Some frequently-asked questions about how websites are found.
How many domain names are registered?
How many times are domains searched in a given period?
How is a website found?
What should my website objectives be?
How does a search engine find my domain?
What is a search-friendly domain?
I have an existing website. What are my options if I invest in an exact search term domain?
What is the future of search on the internet?
What are your terms of sale?
How many domain names are registered?
100 million .coms alone (over 87,000 added each business day in 2011)
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How many times are domains searched in a given period?
Estimates of total search volume indicate 16 billion queries in 2011. Using the Google Keyword Tool we can determine how many monthly searches there are for specific keyword and keyword phrases such as:
- Supermarket 3,350,000
- Attorney 40,090,000
- Dermatology 1,000,000
- Hospital 37,200,000
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How is a website found?
A website can be found in two ways; through direct navigation or browser keyword query.
Direct Navigation: When you enter your exact domain name (such as exactsearchterm.com) into a browser (such as Internet Explorer or Firefox) you are taken straight to the requested site.
Browser Keyword Query: Put a relevant word (keyword) or a combination of keywords into a search engine (such as Google or Yahoo) and you will receive a list of relevant web pages in the search engine results pages (SERPs), from which you make your selection.
These SERP listings are found and ranked in an order corresponding to the browser’s interpretation of relevance to the searcher’s request. The closer your site is to the top of the list, the more likely the searcher is to visit your site.
Note that a search engine will find a high ranked domain without the necessity of entering the TLD. Search Engines bold all terms that match the query, making exact search term domains much more visible and therefore likely to get clicked.
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What should my website objectives be?
Simple …get clicks, clicks, and more clicks. To get the most clicks your domain has to appear through direct navigation entry or high search engine page ranking.
If direct navigation is used, your landing page will be visible to the searcher. In the case of a Search Engine result, your web title and tags are displayed as part of a list. The goal is now to get as close to the top of the list as possible and to have the searcher click on your site. Research shows that domain titles displayed that most closely reflect the original search query get clicked more often. Exact match domain names scream relevance.
A domain name that exactly matches the original search term has the best chance to:
- Be the subject of a Direct Navigation inquiry. Best result, as your site is displayed alone.
- Rank higher. (Search engines give ranking “juice” to the closest match)
- Receive the click – as the searcher sees your domain title matches the query.
You can buy your way in using pay-per-click programs that allow you to select keywords and keyword phrases that you would like your domain or ad to be displayed for when these specified words form part of a search query. These programs are based on a dynamic auction that elevates the high bidders to more visible positions. Competitors buy software that constantly monitors bids to ensure you appear. This of course elevates the cost and once you stop paying, you disappear! It is not cheap!
In summary…….Ya gotta be found – ya gotta be clicked.
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How does a search engine find my domain?
Search Engines are constantly evaluating new and existing websites. This is called “crawling” using what are called “algorithms.” (Another term for “How we do it.”) They view your site from as many as 200 different perspectives in an attempt to determine quality and validity of content. A search engine’s algorithm formula is closely guarded and subject to arbitrary change.
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What is a search-friendly domain?
A search-friendly domain is more likely to show up in search because it is memorable and intuitive. So if a searcher needs a taxi in Fargo, for example, he is likely to type in something like “fargo taxi.” All things being equal, fargotaxi.com has the best chance of turning up at or near the top of the first page of the SERP, and by far the best chance of being clicked.
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I have an existing website. What are my options if I invest in an exact search term domain?
We suggest one of four options;
- Redirect your new name to your existing website (or vice-versa.)
- Develop a mini-site, perhaps an informational, customer review, or specific product site that relates to your existing product or service. (Provide reciprocal links between your existing and mini-site.) Such mini-sites can rank very high in search engine results.
- Set up a full site, perhaps even a re-brand of your entire commercial endeavor. In this way you receive the full advantage of the more powerful domain name.
- If your existing domain has few visitors, dump it and move on.
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What is the future of search on the Internet?
The book on Internet search is just now being written and we are still on chapter one. Search engine algorithms are constantly being refined. An entire industry called SEO (search engine optimization) exists to massage website content in an attempt to gain ranking strength. (This group rarely agrees on what works best.) When one considers that about one trillion web pages are indexed by search engines and only 10 appear on page one (where you must be) your presentation must be very close to what the search engine sees as the query term.
An exact search term domain opens this door very wide. In December 2011 Google added a button called verbatim that serves up only exact (verbatim) results. (Look under “more search tools.”) They also indicated their intention to add relevance to “long tail” search (city+product or service .com domains.) We see this as a complete reversal to the proposed down-rating of exact search term suggested in 2010. That never happened, and in fact exact search term results grew in 2011. See BENEFITS (link to come) for more information on this.
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What are your terms of sale?
You will own your domain outright. We transfer ownership to purchasers through an escrow process that protects both parties. For more about how the process works, go to Get Started.
Warning: When working with any domain developer, designer or reseller, be sure to confirm that your domain will be registered in the name you specify. Unscrupulous developers have been known to retain ownership of a domain and withold its content.
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