Keyword Order and Exact Match Domains

by jpwar
12 replies
  • SEO
  • |
I am putting up a site for a contracting company small business. I am trying to decide on a domain name and I have a few options with keywords in the domain name. Can you tell me which domain you think would rank higher for seo purposes only, not branding or anything else. This is not the niche, these are just example keywords:

I want to rank for the keyword phrase "houston plumbers"

So I have a choice between:

1. plumbershouston.com
2. houstoncustomplumbers.com

One domain has the keywords in reverse order, one domain has them in the right order but with a word in between. Which do you think would get a better seo boost for exact match keywords?

Thanks
#domains #exact #keyword #match #order
  • Profile picture of the author mrgoe
    Go for the 1st option. It`s shorter. It`s not something very important when it`s 5-6 letters, but when it`s 21 letters.. it`s kinda alot.
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  • Profile picture of the author tritrain
    Shorter is considered better.
    Word order can be important because of memorability and trust for the customer. However, I would go with number 1.
    Dashes are usually not good.

    Don't forget to check out the domaining forums out there, for truly expert advice.
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  • Profile picture of the author SoCal Digital
    I would also suggest the 1st one because it is closest to your targeted keyword.
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  • Profile picture of the author ModernDomains
    Actually dashes work well in seo to separate keywords but not so good for branding purposes obviously.

    For the examples provided their is little difference in the seo benefit of the domain names.

    But Looking at the google search results you will definitely want to get a google+ page and get some good reviews.
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  • Profile picture of the author Steve B
    Originally Posted by jpwar View Post

    Can you tell me which domain you think would rank higher for seo purposes only
    JPwar,

    You might be a bit confused here. I have never seen one domain rank higher than another, for SEO purposes or anything else.

    Certainly, Google doesn't rank domains. Pages within domains can have a page rank, although many don't. But that is not based on the domain name per se.

    Warriors can give you their opinion on which of your alternatives they prefer, but their opinions won't have anything to do with "domain rank."

    My own preferences (and that's all they are) would be:
    • Dot com (always, for business)
    • No hyphens or dashes
    • As short as you can find
    • Keyword at the front of the phrase
    • Memorable and brandable
    • Easy to spell if you heard someone say the name
    The best to you in your search.

    Steve
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  • Profile picture of the author Ged3
    No 1,

    because when it does rank it will be more attractive to prospective customers.

    Ged
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    • Profile picture of the author jpwar
      Thanks for all your answers. The only thing making me inclined to go for the second one is that it is the exact name of my company name. So there is something to be said for that. It's easier to remember.

      But you all think for pure seo and exact match domain keyword boost the first one is better? Wrong order of keywords but nothing in the middle like the second one. The problem is I did a little research and although it was unscientific, it seemed like names patterned after the second one were getting better seo. These were all for pages with no backlinks.
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      • Profile picture of the author ModernDomains
        Originally Posted by jpwar View Post

        Thanks for all your answers. The only thing making me inclined to go for the second one is that it is the exact name of my company name. So there is something to be said for that. It's easier to remember.
        Go for the second one then. It is always best to be consistent with your branding, marketing and identity. Plus you still have your main keywords in the domain name.
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        Many Great Keyword Domains
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  • Profile picture of the author sk8tavou
    If you have the right seo strategy believe me the name ( as long as its natural and not super spammy) is not going to make great difference

    My choice is the first one but its your choice in the end.
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  • Profile picture of the author bloggerd
    yea id go for the top one. but i never ask about domains publicly as awhile back i did it and i knew the domains where available but after posting similar to you it was gone, as there are some that will view the thread and run off and grab the domain and then rank it them self's meaning you lose, just a heads up for future
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    • Profile picture of the author jpwar
      Bloggerd,

      I said from the outset it was just an example niche and not my real domain. Thanks anyway for the tip.
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  • Profile picture of the author spyindia
    Hi, I thinks name doesn't matter in ranking but backlinks does matter's. So either you choose first one or second, most important do you follow the guidelines of search engine or Seo. So just think about quality work for your website.
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