Keywords in your domain name used to be a relatively important factor: we rated it a 3/10 when we launched with our domain: www.online-marketing-agency.co.nz
However, with the rise of other ranking signals like click through rates and social signals they now have little impact.
People are looking for recognised brands in the search results. If you search for “office stationery” and the top three results are:
- www.office-stationery-deals.co.nz
- www.warehousestationery.co.nz
- www.officemax.co.nz
Odds are you are likely to be a bit skeptical with the first result and click on No.2 or No.3. This sends a signal to the search engines that the sites ranking No.2 & No.3 are more popular which in time will likely cause the search engine to demote the No.1 listing. So, although you may get a short-term gain it probably won’t last long.
Our advice is to use a brand name and include your brand in all communication.
Do we regret our generic domain? A little, but then we did benefit from great rankings for a while!
Need help with SEO? Call Steer Digital 09 579 4269
p.s. www.office-stationery-deals.co.nz is available if you want to test for yourself!
