Registering a Domain Name, Part 2. Choose a good name

To summarise: name + TLD = domain name

In the previous article, you learned about choosing the domain name ending, or TLD (red in diag below). The next step involves choosing the name you want (blue in diag below).

This article looks at how to optimise your name and how you might be restricted in what name you can choose if you go with a .ie

Diag 1. the second thing to do is choose the name (in blue)

Is your name important? Yes, actually it is and even though you might have picked a beauty, you might not be eligible for it if you choose a .ie

Eligible naming for .ie

The IEDR (Irish domain registry for .ie) considers a name suitable if it relates closely to - 

• Your company name
• Your Registered Business Name
• Your Personal Name
• Politician's Name
• Your Registered Charity/Association name

But they also have what's known as a Discretionary Name. This means you get to pick a name that is NOT one of the above but they will expect you to prove that it's really closely related to your business/company activities. You will be asked for accompanying documentation and quite a few are turned down.

For instance, let's say you run a Furniture Shop and you are a sole trader with a Registered Business Name of Susan Barber Furniture. You could apply for the discretionary domain name CheapFurniture.ie - however, it's discretionary - meaning the decision rests solely with the IEDR.

The other way about it is to register a business name using the exact same name you'd like for the domain. You do this with the Companies Registration Office (CRO) for as little as €20. Once you get your official certificate the IEDR will only require that you provide them with the certificate number ("Registered Business Number") to allow you to use that name, and it will qualify under the section: Registered Business Name.

Want more details? Watch the video.

Help! But how do I go about it?

Pick a good webhost - you can consult the webhosting tables, or select an official IE reseller from the IEDR website. Ring them up and tell them what you want to do. They will provide you with a list of the documentation you need to send to them and sort out registering your .ie domain name.

General/Common sense rules in naming

You won't go far wrong if you use these guidelines  

• Names can be composed of letters (a-z), numbers (0-9) and the hyphen (-)
• The name cannot begin or end with the hyphen
• The name can begin or end with a letter or number (eg 123go)
• The name should be in lowercase (superman, not SUPERMAN)
• There should be no spaces in the name
• If you want a space, add the hyphen mark instead (eg buy-for-less)

Some TLDs have particular rules associated with them (be sure to check though)

• .tv domain names must be 50 characters or less
• .ie domain names must be 255 characters or less
• Most other domain names allow 63 characters or less

Is there an SEO value in choosing a good name?

I believe there is, BUT, and it's a big BUT - it's only a tiny part of what leads to having a successful website. Sure if you can get a major keyword into your site name it helps. Lets face it, gormleysbutchers.ie contains a major keyword "butchers" and it's descriptive. So for those reasons it's way better than just plain gormleys.ie. But Content is still King. Getting the perfect domain name isn't everything and never has been. Concentrate on adding great content and using good keywords for your article titles and content. You know when I first heard about Twitter, I thought it was for the birds...

Video Extras

In this video Michele Neylon goes into detailed naming issues with .ie domains, including some useful advice for non-Irish companies who want an .ie domain