How to choose the right domain name – Guide for aspiring Cambodian entrepreneurs

In the current digital era, all companies need a website to grow their business sustainably. When it comes to building your website, choosing a domain name is the first thing to do – and yet, this is where most people fail. Many simply choose one without thinking about the implications it could have on their business.

In this blog post, we will discuss how to choose the right domain name for your business in Cambodia.

Why does choosing a domain name matter?

Just imagine that your website is a house; in that case, your domain name acts as the house’s address. If it is catchy and easy to remember, people will memorize your brand and visit your “house” frequently. On the other hand, picking the wrong one – and don’t be surprised if you receive too few visitors.

Below is a few reasons why businessmen should think twice before choosing a domain name:

• It is your “first impression.” The first thing people see when they find a website on Google search is the URL. While a terrible domain name may drive away visitors, a good one may leave a favorable impression and improve click-through-rate (CTR).
• It has an impact on SEO. Even though exact match domains (EMDs) are no longer required, the inclusion of keywords in the domain name might still benefit your site’s rankings.
• It might help with branding. A professional, easy-to-recognize domain name may contribute significantly to your branding efforts – by giving your business more credibility and distinguishing you from the others.

Tips for choosing the right domain names in Cambodia

1. Do some research first

Make sure the domain name you want to buy is not already taken, copyrighted, or being used by another business. Otherwise, it will waste your time and – in some cases – might lead to legal problems that would cost you a lot of money.

2. Make it easy to spell

Choosing an easy-to-type domain name is critical to the success of your online business – it not only impacts ranking on search engines (which increases traffic), but also helps form a connection with your customers. For example, people may have a more difficult time finding your site if you use slang (u instead of you) or words with multiple spellings (express vs. xpress).

3. Short is more

Short domains perform better than longer ones for a variety of reasons. First, they are quicker to type and easier to recall – which reduces the chance of users typing in the wrong url/ landing a different website. As more and more people switch to using mobile devices for Internet browsing, a short domain name means that users will have less trouble visiting your site.

Another point worth mentioning is that an excessively long URL might discourage visitors. Given the increasing popularity of spam sites, your users may become wary if you overcomplicate your domain name with pointless keywords/ diacritics.

4. Remember to target keywords

A good domain name should include keywords that best describe your business. For instance, if you offer car maintenance services, you might want to register for domains like CarRepair.com or CarDetailing.com.

Including the right keywords not only makes it easier for people to remember and relate with your products/ services, but it also helps improve your search engine ranking (which in turn increases traffic & revenue).

5. Focus on the local region

Consider including the name of your city/ province in the domain name – so as to make it simple for local clients to remember. 

6. Do not use hyphens or numbers

Sometimes, people may mistype your website’s url if it includes numbers (e.g: “3”) or diacritics such as hyphens and dashes.

7. Be distinctive

Since there are millions of domain names already in use, choosing one that is memorable and catchy is essential for you to stand out from the crowd. Once you have a name in mind, discuss it with your closest friends to ensure that it sounds good and makes sense to others.

8. Pick a fitting domain name extension

Suffixes at the end of web addresses, like .com or .net, are known as extensions. The most popular extension is .com, but because it has been around for so long, it may be difficult to find a short and memorable .com domain name.

Each domain extension has different implications – for example, an .edu domain name is generally chosen by educational companies; while .org is mostly reserved for non-profit/ for-profit organizations. Hence, make sure to select one that is appropriate for your business.

Nowadays, there are a variety of brand-new generic top-level domains (e.g: .app, .photography and .guru), which presents businesses with a fantastic opportunity to reserve brief and extremely pertinent names.

No matter what type of business you are doing, if your company is registered in Cambodia, make sure to buy a Cambodia domain name – one that ends with the .kh extension (e.g: .com.kh, .kh, .org.kh, .edu.kh) – from a local provider such as 1Byte.com. Aside from domain registration, 1Byte also provides web hosting services – which are offered at very affordable rates without compromising quality.

Conclusion

And that concludes our list of pro tips on how to choose the right domain name in Cambodia. With a little bit of research, you should be able to find one in no time. Good luck!