How to Choose a Domain Name That Sells (With Naming Formulas)
A practical formula for naming an online shop or brand: short, easy to say, clear about what you sell. Plus what to do when your name is taken.
A good business domain passes the radio test: say it once and people type it correctly. If you have to spell it, keep looking.
Five rules
- Short: under 15 characters.
- No hyphens or numbers unless they are part of the brand.
- Hints at what you sell.
- Easy to say aloud.
- Doesn’t copy a big brand, to avoid disputes.
Naming formulas
- Product + place:
hanoicoffee,dalatflowers. - Prefix + product:
getbrew,trypaws. - Product + suffix:
brewhq,pawshub,printlab. - Founder + product:
linhstudio,minhcafe. - Two short words:
petnest,sunleaf.
When your name is taken
- Try another ending: .net, .co, or a country ending like .vn.
- Add a short word: get, try, hq, hub.
- Use the domain name generator to have REG mix and check many names at once.
Register defensive names
Once you have customers, register the .vn version and common misspellings and redirect them to your main site. It’s cheap insurance against copycats.