Acronym vs keyword vs brandable domain?

[sharkpower]

Hello,

Im building a website and I have been searching for a suitable domain for the last 4 weeks without any success.

The website is almost finished, but I can't decide on a domain yet.

I know what you're thinking, that I should have secured a great domain "before" I decided to build a website.

I used to give others the same advice, and now im in the same situation myself.

I actually have one domain but it's not my first choice.

The domains I have inquired about is overpriced, and I cant afford them.

So, to my question:


What is best nowadays when it comes to the domain choice?

4 letter acronym?
Example: IMDB.com, DMOZ.org etc

Keyword?
CheapTickets.com, Vacationrentals.com

Brandable?
Snapchat.com, Flippa.com, Airbnb etc


Also, what is the maximum length for a domain?
In my own mind, the maximum length shouldn't exceed 8 letters.
(No hyphens, no numbers etc)

And, I would never go for something other than a "dot com" because I dont want to leake traffic to the "dot com" owner and buy it for a much higher price in the future because of the leaky traffic.


Im hoping to get some opinions from people so that it will make my choice somewhat easier and hopefully this thread can help others when it comes to domain choices aswell.

Thanks!

 

[catchmesleeping]

Top 3 on the list for me are:

Starty.com
Startable.com
Starto.com

If I owned them, I personally wouldn't price any of them less than $10k, so you're getting a good deal if you can get them below that.

Next best is probably AllStart.com, and the rest are all lower tier.

StartFav.com is ok - but to me, I read the Fav like it rhymes with "Have", so it might be confusing to some when they see it for the first time.

Another good 'start' name is WeStart.com - which currently appears unused. I'd put it at the top of the list.

As far as other available 'start' names to consider:
SugarStart.com
StartSugar.com
StartCake.com
StartBarn.com
StartDivision.com
StartGang.com
MassiveStart.com
NiftyStart.com

Lots more options available here:
leandomainsearch.com/search?q=start

 

[sharkpower]

Catchmesleeping, Thanks for your input.

All of your answers really help me a LOT

 

[Name Trader]

So, just to dive deeper into this subject,

I have inquired on the following domains:


AnyStart.com
Startable.com
Starto.com
Starty.com
AltStart.com
StartPop.com
AllStart.com

Would be really helpful if anyone could list their top 3 choices amung the domains above?

Im counting syllables when I chose a domain, but there are of course exceptions.

Startable sticks out head and shoulders from the others here. Very good IMHO. But I don't know anything about Fav/Fave websites.

 

[sanjali]

Brandable domain is my first and only choice. Startable.com is the best domain out of your list and then starto.com. All other domains aren't good fit for me including startfav.com. By the way I'm curious to know why you want to stick in to "start" domains while you can build up your website on some other keyword?

 

[sharkpower]

Sanjali, thanks for your comments.

Im open to pick a domain that does not include the word "start".

Any ideas?

 

[sanjali]

Sanjali, thanks for your comments.

Im open to pick a domain that does not include the word "start".

Any ideas?

Check your inbox..

 

[sharkpower]

So, just wanted to thank everyone in this thread who was so nice and contributed with their opinions on my domain choice.

Some of the domains were too expensive for me to buy.

And it was really helpful to hear catchmesleeping's opinion on the startfav.com domain as that was my first choice but I too thought that the domain could be confusing so I have now decided to go for:

www.Anystart.com

Website is live and only have some smaller bugs left to fix.

It's a start page that makes it easier for web surfers to find the most popular sites on the internet.

Website is responsive and shows 3 columns on desktop and 1 column on mobile.

I hope you find it useful if you ever decides to visit the site!


Thanks

 

[Ategy]

Doh .. I read through the thread and was about to give my 2 cents worth .. but seems you've set your choice! lol

AllStart .. Startable .. Starto was the order I'd place my choices. I actually really didn't like StartFav.


To answer the main question .. I don't think there is a clear answer. I'd personally shy away from 4+ letter acronyms .. but not if you find the right one .. particularly if it's easier to remember or has a ring to it.

I really think exact match is the way to go if you can get it. Brandables can be great after a certain size .. but getting to that critical mass of users can be a big marketing challenge.

That being said .. exact matches are likely way more expensive .. so if you put the money you save into marketing you might be better off.

Like what was done here, I think each possible domain for each particular case should be looked at .. often times if you have a short list there will usually be one that stands out regardless of "type". Then combine that "gut" score with the "radio test" score with some technical scoring like length, cost to buy, cost to market (if even applicable) .. and hopefully you find yourself with an affordable winner!

I actually made my own html text start page 18 years ago .. still use it today .. lol


Good luck with your site!

 

[sharkpower]

Ategy.com, Thanks for your answer.

Allstart.com is the best domain if you look at brandability, syllable count, pronounciation and spelling.

The owner asked for too much so I moved on.
Later on, I do not regret that desicion because the domain itself actually contradicts everything My site stands for.
Because, I do not have "all" websites on it.
Only a few (about 1000) amung the Internet's most popular and useful sites are listed.
I mean, why show all and/or the non-popular websites?

So, it can be "any" website if it is popular, but it can't be "all".

So Anystart.com made more sense as a brand and I think its an overall good domain.


And I take traffic in to consideration when I decide to list a website or not.
Using multiple tools to measure traffic and social mentions etc.
Its a work in progress and I Will need to update the site from time to time as websites fluctuate in popularity.

I Hope you find it useful
/Tony

 

[Kosdn]

Keyword and Brandable