June 02, 2005
URLs - still worth serious money?
Help me with this, please. Do you seriously think having a certain URL will boost traffic?
I'm not asking whether this or that search engine algorithm factors domain names into its ranking for relevancy. I'm asking if you think that enough people navigate by typing URLs such that traffic will spike if one registers motherofpearl.com instead of joesexoticmarketplace-motherofpearlproducts.com.
Of course, we know the common wisdom - the entire domain name registration and sale business is based on certain assumptions: go with short names, easy to remember, easy to type, comes to mind generically. But is this based on research?
I don't navigate by typing; I use favorites functionality and search results. Since 1997, I have met exactly one person who typed first, searched later.
Has anyone ever seen a study on this? If so, drop a comment below. No glittering generalities, please.
Posted by at June 2, 2005 02:18 AM