Tools To Help You Find Better Domain Names

If you are stuck and need help creating a good name, there are a number of fantastic tools you can use. Here are some websites that you can use to get your creative juices flowing.

Domainr -- If you're finding it difficult to get a dot com name that isn't a mile long, maybe it's time to go trendy. Domainr is a popular website naming tool designed to help you explore top level domains (TLD's) other than dot com that put popular websites like ping.fm and del.icio.us on the map. Domainr also shows popular TLD's that are available, so it's a wonderful tool for brainstorming.

Dot-o-mator -- Here's a domain name suggestion tool that lets you mix and match with a list of popular prefixes and snazzy suffixes. It's a real lifesaver when you need to find a perfect name for a keyword targeted niche site. The Dot-o-mator tool also lets choose from a list of popular website categories that use prefixes and suffixes.

BustAName -- This is a feature-rich name finder. They use some sort of linguistic data to help you identify names. What's really cool is the ability to save, manage and organize your research. It's a time saver, and I really appreciate their "List of Words" feature. It identifies similar words that you can then use to do more digging.

Domain Tools -- This isn't as much a name finder as it is a domain research tool. Domain Tools helps you uncover relevant information about domain names you have interest in. You'll like the "Whois" search feature that provides all the registration information you need. Plus, they offer a basic suggestions search to help you find similar names as well as names that are for sale or at auction.

DomainsBot -- This is a domain search engine containing an advanced search capability that allows you to conduct customized and highly refined searches. For instance, you can tell it the highest number of characters you will accept. You could also tell it to exclude any names containing a hyphen.

StuckDomains -- If you're after a used name, StuckDomains is for you. What they offer is a database that's full of expired names that fell out of their renewal period. It's worth checking out because its an opportunity to find a name that is available now or about to come available. I have snapped up a few hot names this way.

Nameboy -- Okay, I'll admit it, Nameboy is a shameless exploit of the Gameboy name, but it's a popular name generator just the same. Nameboy asks for a primary keyword and a secondary keyword that best describe the topic of your website. It then whips up a long list of names for you to consider.

Your domain name is a very important business asset. Take the time to make the best choice the first time. Once you begin building your website, changing the name has many challenges that will take a lot more of your time to recover from than investing the correct amount of effort upfront. If it takes you a day, a week or a month to find the right domain name for your business, it will be time well spent.

David Bynon works with the search engine optimization consultants at Site Propeller, a search engine marketing company specializing in in-bound marketing and lead conversion.