When choosing a domain name for your website, SEO might be on your mind, but the most important factor is creating a domain that aligns with your brand and business goals.

A great domain name should be easy for your audience to remember, reflect what you offer and, ideally, help search engines recognize your relevance.

This article will walk you through the essentials of selecting an SEO-friendly domain – whether it’s brand new or already established – and cover tips on branding, TLD choices and common pitfalls to avoid.

New domains

Key considerations:

• Initial indexing and TLDs.
• Avoid hyphens and keyword stuffing.
• Steer clear of excessive branding.
• The “say and type” test (most important).

No domain name is inherently better than another; it’s how you use and brand it that makes it SEO-friendly. That said, some domains may carry more credibility or be easier to work with and rank, often depending on the TLD (top-level domain) you choose.

Initial indexing and TLD selection

Some TLDs, such as .edu and .gov, inherently carry trust factors.

These TLDs can only be registered by accredited educational institutions or government organizations, which gives them automatic credibility that resonates even with non-digital marketers.

As a result, websites using these TLDs may find it easier to establish authority and attract quality backlinks from the outset.

The belief that .edu links are valuable stems from the idea that there is strict control over who can buy these TLDs and where they can link.

However, this is just a rumor, as these links can be easily exploited through scholarship link scams and by purchasing links from students and faculty.

If you’re a local business outside the U.S., get the country’s TLD and use the proper schema for the area served. This may help you start to rank in your country more easily than a .co, for example.

And there’s an inherent trust with .org domains for organizations and being “trusted” sources of content as they’re supporting a cause and focused on a niche or industry. But that doesn’t mean you should count out the branded ones or tech endings (i.e., .net).

Over the years multiple SEOs and domain brokers have run tests on this, like Bill Hartzer did in 2020.

I’ve run my own tests, and overall, it comes down to getting the domain the right type of exposure. Although the .com is ultimately ideal, don’t panic if you cannot get it.

Avoid hyphens and the number ‘1’

Including a keyword in your domain can be helpful, but it is unnecessary.

Using hyphens to incorporate multiple keywords can lead to a poor user experience, making it difficult for users to remember and return to your site.

A domain name with multiple words separated by hyphens can appear unprofessional.

Build a brand closely associated with your products, services or content. This will help your domain rank for the right keywords through quality content, technical SEO and off-page strategies like building quality backlinks.

One outdated tactic that occasionally resurfaces is starting a name with the number “1.”

In the early days of SEO, directories were organized alphabetically, so having a name that began with “1” or “A” ensured it appeared at the top.

However, those days are long gone. Instead, focus on creating a brandable name rather than relying on gimmicks or outdated strategies.

Steer clear of excessive branding

Some TLDs may not catch on, become abused or expire for various reasons. If you’re using these TLDs for branding, there’s a risk that your domain could disappear one day, requiring a full migration before it’s too late.

For example, .oz was once used for Australia before the introduction of .com.au. A fan site for movies could have creatively used WizardOf.Oz, which fits the storyline.

While .oz hasn’t been entirely phased out, it has been replaced by .oz.au, which can result in losing your branding and backlinks once any 301 redirects expire.

Here’s a full list of IANA TLDs you can review. You’ll see some of the biggest brands in the world have successfully bought their brand as a TLD, although many don’t use it.

The ‘say and type’ test

The most important factor when purchasing a domain for SEO is ensuring that it is easy for your target audience to spell and type.

To test this, gather a random sample of 10 people, quickly mention the domain as if it were part of a conversation, and then ask them to write it down or spell it out loud. This will help you gauge how easily potential visitors can remember and input your domain.

If at least 7 out of 10 people can spell your domain correctly, it’s likely a good choice. If not, consider finding a different variation.

Years ago, I had a couple of domains that I thought were fantastic, and I built them out and made them profitable. Unfortunately, one was a plural version of a couple of words, and the other was in the past tense rather than the present.

Once both domains gained traction, I discovered that someone had purchased the better versions, which ended up receiving the backlinks instead of mine. This experience led me to develop the “7 in 10” test.

When I asked people at a coffee shop to spell the domains while waiting in line, they overlooked the plural and past tense forms, which negatively impacted my marketing efforts.

I eventually overcame this challenge, but it required significantly more work, including numerous requests to update links and citations to the correct domain.

Existing domains

Key considerations:

• Does the purpose of the old domain match your current intentions?
• Check the previous backlinks.
• Analyze traffic by page.
• Investigate any past penalties.
• Was the domain ever hacked?
• Are there any public relations problems?
• Decide whether to keep it standalone or merge it.

There is a mix of good and bad information about using purchased established domains for SEO. It depends on who you ask, what the author does for a living, why they created the article and who they wrote it for.

This section is based on my experiences helping publishers, brands and clients that acquire other companies and need to figure out if we should let their domain die, incorporate it into the parent company or keep it standalone.

Does it match your now?

Go to the Way Back Machine and see if the old domain matches what you want to do with it now.

If the old site was a churn and burn, a niche site about a topic or something that is not what you plan on doing, you’ll want to see if the domain has been cleared of its past topics in the search engines.

If the domain has dropped out of the top 100 positions on tools like Semrush, SEO Clarity, Ahrefs or Moz for at least a couple of years, you’re likely in the clear.

You want to avoid the hassle of changing the entities that search engines – and some social media algorithms – associate with the previous domain, as this can add extra work and delay your path to success.

Check for previous backlinks

One of the most common reasons people purchase a domain for SEO is because it has backlinks.

The idea is that you can leverage the “authority” built by those backlinks and apply it to your new domain through a redirect.

While this can work with quality backlinks, it carries the risk of getting caught, which could negatively impact your core domain and business.

If you’re looking to restore a domain because you believe it has potential – rather than just redirecting it to another site – then you’ll need to take a different approach.

In this case, you should reach out to the websites that provided valuable backlinks and ask them to link to your new content to demonstrate your relevance.

Your chances of securing these new links may be higher since those sites have already linked to you in the past.

Here’s what we look for when purchasing a domain because it has backlinks:

• Are the links from relevant content and relevant pages within the site?
• Do the links and content from the sites match what we want to publish on the domain now, or was the content giving those links about a different topic?
• Do the sites giving the links also link to non-relevant sites or sites that historically have been in bad link neighborhoods like pills, porn, payday, poker, etc.?
• When were the last links given, and why did the link acquisition stop?

There is more you can and should consider, but these are our top four.

It’s easy to find domains with backlinks.

• Do a search for “best XYZ blogs in Insert Year” or “best websites for ABC in Insert Year.”
• You now have a list of targets.
• Put the domains into a spreadsheet and then match up which are mentioned the most.
• Check to see what their current status is, and you’ll quickly find ones with backlinks that are expired and cheap to buy.

Consider periods following SEO changes, such as the “mommy blogger” bubble or the current niche site bubble.

Each time Google shifts its algorithms – as with the 2023-2024 helpful content updates – it disrupts entire industries. These upheavals are disheartening, often dismantling years of work, but they are cyclical and bound to happen again.

Still, many sites survive and even thrive despite these shifts. Rather than reacting publicly or lamenting changes, they concentrate on building a sustainable business and brand.

Traffic by page

When you’ve found a domain that aligns with your niche, has quality backlinks, and contains relevant content, the next step is to analyze its traffic by page.

If you’re launching a new resource, promoting a product or developing a content hub, identify if the domain ranks for the keywords you aim to target.

Use traffic analysis tools to locate these keywords and the specific pages that rank for them. Prioritize building similar pages with your original content (never copy from the previous owner) and use the same URLs to preserve their SEO value.

If the previous site didn’t use a structured URL format, replicate the original URL and 301-redirect it to your updated URL structure. This will temporarily pass authority to the new page, particularly if the link is recent.

During this time, consider reaching out to the backlinking site owner to request an update to your new URL.

Finally, monitor your new URL’s performance to see if it begins to rank and capture previous positions. This can help you leverage existing SEO value and drive targeted traffic to your site.

Past SEO issues or penalties

Find a list of SEO algorithm updates and match them to the domain you’re looking to buy.

If the site was penalized and never recovered or got penalized and recovered, but the previous owner abused it again, you may want to avoid buying it.

Penalty cleanups are a pain to deal with, but they are not deal breakers. If you don’t mind spending more money on cleanup, it could still be a purchase. You just have to start worse off than a new domain with no negative history.

You may be able to use this as a bargaining chip to get the price lowered if the domain has been on the market for a long time.

Did it ever get hacked?

Many websites, especially those on open-source platforms like WordPress with outdated plugins, are vulnerable to hacks.

I’ve experienced this firsthand with several niche sites, and even once with my marketing site. The attack destroyed my email list, and I lost the motivation to rebuild it.

To identify if a site has been compromised, plug the domain into a tool like Majestic SEO or another backlink checker.

Look closely at its backlinks: if you see links to content related to pills, porn, payday loans, poker or similar topics, it’s a strong sign the site was hacked or selling backlinks.

Cleaning up these harmful backlinks is essential to restoring the site’s integrity and SEO health.

Previous PR issues

When acquiring a domain, research the previous owners and the individuals featured on the About page using tools like the Wayback Machine.

Conduct searches with specific modifiers to uncover any past PR issues associated with the domain. These may have created negative stigmas among the previous user base, which could now overlap with your target audience.

Use phrases such as “scam,” “l(fā)awsuit” and “assault” to dig up potential problems that may have been buried by an ORM SEO firm or simply faded over time.

Reviewing court records can provide insights into any lawsuits, but keep in mind that many individuals share the same name, so verify the context to ensure it pertains to the company in question.

Exploring communities like Reddit can also reveal whether the PR issues you uncovered are linked to the previous owners. If the community has a negative opinion of them, you will need to address and overcome this sentiment to build trust.

This is particularly relevant to SEO. If the community has a poor perception of the brand, niche or the company itself, national media may be reluctant to cover or link to you.

This negative sentiment can hinder potential customers from searching for or engaging with your business, making it an uphill battle for your online presence.

Keep it stand-alone or merge it?

One critical decision to make is whether to keep the acquired domain as a stand-alone entity or merge it with your existing brand – and when to do so.

If the domain has a dedicated following that values the old brand, preserving that audience is essential. Their loyalty can translate into sales, higher CPM ads and more.

Begin by engaging with the existing audience to understand what they loved about the old brand.

Communicate your plans to merge and assure them that their concerns will be addressed. This helps retain the user base and allows you to grow your business while reaping potential SEO benefits.

Once you feel the time is right, you can initiate a traditional domain migration and merger process. However, there are situations where it may be more beneficial to maintain the domain as its own brand and scale both sites independently.

Having two sites that you own can be advantageous, as they may target different audiences and appear for the same search phrases, enhancing your overall visibility in the market.

One audience can be men buying men’s shirts, for example, and the other site could be for men and their significant others buying shirts.

The site for men specifically will cater to the direct shopper’s needs, while the wording and experience on the new domain you purchase talk to that person but also share how to size, measure and find a shirt that he’ll likely wear and enjoy.

Although both sites cater to similar customers, they fulfill different needs based on the searcher’s intent.

Evaluating domain names for SEO

These considerations are critical when evaluating domains for SEO.

Success is not solely about optimizing for search engines. It’s also about building a strong brand and a viable business model that can lead to long-term success.

By prioritizing your business objectives over SEO alone, you’ll find that SEO becomes more manageable.

A well-loved brand with a compelling business offering naturally attracts engagement, making it easier to achieve higher rankings.

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