When a business decides to have a website and enter the virtual world, it has to make important decisions. Making those decisions requires consultation with a web designer, digital marketer, and SEO site expert. Because if the website is not designed properly, both the work of the digital marketer and the work of the SEO expert becomes difficult. And if SEO and marketing considerations are not considered from the beginning, it will be very difficult for the website to succeed.
One of the most important decisions of store website owners is choosing a brand name. The business brand (read store website name) is used in the website domain. Everything that is related to the domain of the website is also related to the SEO of the site. And, naturally, the business brand is related to marketing.
If there is a conflict between branding and marketing considerations for choosing a brand and site SEO considerations, which one should the business owner give priority to? SEO site or branding?
In this context, this very important question that affects e-commerce SEO is answered.
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Does branding affect store site SEO?
Imagine that a business has decided to have a website selling flowers and plants. One of the first questions that must be answered is what the name of the product should be. The name of the product and website becomes the brand of that business. Now the business takes advice from the site SEO expert. You probably hear that there should be a business keyword in the brand name. Because the domain name of the website is effective in the SEO of the website and helps the SEO of the website.
Now, if the business has a digital marketing and branding consultant, it will hear that your brand is your identity, and for that reason, it should be an attractive and distinct name from all the market and competitors.
But the business has a long-term plan and wants to reach a better position than its competitors in the market and to be sustainable. Therefore, he knows that he must take risks and choose a name very intelligently and not tie his hands and feet only with SEO considerations.
Is the site SEO expert right or the marketer?
So, what should businesses do now? Which should he listen to? SEO site expert or digital marketer? The business owner probably knows that SEO is important for digital marketing and digital marketing is important for startups and digital businesses. If a business has a website, it should not and cannot hope to have sales and profitability without SEO.
SEO and marketing experts agree on one thing: if you choose the wrong domain name and later have to change it, both the website’s position in Google and the branding of the business will suffer terribly. So, whatever business takes the time to choose a brand name and website domain, consult, and research, it will not hurt.
Why is there such an insistence? Has Google officially announced that if the keyword is not in the domain name, the website will not be ranked or the site will not be SEO? Or Exact Match Domain will finish the job and bring the site to the first position in Google?
Before we answer the questions, let’s give a brief explanation about Exact Match Domain. Exact Match Domain is a mode in which the domain of the site is the same as the keyword of the website and business. Of course, it is very unlikely that a business will be able to buy a domain for its website that matches its keyword. Because sometimes the keyword is long and sometimes others bought that domain earlier.
In this article and based on the latest discussions and recommendations of Google’s public relations team (which is a subsidiary of Google Search Central) to store website owners, we answer the question that marketing and branding are more important considerations in choosing a brand name, which is the domain name of the website. SEO site?
1. How much does Google care about domain names?
Google usually does not officially announce anything about factors and factors that affect the SEO of the site and the position of the websites. For site SEO and SEO experts, the most reliable source is Google Search Essentials (the former Google Webmaster). In the instructions or guides section of this source, nothing is mentioned about the domain name and matching it with the keyword.
So, no one can say that if there is a keyword in the domain of a store website or even if the domain name is the same keyword; Google will give that website a better position.
2. Why is domain name important in-store website SEO?
We saw that Google did not directly say anything about this and did not give any advice. But for a long time, SEO site experts and some reputable websites in this field have said and written experiences and recommendations about the importance of choosing a domain name in-store site SEO. In addition to the presence of the keyword in the brand name and domain name, it is recommended that it is better
- The domain name should be short.
- dash is not used in it,
- easy to pronounce
- Use the .com extension.
So, SEO considerations seem to take precedence over marketing and branding. Of course, easy and short pronunciation of the brand name/domain is also important and recommended in branding and marketing. Because short, distinctive, and attractive names are remembered by users and users communicate with them easily.
But prioritizing SEO over branding is not right. By the way, it is quite the opposite.
3. Why should businesses prioritize branding when choosing a brand name/domain name?
According to Google’s guidelines and guidelines, it doesn’t matter if there is a hyphen in the domain name of your store website or not. Google doesn’t even care if your website’s domain name is the same keyword as your business or not.
Does the Amazon or amazon.com name include the keyword or keywords of the Amazon company?
Google knows very well that not all businesses can get a domain that has a keyword or even a word related to the business, such as digikala.com or amanjacademy.com. So, know that the domains in which the keyword of the business website is, do not have a direct and positive effect on the SEO of the store site.
When choosing a brand name/domain, give priority to long-term branding and marketing considerations and not to site SEO and keyword considerations.