People often ask me what I’d do differently if I was starting my blogging from scratch – one of the big things would be around choosing better names and domain names for a few of my blogs.
One of the problems with accidentally becoming a Pro Blogger like I did was that things evolved without much strategy for the first year or two as I experimented.
Ryan has a good post on choosing The Perfect Name for your blog/domain name:
As I mentioned the perfect name is easy to remember, sounds and looks good. But more importantly than these three is a name that is suiting. There is no such thing as the perfect name in the initial stages. It takes time and growth before a name can become perfect. So it is our job to look at all the aspects so we can ensure we have a strong, and at least “near perfect” name in the future’
He then goes on to suggest four factors to consider in your decision. I concur with his thoughts. A name can become something that really lifts a blog to the next level.
I strongly advise new bloggers to think up front about the implications of starting news blogs some of these questions:
– what happens if this blog is very successful? Will the domain/subdomain/directory that I start this blog on look professional down the track?
– does the domain name include my main keywords? (helps heaps with SEO)
– is the domain memorable?
What other factors are worth considering in your opinion when it comes to choosing a domain/blog name?
Links: Perfect Blog
Darren Rowse is the founder of ProBlogger.net, a blog about the many ways of adding an income stream to blogs.
Darren owns and writes a variety of blogs including Digital Photography Blog and Camera Phone
Zone. He is also a co-founder of the Breaking News Blog Collective.