Which domain sounds better, one starting with "my..." or with "your..."

14 replies
Hi,

I'm searching for a new domain name for an online service. Let's for example take a hairdresser. What do you consider the better domain choice:
MyHairDresser.com
or
YourHairDresser.com (corrected)
I'm not a native English speaker, so any advice is appreciated.
Thank you.
#domain #sound #sounds #starting
  • Profile picture of the author lanew
    I don't like using either one. You should always go for branding, since updates with Google. But if you insist, I would at least choose "MY" because at least it builds an identity with the user - I suppose. :rolleyes:

    Be well,

    Lane
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    • Profile picture of the author angela99
      From a copywriting perspective, it's always YOU, since everyone's primary concern is What's In It For Me (WIIFM).

      You can read MyHairDresser.com from a 'You" point of view, I suppose -- the visitor thinks "this is my hairdresser"...

      But out of the two choices, I'd choose YourHairDresser.com -- notice "your", rather than "you."

      That said, if I were working with a client on this, I'd be branding the client and coming up with a name and tagline for the business first, then thinking about the domain name.

      Sorry to ramble. Hope this helps in some small way. :-)

      Cheers

      Angela
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      • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
        Banned
        I agree with Angela ^^^.

        For SEO purposes, if that's relevant to you, both are bad. It's better to have any letters/words additional to the keyword after the keyword, in the domain-name, than before it. (This is perhaps less important now than previously, though, with EMD's maybe declining a little in value/relevance anyway.)
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        • Profile picture of the author Stuart Walker
          Originally Posted by Alexa Smith View Post

          It's better to have any letters/words additional to the keyword after the keyword, in the domain-name, than before it. (This is perhaps less important now than previously, though, with EMD's maybe declining a little in value/relevance anyway.)
          I'm not sure it makes any difference SEO wise to be honest now or in the past.
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          • Profile picture of the author micksss
            Originally Posted by RockingLastsForever View Post

            I'm not sure it makes any difference SEO wise to be honest now or in the past.
            I agree but as far as which sounds better (which was the initial question) I vote for "my".
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      • Profile picture of the author endymio
        Awesome!
        Thank you very much for the feedback. I meant YourHairDresser.com, but I think I'll use neither of both.
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      • Profile picture of the author RedShifted
        Originally Posted by angela99 View Post

        From a copywriting perspective, it's always YOU, since everyone's primary concern is What's In It For Me (WIIFM).

        You can read MyHairDresser.com from a 'You" point of view, I suppose -- the visitor thinks "this is my hairdresser"...

        But out of the two choices, I'd choose YourHairDresser.com -- notice "your", rather than "you."

        That said, if I were working with a client on this, I'd be branding the client and coming up with a name and tagline for the business first, then thinking about the domain name.

        Sorry to ramble. Hope this helps in some small way. :-)

        Cheers

        Angela
        I actually made a thread about this like 6 months ago in the copywriting forum. And the majority of copywriters voted for "my".

        Aside from branding/taglines "your" is more of a command. Like "yourpizzaguys.com" tells people "these are your your pizza guys". Like you are commanding them. On the other hand, "mypizzaguys" is more of a subtle implication. The person reads it and thinks "these are my pizza guys". Like they already made the choice themselves. I believe in copy, "your" is better most of the time, like "these are your benefits", as a general guideline. But it really depends on the specific context imo. Since this context is essentially a choice, you want the person to think "this is my choice". It assumes choice for the person. Because when people make a choice, the word they use in their head is "my".

        Now, my name was a bit different than the examples in this post, because "my" also jived better with the overall name I used, but I suggest the OP splits tests a few different names. I did this without a site initially using the name in a headline, and just making different versions. That was ultimately the reason I wound up using "my". It out performed all the others. Not to mention some of the better copywriters also chose that same name.

        -Red
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      • Profile picture of the author Matt Kendo
        But out of the two choices, I'd choose YourHairDresser.com -- notice "your", rather than "you."

        Agreed, you confused me with the thread title and then the example in your post, using your and the you. yourhairdresser.com gets my vote
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  • Profile picture of the author agehami
    Your-Hair-Dresser
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  • Profile picture of the author WordpressManiac
    In your example I like MyHairDresser more, but I always agree to build more of a brand. Think of a real brand name to be on the safe side...
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  • Profile picture of the author Vincent Abrugar
    In my opinion, domain name starting with "my" sounds better than starting with "your".
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  • Profile picture of the author Dariuszden
    I persoanlly don't like using stop words in domain names if I don't have to. Both "my" and "your" are stop words so if you're not going for a exact match domain, I would go with something else.

    If you notice even big companies such as The Home Depot, avoid it. They drop the "the" in their website.
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  • Profile picture of the author Rob Whisonant
    Personally I like my... Here is why... When you tell someone about something you have tried you usually say something like... Hey, have you tried my hair dresser? You don't say... Hey, have you tried your hair dresser?

    Another example... Hey, you should try my hair dresser. You don't say... Hey, you should try your hair dresser.

    So for word of mouth traffic, I would go with my every day.

    Re's
    Rob Whisonant
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  • Profile picture of the author JerrickYeoh
    I will go with MyHairDresser.com
    because with the name MY which will sound more close to them and they will feel your brand more care and close to them .

    When people search hair dresser , they will not add in keyword like my hair dresser and your hairdresser because they will likely put someone name hair dresser or just looking for hair dresser service. So i think MY would be better and it sound it already belong to them.
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