Double Dash Domains and Search Engines

lexilexi · 08-03-2009, 08:25 PM

Hi Folks,

Anyone had any experience with double dash domains?

For example:

blah--blah.com

It doesn't seem that they carry any sort of explicit penalty as I have seen them in Google Serps. Anyone know if they rank as high as single dash or no dash? I'm not too concerned with whether or not they are memorable, merely with search engine traffic...

AN

Alexa Smith · 08-03-2009, 08:43 PM

Those are hyphens, not dashes. Google ignores hyphens in domain-names for SERPs purposes.

dougp · 08-03-2009, 09:16 PM

@lexilexi: Google does not document that it rank urls with double hyphens lower, but i will NOT personally link to such a site. The url just seems like one that is used for spamming and also has an unprofessional vibe to it. There are creative ways to get keywords in your domain name without using hyphens. I also have not seen a hyphenated, yet alone a multiple hyphenated url rank high for compeitive keywords, and i have been doing this for a relatively long time.

@alexa_s: Google treats each hyphen as a space.

lexilexi · 08-04-2009, 04:02 AM

Thanks for the answers folks....

Yeah yeah, hyphens. But "double dash domain" has such a nice ring to it, doesn't it?

The serps are full of "single hyphen" domains. Do a search for "love quotes" on google for an example.

I just saw an example of a double dash domain in the SERPS - google the phrase
hotel canada, the double dash version is at no. 15 - not so high, admittedly. But if Google only sees the double dash as a double space, what's the difference?

B.J.Smart · 08-04-2009, 04:58 AM

i always use hyphens in my domain names, never heard of a double hyphen tho - let alone seen one, as said before looks spammy.

08-03-2009, 08:25 PM	#1
lexilexi HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: The Pod Posts: 321 Thanks: 116 Thanked 99 Times in 43 Posts Social Networking	Double Dash Domains and Search Engines Hi Folks, Anyone had any experience with double dash domains? For example: blah--blah.com It doesn't seem that they carry any sort of explicit penalty as I have seen them in Google Serps. Anyone know if they rank as high as single dash or no dash? I'm not too concerned with whether or not they are memorable, merely with search engine traffic... AN
	"Don’t be distracted by criticism. Remember the only taste of success some people have is when they take a bite out of you." — Zig Ziglar

08-03-2009, 08:43 PM	#2
Alexa Smith Wordsmith (& Skepchick) War Room Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 13,640 Thanks: 7,505 Thanked 9,541 Times in 4,944 Posts	Re: Double Dash Domains and Search Engines Those are hyphens, not dashes. Google ignores hyphens in domain-names for SERPs purposes.
	Alexa Smith ... ... writes stuff that snaps, crackles and pops - even if it's only about cauliflowers.

08-03-2009, 09:16 PM	#3
dougp Money War Room Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: USA Posts: 2,885 Thanks: 28 Thanked 212 Times in 64 Posts Contact Info	Re: Double Dash Domains and Search Engines @lexilexi: Google does not document that it rank urls with double hyphens lower, but i will NOT personally link to such a site. The url just seems like one that is used for spamming and also has an unprofessional vibe to it. There are creative ways to get keywords in your domain name without using hyphens. I also have not seen a hyphenated, yet alone a multiple hyphenated url rank high for compeitive keywords, and i have been doing this for a relatively long time. @alexa_s: Google treats each hyphen as a space.

08-04-2009, 04:02 AM	#4
lexilexi HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: The Pod Posts: 321 Thanks: 116 Thanked 99 Times in 43 Posts Social Networking	Re: Double Dash Domains and Search Engines Thanks for the answers folks.... Yeah yeah, hyphens. But "double dash domain" has such a nice ring to it, doesn't it? The serps are full of "single hyphen" domains. Do a search for "love quotes" on google for an example. I just saw an example of a double dash domain in the SERPS - google the phrase hotel canada, the double dash version is at no. 15 - not so high, admittedly. But if Google only sees the double dash as a double space, what's the difference?
	"Don’t be distracted by criticism. Remember the only taste of success some people have is when they take a bite out of you." — Zig Ziglar

08-04-2009, 04:58 AM	#5
B.J.Smart Warrior Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 7 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Re: Double Dash Domains and Search Engines i always use hyphens in my domain names, never heard of a double hyphen tho - let alone seen one, as said before looks spammy.
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