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Which is more important when picking a domain -choosing keywords for SEO or BRANDING

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Biggie

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Which is more important when picking a domain -choosing keywords for SEO or BRANDING


Your opinions are important for helping me determine where to develop a site

depends on your biz model or whether it's business related at all.

are you for profit or non-profit

non-profit would definetly want keywords relating to the area of service.

some business models would also want this

2.0 sites don't typically follow this path, as they aren't conforming to that strategy. their names are chosen based on availability, brandability and how it sounds and looks in design.

in either instance, once the site is deveoped, the content and traffic will drive positioning.

imo....
 

acronym007

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I vote branding.

Reason: the trends of our day, youtube, flickr, ebay etc...

People will follow great sites so branding for crapping site is not going to help but I think a great brand and a great site go a long way to reach the customer. It makes it memorable and it sticks out from the crowd. People would be more likely to use expedia and priceline than travel dot com for travel. Travel might be too broad, perfect word though, just for example.
 

RTM.net

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I agree with Biggedon for the current trend in Bubl 2.0 style branding but would tend to what hugegrowth also suggests - combine both.

A good example is DIGG - a cool brandeable name, that also marries itself well to the idea of "digging" a site...

Stuff like Mebo or Malaho ? Err, not so convinced (about the domain itself)... same for Kijiji ...
 

DomainBuyerBroker

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Do you want a location on a main street or down the end of the street?

If you want a location on main street then you will have to invest in a good generic domain that will get traffic from pre-qualified leads (keywords). When you are done with the business, the domain is an asset on its own merit.

If you want a location at the end of the street, you will have to invest money to get people down the street but they will have it in their heads to make the trip to see you (branding). When you are done, you have a business on a domain. If a buyer does not want to buy your business, the domain won't be worth much.

Either way, you have to invest money in the business. Investing in a good domain will at least buy you a long term asset. Building a brand may or may not work and all the money is gone with nothing to show for it.

Always go for quality especially if you are building a business and that means easy to say and remember along with generic or keyword domains.

Also, there's the credibility aspect. Having a great domain shows you are serious about your business.

Would you rather click on MyBusinessIsOverHere.com or MyBusiness.com ?
 

Dale Hubbard

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IMO, branding rules at the moment as an opportunity niche. Francois has a keen market sense -- llll.coms that are pronouncable and which he is happy to sit on. These are the speculators' gold IMHO. If you don't know who Francois is, just look at the banner ads on this forum for brandable domains. Sharp action. Bloody hell, I sold azooza.com years ago for $600. Regret reigns rife.
 

katherine

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Bloody hell, I sold azooza.com years ago for $600. Regret reigns rife.
It's a shame it's not even developed ;)

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I agree with Rob:
Either way, you have to invest money. If you invest in a great name that speaks for itself - this is the best business card you can get. If the name has type-in or SEO attributes it's like free advertising.
The good thing with branding, you can pick unregistered names and develop around them. But in the long run you have to invest to build consumer awareness.
Branding could be an option when you have limited funds to start with, also traffic (=revenue) can be built through natural SEO and patience...
 

DomainBuyerBroker

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this is the best business card you can get.

I like that idea. Does the domain have "business card appeal".

Will people be impressed or at least know immediately what your site is about when you hand them a business card with your domain on it?

Will the domain be in big letters (ie the name of the business or better than the name of the business) or will the domain be in small letters at the bottom.

If I built on a great domain, I'd be proud of the domain and have it right at the top of the business card.
 

doobee

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Content rules. If you have content people are willing to crawl through sewers to get to, then the domain (although important) takes a back seat. Choose a half decent domain but don't forget about the content.
 

Dale Hubbard

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It's a shame it's not even developed ;)

Related Searches
Zoo
Visit to the Zoo A
Tycoon UK Zoo
Attractions San Diego Zoo
A and O Hotel AM Zoo
Chiang Mai Zoo
_________________________________
I agree with Rob:
Either way, you have to invest money. If you invest in a great name that speaks for itself - this is the best business card you can get. If the name has type-in or SEO attributes it's like free advertising.
The good thing with branding, you can pick unregistered names and develop around them. But in the long run you have to invest to build consumer awareness.
Branding could be an option when you have limited funds to start with, also traffic (=revenue) can be built through natural SEO and patience...
That's hardly down to me. It cannot be held to be a keyword domain. Who would be looking for 'zoos' etc.? It's just a brand possibility. Well, so someone else thought also. A palindrome -- they are getting rare.
 
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