Is a folder or new domain best?

[allthesp]

I am thinking about doing some geo sites and was wondering if it would be better to do folders or new domains. An example of what I am wanting to do is this:

item1: widget
Item2: razor
location: Omaha

Possibilities:
1) omaha.com/widget and omaha.com/razor
2) widget.com/omaha and razor.com/omaha
3) omahawidget.com and omaharazor.com

Which of these would be the best? I am pretty sure 1 and 2 will be the same, and they will be able to send some PR down the line for each new subdomain. The domain name will be more keyword focused with 3 though.

Another thing to take into account is I will hope to sell these in the future. Thanks for any input.

[mathiasc]

i think folders would be okay since you only have 2 different things but on the same location.

[allthesp]

I have more than 2 things. For each local area I have many things, and I have many local areas.

[InternetMarketingIQ]

I don't know that there is a "Best" way. If you have an extremely tight focus on an industry like cell phones... then your domain could represent the primary phone and the folder or sub directory could represent the models.

With a sub directory or folder approach you spend less on domains and you build your primary site on cellphones at the same time. As models go out of date you don't lose your main site. You just replace the folders with new folders about new models.

I like sub directories because for me it's easier to load a script in a subdirectory and track it. It's just how I organize.

However if you find a really tight niche and want to come across as an authority on that one product.. have great long tail keywords then you may want to go with separate registrations and push to Brand what you are doing.

There really is no correct answer to this .. It depends upon how you want to setup your site. Sub-Domain names can be very powerful but many under-use them. It is always best to test whatever market or niche you are doing.

I use both ways myself ... I use sub-domain names on some of my sites and others I just get a new domain name and slap up another server. The thing about sub-domain names is that they will increase your rankings if that is what you are after.

James