When starting a business, bringing your business to the web, or trying to brand yourself and your web presence, it’s absolutely essential to choose and purchase a website that either directly reflects your name, describes what you do, or, preferably, both.  Apple.com, Toyotaparts.com, and 925Express.com are all examples of that principle that this article will discuss.

If you are in the beginning stages of creating a web presence or branding yourself, you need to sit down with a few blank pages of paper and write down five words to start with.  As a writer, my five words might be “freelance”, “writer”, “fiction”, “blog”, and “travel”.  This describes everything that my web presence encompasses; you should be able to come up with at least five words, if not more. 

These five words will become your keywords, and are a great building block for your web presence.  For example, freelancewriter.com would be a great site for me to look into, because it combines my keywords to create a strong and obvious statement.  Everything you do online should be centered on these keywords, including stating your interests on profiles, looking up search terms, including categories or tags to your site.  You’re a brand now! 

Having your business name as your web address is simple and effective.  Everyone knows that for anything regarding the hottest electronics, just type “apple.com” into your browser window and you’ll be all set!  Apple has achieved success as a company from simple and undeniable visibility.  Everyone can identify a Mac or any other Apple electronic in a quick glance.  Now, the trouble with a start up business is that typically, you don’t have that kind of visibility.  What good is Whozewhatsit.com if no what knows what Whozewhatsit is? 

In instances like this, it’s very valuable to consider acquiring a web address that describes exactly what you do rather than who you are.  For example, toyotaparts.com builds on a very recognizable brand and also defines exactly what you’re going to find on that website.  It’s not a surprise or a gamble, and when it comes up in a Google search, you know what you’re about to click on. Not only do they offer the best in original Toyota parts, they also offer an extensive list of some of the cheapest accessory parts for your vehicle!

Not only does this site let you know what exactly it will encompass, the site is also utilizing their keywords to the best of their abilities. Anyone looking for automobile parts, from Camry parts to 4runner parts, is sure to find what they are looking for. The website name alone leads consumers to what they'll expect when visiting the site. This is a prime example of determining online presence. 

925Express.com, then, is a slight anomaly; depending on your familiarity with the business, you might know exactly what they sell, or you might not.  .925 is the silver content of sterling silver (pure silver is .999), so 925Express.com is a sterling silver site, most likely jewelry because the digits 925 have been popularized by Tiffany’s jewelry to signify their use of sterling silver. 

Overall, Apple.com, Toyotaparts.com, and 925Express.com are just examples of thousands of sites that have created successful names to tag their businesses and simultaneously drive traffic and gain the trust of their customer base.  When creating a business, it is essential that you examine your web presence from the point of view of your customer to understand whether or not you are creating a solid, easily used and navigable site, or whether you are losing your business and purpose in internet translation.