December 2003
Editor note: a large portion of the article was based on the Google
algorithm shortly after the "Florida Update" of 2003. some
of it's data in no longer 100% accurate as the Google algorithm has
changed.
In general I think you can get a good brandable domain name without
dashes if you are creative. That was the basis for this article.
http://www.1-shopping-buy-cheap-viagra-online-sale-save-today.com
For years there have been arguements between branding vs search engine
visibility. Recently Google decided to end this arguement for once and
for all! In the past it was easy to get good search engine rankings
by having a dashed domain. It no longer is.
I bought this domain name (search marketing info) before I had a good
concept of what branding is, I wanted search engine visibilitiy. My
home page was ranked in Google at # 7 for "search engine marketing,"
it now rests somewhere in the thousands. I am currently forced to undue
the effects of my dashed domain. (article update: I am back in the top
10 where I belong).
Many times we only assume to know what a search engine uses in its
algorithm. When we use tools such as the Google
Toolbar to highlight search terms it does not highlight exactly
what the search engine uses. The highlighting is ran through an external
program.
Some search engines give slight weighting to domain name, others do
not. The domain name itself rarely causes a change in ranking; however,
others reactions to the domain name do. However small the improved rankings
may be, you are trading a ton of brandability for the dashes.
On the web most people never meet in real life. Few will know what
your IP address is, and even fewer care. Without seeing your face, hands,
lips, or body, your domain name is all of these.
Your domain name is the handshake you share with visitors and other
webmasters alike. There are ways to take advantage of this idea, and
there are many who completely miss opportunity.
If the dashes are part of the creative element behind
the domain then they can aid you. Though I am not sure what I am going
to do with the domain names yet, I purchased (email
ideas)
- 000-00-0000.com
- 000-00-0001.com
- 999-99-9999.com
I think these could be highly brandable, but are the exception to and
not the rule.
To me, a domain with three dashes in it typically feels like a brand
new used car. It is like
saying "don't remember me."
Letters of the alphabet flow together. We have learned
them all our lives. While it is certain the search engines can parse
the words of a domain if they are seperated by a dash, you may not want
them to.
Dashed domains usually consist of keywords. Why else
would you be using the dashes? It is typically easier to get an optimized
inbound link if the link words are the same as those which exist in
your domain. Instead of becoming creative many webmasters use the dash
as a dual purpose tool.
- It prevents them from needing to be creative.
- It allows them to get their keywords in the domain.
Many people link to sites by domain name. If your
domain name is nothing but your commercial keywords many of your links
will be your key words. Recently the Google algorithm started punishing
sites taking advantage of over optimization.
For the first time in the history of the internet
unoptimized inbound links may be worth more than optimized inbound links.
Dashed domains in a sense artificially aided people
in the ability to enhance their topical authority. When professors cite
another professors work they frequently use their name in the link.
Other times they use the title of the work. Making the domain name the
exact keyword grouping would encourage most inbound links to use those
keywords.
This works against the natural linking process and
the organizing the web. This is why Google turned on the over optimizaton
filter.
There are not a whole lot of single word top level
domains out there today. Sometimes a domain name which is descriptive
of what the site is about is very good for branding. It should be unique
enough that it is memorable. Though I do not know a ton about branding,
I do know what domains stick in my head as I search the web. For other
search engine news site I think
Those are all just stuck in my head. I did not have to think, I just
remember them. Thier domains are so memorable that I even remember all
of their "real" names. Had any of the above chosen
- search-engine-watch.com
- search-engine-guide.com
- search-engine-blog.com
- high-rankings.com
- traffic-search-engine-news-increase-search-engine-traffic.com
They would have most likely lost a little credibility to many users,
and I would not remember them as easy. It is sometimes a good idea to
have your "widgets" in your domain name, but creativity or
simplicity are required to make the name stick in the minds of your
visitors.
If I were to give away a free book about SEO this Chistmas i would
probably host it at something like seobook.com - coming soon
One guy I just got off the phone with just lost his rankings. His business
grossed over $3,000,000 in sales last year. He just
lost his primary distribution. If he does not act quickly it is likely
that his business will tank. He rode the dashed domain to its ugly death.
If your goal is quick marginal short term profits the dashed domain
may help. If your goal is to build a long term viable business then
I do not recommend a dashed domain. In all reality the branding lost
to the dash is rarely worth the short term gains that a dashed domain
may provide in some search engines. Allowing the natural linking process
to occur will make your website less suceptible to future algorthmic
changes.
