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Ask HN: SEO vs. Branding with Domains (keyword.net vs. prefix+keyword.com)

12 points by mikeburrelljr ↗ HN
Calling all SEO and branding experts (I understand we may get different answers from each)...

As an example, say you are creating a product website about something called "Furble Gurble" - but the .com for that keyword is taken. Would you recommend getting "FurbleGurble.net" or resort to stacking words on the front or end, such as "FreeFurbleGurble.com".

Please explain your reasoning from either an SEO or branding point of view.

9 comments

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mikeburrelljr
And specifically with the prefix example, would the word "free" in front be a turn-off (think of that catchy song for the credit report domain on the tv)??
randfish
I'm hugely passionate about SEO, but, perhaps anachronistically, I'd urge you to go with something brandable over something that's merely a keyword match.

Of course, if you can do both, and you love the name, that's awesome, but personally, I'd take an OKCupid brand name over "freeonlinedating.com" any day. It's harder to build up initially (the exact match may indeed have an easier time in many industries getting first page rankings for a single keyword phrase), but SEO and inbound marketing are a much broader field

You need people to search for you, know about you, tell their friends, bookmark your stuff, share your site on social services, email their friends/family and generally think positively about the brand. It's incredibly hard to do that with most exact match sites (hotels.com or pets.com being exceptions).

If you want to have your cake and eat it, too, you could go with something like "hipdating.com" (from the example above). Folks like Codecademy.com or even SEOmoz.org fit that profile.

mikeburrelljr
Rand, thanks for chiming in... I'm actually a recent client of yours and absolutely love your service!

Not to change subjects, but why do you use the .org (even though you own the .com)? What was your reasoning behind this decision?

randfish
It's actually a legacy thing. When I first started Moz in 2003, it was just a blog, with no commercial intent, so I redirected the .com to the .org and kept it there.

It's likely that we'll move to .com in the near future, though. Even with the redirect, the perception of visitors is sometimes the wrong one (e.g. "oh, SEOmoz, aren't they a non-profit industry resources?").

p.s. Thrilled to hear you're liking SEOmoz PRO! If you have any suggestions, please do send 'em over :-)

dshah
I'm with you on this one. I favor something brandable vs. just a pure keyword match.

And, having your cake and eating it too is not that hard. Start with a root keyword and modify to make it brandable.

diolpah
SEO issues aside, what we have found is that generic domain names are far easier for the average person to remember.

Quantifying the value of that, however, is another thing entirely.

gopi
I favour brandnames too. But if your site is a one off and inherently have little repeat usage then premium keyword.com is the way to go
pscoln1
I would recommend going with something brandable/short so in conversation people have an easier time remembering it. Once you start implementing SEO you will be able to target your main keywords.

As randfish states you will have to work hard to build up your brand but the payoff and viral activity could be greater.

glimcat
A good name is brandable, memorable, and relevant.

Strict use of keywords is usually only relevant.