Which is better for Seo purposes in a domain name?...

ErnieB · 05-29-2010, 04:29 PM

Which is better for seo purposes.... a domain with a dash between the keywords or a domain where you add a word at the end of the keyword.

For example best-junk.com or bestjunkguide.com

Also, would your opinion change if one of the ways would end up being a .net versus the other way being a .com.

Thanks for any input.

Palo Coyote · 05-29-2010, 04:39 PM

Hi Ernie,
First: TLD or Top Level Domains are always best. .com .net .org and more are TLD
List of Internet top-level domains - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Next, Google sees a hypen or dash as a space. It's best to use it when you could confuse a domain name example: wxw.managesexchanges.com could be Manage Sex Changes.com or Manages Exchanges.com. Dash/hyphen would be preferred. Otherwise, Matt Cutts, Googles main guy for Spam has said that hypens are OK if used sparingly (don't remember his quote, but you could find it). His concern is keyword stuffing, example wxw.teach-dog-no-barking-dog-obedience.com probably is too many LOL.
The dash-hyphen thing is if someone has to type in the name of the domain, "Hey Erine go to wxw.best junk dot com, oh yeah put a dash in there," is probably not going to help anyone. But if it's a click thru link, no problems.
For SEO both would work, .com or .net are TLD's and dash or not, all good.
(Just so you know, we tested this on some blogs and they all ranked just fine) I have an SEO Company and we test as much as we can instead of just issuing opinion, our clients have to get results, or they're gone.)
Thanks,
Palo aka Tony

mariahm · 05-29-2010, 05:08 PM

Here is my opinion:

best-junk is better than best junk guide

My opinion does not change either way if it is .com or .net.

Do the same amount of SEO for a .com and .net your results will be the same. I know as I have tested this out.

ErnieB · 05-29-2010, 05:18 PM

Thanks for all the advice. Glad its also based on personal results as well.

Zeus66 · 05-29-2010, 05:27 PM

There's really no question that it's dashes over adding any extra words. You want as close to a 100% match between the search phrase and your domain name (regardless of the extension). I've tested this so many times I have absolutely no doubts anymore about this one.

John

uktelephonesystem · 06-03-2010, 06:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Palo Coyote

Hi Ernie,
First: TLD or Top Level Domains are always best. .com .net .org and more are TLD
List of Internet top-level domains - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Next, Google sees a hypen or dash as a space. It's best to use it when you could confuse a domain name example: wxw.managesexchanges.com could be Manage Sex Changes.com or Manages Exchanges.com. Dash/hyphen would be preferred. Otherwise, Matt Cutts, Googles main guy for Spam has said that hypens are OK if used sparingly (don't remember his quote, but you could find it). His concern is keyword stuffing, example wxw.teach-dog-no-barking-dog-obedience.com probably is too many LOL.
The dash-hyphen thing is if someone has to type in the name of the domain, "Hey Erine go to wxw.best junk dot com, oh yeah put a dash in there," is probably not going to help anyone. But if it's a click thru link, no problems.
For SEO both would work, .com or .net are TLD's and dash or not, all good.
(Just so you know, we tested this on some blogs and they all ranked just fine) I have an SEO Company and we test as much as we can instead of just issuing opinion, our clients have to get results, or they're gone.)
Thanks,
Palo aka Tony

Thank for sharing.

Helpful information.

shaktimaan · 06-03-2010, 06:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ErnieB

Which is better for seo purposes.... a domain with a dash between the keywords or a domain where you add a word at the end of the keyword.

For example best-junk.com or bestjunkguide.com

Also, would your opinion change if one of the ways would end up being a .net versus the other way being a .com.

Thanks for any input.

Exact match domain, bestjunk.com is best. If .com is not available. Choose net or org if available.

I have noticed domain with dashes also has some seo value in yahoo but not in google.

For any proof/experiment check my sig links. All registered same day. Have same type/quantity of links.

JJ Remington · 06-25-2010, 06:30 PM

Check out how-to-stop-procrastinating.info for an example of the exception that proves the rule. I watched this thing go from #8 to #1 on Google in 6 weeks. He's doing something right.

stackman · 06-25-2010, 06:36 PM

In my experience, dashes work as well as anything else. The pages get indexed well and work better than running keywords together. I like short domain names and dashed subdomain or subdirectory names, as well as dashed page names (containing keywords of course).

chocofries · 06-25-2010, 06:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JJ Remington

Check out how-to-stop-procrastinating.info for an example of the exception that proves the rule. I watched this thing go from #8 to #1 on Google in 6 weeks. He's doing something right.

I tested it and found it really in #1 spot in Google. So does this mean that Google loves .info domains now?

JoshBrown · 06-25-2010, 06:50 PM

With a proper inbound linking campaign, you can make any site rank well. The domain name doesn't make a difference except kw-rich domain names (i.e. keyword-keyword.com) make it easier to use the inherit anchor text. However, that still doesn't make a heap of difference.

For example, one of my sites ranks #7 for: exercise advice (broad match), and the KW is completely alien to my domain.

Best,
Josh

Jacob Martus · 06-25-2010, 07:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JoshBrown

With a proper inbound linking campaign, you can make any site rank well. The domain name doesn't make a difference except kw-rich domain names (i.e. keyword-keyword.com) make it easier to use the inherit anchor text. However, that still doesn't make a heap of difference.

For example, one of my sites ranks #7 for: exercise advice (broad match), and the KW is completely alien to my domain.

Best,
Josh

Very true, but exact match domains do provide some benefit for ranking. No way around acknowledging that fact. Time and time again, EMD's sit on the first page with lower quality and less backlinks than the rest of the page. There is a definite benefit to having an exact match domain. I know from personal experience.

Katie_White · 06-25-2010, 08:03 PM

I would prefer to have a domain without - in it because according to me its easy to seo for such site and easy to remember names

JJ Remington · 06-25-2010, 11:27 PM

Hey guys. I'm new here and I'm wondering, maybe did I break the rules posting the .info domain above? It's NOT mine (boy don't I wish) but it's not .com, .net, or .org. It has all the dashes. And appears to be picking up 750-1000 BLs each day! Is this supposed to rocket to the top of Google? Is it a shooting star that will burn out and plummet?

I guess I don't understand SEO like I need too.

05-29-2010, 04:29 PM	#1
ErnieB HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: NE Ohio Posts: 406 Thanks: 66 Thanked 50 Times in 38 Posts	Which is better for Seo purposes in a domain name?... Which is better for seo purposes.... a domain with a dash between the keywords or a domain where you add a word at the end of the keyword. For example best-junk.com or bestjunkguide.com Also, would your opinion change if one of the ways would end up being a .net versus the other way being a .com. Thanks for any input.
	Will Build and install mobile website plus add redirection for just $75. PM if interested.

05-29-2010, 04:39 PM	#2
Palo Coyote Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: AZ, USA Posts: 197 Thanks: 201 Thanked 91 Times in 51 Posts	Re: Which is better for Seo purposes in a domain name?... Hi Ernie, First: TLD or Top Level Domains are always best. .com .net .org and more are TLD List of Internet top-level domains - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Next, Google sees a hypen or dash as a space. It's best to use it when you could confuse a domain name example: wxw.managesexchanges.com could be Manage Sex Changes.com or Manages Exchanges.com. Dash/hyphen would be preferred. Otherwise, Matt Cutts, Googles main guy for Spam has said that hypens are OK if used sparingly (don't remember his quote, but you could find it). His concern is keyword stuffing, example wxw.teach-dog-no-barking-dog-obedience.com probably is too many LOL. The dash-hyphen thing is if someone has to type in the name of the domain, "Hey Erine go to wxw.best junk dot com, oh yeah put a dash in there," is probably not going to help anyone. But if it's a click thru link, no problems. For SEO both would work, .com or .net are TLD's and dash or not, all good. (Just so you know, we tested this on some blogs and they all ranked just fine) I have an SEO Company and we test as much as we can instead of just issuing opinion, our clients have to get results, or they're gone.) Thanks, Palo aka Tony
	No sig today.

05-29-2010, 05:08 PM	#3
mariahm Mariahs-SEO-Blaster.com War Room Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: canada Posts: 125 Thanks: 19 Thanked 33 Times in 28 Posts Contact Info	Re: Which is better for Seo purposes in a domain name?... Here is my opinion: best-junk is better than best junk guide My opinion does not change either way if it is .com or .net. Do the same amount of SEO for a .com and .net your results will be the same. I know as I have tested this out.
	SEO Blaster

05-29-2010, 05:18 PM	#4
ErnieB HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: NE Ohio Posts: 406 Thanks: 66 Thanked 50 Times in 38 Posts	Re: Which is better for Seo purposes in a domain name?... Thanks for all the advice. Glad its also based on personal results as well.
	Will Build and install mobile website plus add redirection for just $75. PM if interested.

05-29-2010, 05:27 PM	#5
Zeus66 John Schwartz War Room Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Near Dallas, TX, USA Posts: 3,734 Thanks: 1,660 Thanked 3,336 Times in 1,179 Posts Social Networking	Re: Which is better for Seo purposes in a domain name?... There's really no question that it's dashes over adding any extra words. You want as close to a 100% match between the search phrase and your domain name (regardless of the extension). I've tested this so many times I have absolutely no doubts anymore about this one. John

06-25-2010, 06:30 PM	#8
JJ Remington Active Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Posts: 70 Thanks: 28 Thanked 8 Times in 5 Posts	Re: Which is better for Seo purposes in a domain name?... Check out how-to-stop-procrastinating.info for an example of the exception that proves the rule. I watched this thing go from #8 to #1 on Google in 6 weeks. He's doing something right.

06-25-2010, 06:36 PM	#9
stackman Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: , , USA. Posts: 26 Thanks: 2 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts	Re: Which is better for Seo purposes in a domain name?... In my experience, dashes work as well as anything else. The pages get indexed well and work better than running keywords together. I like short domain names and dashed subdomain or subdirectory names, as well as dashed page names (containing keywords of course).

06-25-2010, 06:50 PM	#11
JoshBrown Active Warrior Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Atlanta, GA Posts: 35 Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 3 Posts Contact Info	Re: Which is better for Seo purposes in a domain name?... With a proper inbound linking campaign, you can make any site rank well. The domain name doesn't make a difference except kw-rich domain names (i.e. keyword-keyword.com) make it easier to use the inherit anchor text. However, that still doesn't make a heap of difference. For example, one of my sites ranks #7 for: exercise advice (broad match), and the KW is completely alien to my domain. Best, Josh

06-25-2010, 08:03 PM	#13
Katie_White Active Warrior Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 48 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Which is better for Seo purposes in a domain name?... I would prefer to have a domain without - in it because according to me its easy to seo for such site and easy to remember names

06-25-2010, 11:27 PM	#14
JJ Remington Active Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Posts: 70 Thanks: 28 Thanked 8 Times in 5 Posts	Re: Which is better for Seo purposes in a domain name?... Hey guys. I'm new here and I'm wondering, maybe did I break the rules posting the .info domain above? It's NOT mine (boy don't I wish) but it's not .com, .net, or .org. It has all the dashes. And appears to be picking up 750-1000 BLs each day! Is this supposed to rocket to the top of Google? Is it a shooting star that will burn out and plummet? I guess I don't understand SEO like I need too.