More than just a web address, your domain name defines your online presence. It’s like the impression formed in the first few seconds of meeting someone. So you want it to be good, or at least remembered.

Using your own name as a domain name seems like the obvious option. But your name needs to be unusual for it to not to be registered by someone else. If your name is available, consider whether it’s unique enough to stand out in the crowded online landscape.

If you have a company name or DBA, you probably want to use some form of it as your domain name. But if you haven’t already, google it and make certain no one’s registered it for their domain or business. If it’s not available, take the opportunity to use some of these other naming strategies.

Picking a direction

Used as a framework for coming up with an effective business or a company name, these naming strategies can be applied individually or together to select a domain name. As you brainstorm and create a list of possible domains, keep these four approaches in mind.

• Functional or Descriptive – WhatsOrganic.com: their name says what they do, which is to ask questions about organics
• Invented – Google rolls off the tongue and is easy to remember — and you know you’ve arrived when your made-up name becomes a verb
• Experiential – The names of web portals or browsers promise you new vistas: Explorer, Navigator, Safari
• Evocative – It has nothing to do with shopping and everything to do with how it feels to be a shopper: Amazon.com