The Forgotten Value of Domains in SEO

I want to talk about something that has helped me become successful and also set me apart from other SEOs over the past few years.

The Value of a Domain Never Went Down

You will read or hear a lot of SEO professionals talking about how the domain has lost its SEO value.  I strongly disagree with this theory because a domain is a major determining factor to the subject of a site.  Google knows that if you are going to buy Airplanes.com then obviously you are going to have a website all about “airplanes”.  This is common sense.  If you don’t, then you probably won’t rank for “Airplanes” when your site is all about mortgages and auto insurance.

The only exception to my rule is parked domains.  Obviously that domainer would be banking from any type-in traffic, but most normal surfers and people like me use search now.

When You Park a Domain It Gets Pulled From SERPS

It’s really simple - When you go to Sedo, DomainSponsor, GoDaddy, or any other domain parking service, you are basically asking to have this domain name taken out of the SERPs.  The best thing to do with any domain is to develop it into a topic that is on target with the domain’s subject.  If you own LCDTVs.com - Then develop it into a site or store with information about LCD TVs.  Apparently this particular example has made good use of their domain and done just that.

I personally believe that the theory behind why domains don’t hold as much SEO value as they used to is due to cyber squatting (or whatever you want it to be called).  SEOs try to justify their theory on this with examples like “Girls” and “TVs”.  The reason they appear to be right is due to squatter’s sitting on undeveloped goldmines rather than throwing up a search worthy page full of content.  I bet if TVs.com was developed into some sort of review site about LCD, Plasma, OLED, and DLP TVs, it would be ranked somewhere on the front page of Google for SEVERAL search results in a matter of months.

Buy Dot Coms - Even If That Means from a Reseller

I do believe that dot com has more weight in the SEO sense than any other extension.  I have tested this theory before and my results always come out the same.  A dot com with less (although relevant) content than a dot net with similar but more content will usually outrank at first.  My theory stands true until I start factoring incoming links and a long list of other SEO techniques into the equation.  But if you are looking for that head start - then dot com is the way to go.

Where to Find Quality Domain Resellers

There are a few forums and websites that I would recommend if you are trying to find quality domains to start your next website.  I have listed a few of them here:

Sedo Marketplace - They have TONS of domains in their catalog all being sold by squatters and domainers alike.  This is where you will find a large amount of those pesky parked domains for sale.

DNForum - A haven for domainers and domain name enthusiasts, they have several sections on their forum for buying domains at fixed prices or areas where you can make an offer on domains.  Also a great place to get the names at wholesale rather than a retail price.

BuyDomains - A bit more expensive than the last two, but BuyDomains has managed to accumulate a very impressive and keyword rich catalog of domain names.  Be aware that you CAN negotiate the price considerably when looking to make a purchase from them.  The mark-up on these names is absolutely through the roof!

Just remember, the domain name IS important.  The SEOs telling you otherwise probably never had a good name to do any testing with in the first place.