Building An Authority Website Starts With A Domain Name
Building an authority website is very complex and there are many factors to take into consideration, but the starting point is choosing the right domain name.
Hi Trish Davies, here once again from Build Your AU. The middle pillar of my Build Your AU programs is authority and part of that is establishing yourself online. You do that through creating multiple profiles on many different platforms. Platforms such as social media and YouTube but there is one platform that is a must and one you control.
That is building an authority website which will ultimately become your home on the internet. A central hub where your audience can check in whenever they want and a platform for you to deliver your message.
Building an authority website is crucial for any business which makes this following statistic amazing. Around 40% of small businesses don’t have a website therefore they are giving so much advantage to their competitors who do. Make sure that you are not in the 40% club as your business will suffer from the lack of exposure.
Your authority website is like a window for the world to look through and then receive value. It is your opportunity to showcase what you do and how you can serve your audience.
Now there are many elements that must come together when building an authority website for your business. I will go into more detail about the steps you must take to get your authority website online and strategies to use.
Today I want to concentrate on the identity of your authority website and choosing your domain name.
Building Your Authority Website Around It’s Domain Name
The domain name for your authority website is what you choose to name it, to give your website it’s identity. It is also the address for your website, a link that people can enter into their browser. When they enter that link it opens up your window as I mentioned earlier.
Your website populates the screen which is your sole first chance to make an impression. Your domain name is the first point of contact for your potential audience, so you want people to remember it.
Therefore, choosing the right domain name for your business is very important as it identifies your brand. Choosing the right domain name can increase brand recognition such as Google.com or Nike.com for example.
Now there are many things to think about when deciding on your domain name so let’s look at these in more detail.
What Extension Should You Use When Building An Authority Website?
There is a lot of debate as to what extension you should use for your website. Generally, the debate concludes with having a dot com, (.com), extension is the preferred choice.
The dot com sits at the top of the table when it comes to authority within the website world. Most people signify dot come with websites and will assume your website has this extension. Therefore, always try and get this extension for your website as it states you are open the world.
If you can’t then be next in the hierarchy is the dot net, (.net) or dot org, (.org) are still considered authoritative. What I will add in here is that sometimes you may have an authority website that is geo located.
Meaning your main market is the country that you live in so you may want to consider your own country’s extension. For example, if you live in Australia as I do then the dot com au, (.com.au), extension may be better for you. If you live in the United Kingdom then the (.co.uk) is relevant.
Brandable Domains Or Generic?
In my opinion brandable domain names are always the preferred option as they will be remembered more than generic domains. So, what do I mean by this?
The website you are currently on is BuildYourAU.com which shows individuals how to build personal brands. Build Your AU is the brand, and this is how I came up with the brand name.
I wanted to create a personal branding resource and training program. I identified the three main areas for creating a personal brand which are authenticity, authority, and audience.
Therefore, each area, or pillar as I refer to them as, start with the same two letters, au. With some creative thinking I then decided on Build Your AU as the brand and that is how the domain name came into existence. As it is a very unique name the dot com extension was available.
That is a perfect example of a branded domain name. Here is an example of a generic domain name I could have chosen. As I have mentioned my brand is all about personal branding so I could have concentrated on the words “personal branding”.
If I had gone for personalbrandingtips.com or personalbrandinghelp.com can you honestly say they would have stood out? Obviously not as they would have got swallowed up with all the other personal branding websites out there.
No one is going to remember them as they will with BuildYourAU.com.
Another option is to use your name as your websites domain. I have another website called TrishDaviesInternational.com. When I created that website, I tried to get my name and the dot com extension, but it had already been taken. Therefore, I got a little creative to ensure my name was still within the domain name.
Keep It As Short As You Can
You must keep your domain as short as you can, and the recommended range of characters is 6-14 then the extension. The reason are that shorter domains are easier for people to remember and to type into their browser.
Therefore, it limits the chance for typos resulting in your website not showing up. This website is 11 characters plus the extension which makes it easier for people to type. My other site TrishDaviesInternational.com falls out of this criteria for length but it is still memorable and relatively easy to type.
Get creative and come up with something that is catchy without being cheesy. Make sure it reflects you and what your business stands for and unique. You must stand out from the crowd and not follow the herd.
Check Trademark Restrictions
When choosing your domain name, it is advisable to check that there are no trademarks assigned to it. There are many online resources you can use to do this, and you can also check any social media channels.
Your domain must be unique for reasons I have already mentioned. If it is then the likelihood is that it will not be trademarked but you must do your due diligence.
Well that about covers choosing a domain name when building an authority website. If you would like to know more about personal branding and how Build Your AU can help you then click the button below. Then register for a free video series of previous Build Your AU masterminds so you can see the process in action.
Helping you build your authenticity, authority and audience.
Trish Davies
Build Your AU
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