It seems to me that there is a lack of creativity in domain name creation.
I sense that there is a fixation/obsession with keywords so that the domain will appeal to Google, a private company that is an effective monopoly and seems to do whatever it likes. Remember when Google were upstarts and said “Don’t be evil” - well, they have become what they once despised.
This happens with many challengers to the status quo, in that once they begin to grow, they can soon become the status quo and act in ways that they used to criticize/despise others. Apple is another such company, and as much as I like their products (except their poor Mail program), approaching $3 trillion in revenue hampers your ability to being a challenger, an innovator, fresh.
Perhaps if Steve and Jony were still there, Apple could still have those attributes.
But I digress.
I haven’t ever focused on creating domains based on keywords. It just seems that the keyword space is so overcrowded that getting noticed becomes harder and harder over time. I also don’t really understand this space, having not explored it and I also take exception to being at the mercy of the evil G, who behave as judge, jury & executioner, to say the least of their antics.
Looking at the some of the recently created internet companies (last 15 years or so), there are many two word company names made up of dictionary words, but a good number are names that are not real words and their names are just made up.
This is the area I have focused on for the past 10+ years and I have been surprised at how many names have been available that I have come up with. Over the last few years, I have added over 200 names to my portfolio and I am coming up with name ideas all the time. Although not all my name ideas become names I register.
I don’t expect many of my names to appeal to lots of people or that they will sell for eyebrow raising amounts. But like all seller/buyer scenarios, it only takes one person to like a name I have created and like it enough to want to buy it. Given the population of internet users, which is always growing and that useful domain names are becoming increasingly rarer, I think that won’t be hard to achieve.
I usually come up with names by something I see or hear, sometimes swapping letters around or adding 1-2 letters, sometimes replacing letters. I have also “discovered” names, serendipitously, by making typos when I’ve been typing something, like an email or a url. It is surprising to me how often this happens and I am stopped in my working flow. I pause for a while and think about what is on the screen. Sometimes, its nothing or really just junk, but sometimes it looks and sounds great to me.
Usually, I need to like how the domain sounds and if it passes the “radio test”. I also have to be able to see what market the name might address or appeal to and whether that market is immature/mature and/or overcrowded and/or populated by upstarts. Domain names are very low cost, but if you register many iffy names or names with fringe appeal, the costs add up.
I check the visitor figures for each of my domains as they are coming up for renewal and take a decision on whether to renew or let them expire. I don’t let many go.
I tend to focus on 5-8 letter domains (4 letter domains are almost all taken up, the worthwhile ones that is, but I don’t spend any time searching just for these), but I might go beyond 8 letters if the name sounds very good to me.
I do have some domains that are real words, including people’s names, but this is less than 5% of my portfolio.
If you have approached domain name creation in ways other than by using keywords, perhaps you’d like to share your method or comment on mine.
I sense that there is a fixation/obsession with keywords so that the domain will appeal to Google, a private company that is an effective monopoly and seems to do whatever it likes. Remember when Google were upstarts and said “Don’t be evil” - well, they have become what they once despised.
This happens with many challengers to the status quo, in that once they begin to grow, they can soon become the status quo and act in ways that they used to criticize/despise others. Apple is another such company, and as much as I like their products (except their poor Mail program), approaching $3 trillion in revenue hampers your ability to being a challenger, an innovator, fresh.
Perhaps if Steve and Jony were still there, Apple could still have those attributes.
But I digress.
I haven’t ever focused on creating domains based on keywords. It just seems that the keyword space is so overcrowded that getting noticed becomes harder and harder over time. I also don’t really understand this space, having not explored it and I also take exception to being at the mercy of the evil G, who behave as judge, jury & executioner, to say the least of their antics.
Looking at the some of the recently created internet companies (last 15 years or so), there are many two word company names made up of dictionary words, but a good number are names that are not real words and their names are just made up.
This is the area I have focused on for the past 10+ years and I have been surprised at how many names have been available that I have come up with. Over the last few years, I have added over 200 names to my portfolio and I am coming up with name ideas all the time. Although not all my name ideas become names I register.
I don’t expect many of my names to appeal to lots of people or that they will sell for eyebrow raising amounts. But like all seller/buyer scenarios, it only takes one person to like a name I have created and like it enough to want to buy it. Given the population of internet users, which is always growing and that useful domain names are becoming increasingly rarer, I think that won’t be hard to achieve.
I usually come up with names by something I see or hear, sometimes swapping letters around or adding 1-2 letters, sometimes replacing letters. I have also “discovered” names, serendipitously, by making typos when I’ve been typing something, like an email or a url. It is surprising to me how often this happens and I am stopped in my working flow. I pause for a while and think about what is on the screen. Sometimes, its nothing or really just junk, but sometimes it looks and sounds great to me.
Usually, I need to like how the domain sounds and if it passes the “radio test”. I also have to be able to see what market the name might address or appeal to and whether that market is immature/mature and/or overcrowded and/or populated by upstarts. Domain names are very low cost, but if you register many iffy names or names with fringe appeal, the costs add up.
I check the visitor figures for each of my domains as they are coming up for renewal and take a decision on whether to renew or let them expire. I don’t let many go.
I tend to focus on 5-8 letter domains (4 letter domains are almost all taken up, the worthwhile ones that is, but I don’t spend any time searching just for these), but I might go beyond 8 letters if the name sounds very good to me.
I do have some domains that are real words, including people’s names, but this is less than 5% of my portfolio.
If you have approached domain name creation in ways other than by using keywords, perhaps you’d like to share your method or comment on mine.
