laser-focused though it does have low search. That phrase is:

tennessee home appraisal (.net is available, btw)

It comes out to about 16 hits a day, which is about 480 a month. But over time and hopefully steady traffic, that could amount to a nice, targeted list of people (have you considered creating a mailing list to reach these people regularly?).

Now, of course, if you decide to move to another state, you're sunk.

P.S. Fantastic job on the video while you're driving. If I tried that I'd be all over the road. LOL

[angienewton]

Honestly Sherie, don't worry about the keywords for domain. I would choose home appraisal tips over the other though. No dashes or the fewer the better. I bought one recently with one but it's best for your readers not to have to remember dashes.

Lisa Marie, ouch on that domain LOL

[cindybidar]

Regarding dashes or not...think about where and how you will market your site. Will you be doing podcast interviews? Speaking "home dash appraisal dash tips dot com" might be a little cumbersome.

If, on the other hand, you'll only be doing written marketing, it won't matter so much.