It makes sense to target your domain around your customers but when the domain exact matches your target keyword does it do good or bad for your business? Let’s just get straight to the point, If you’re thinking about buying an exact match domain name to capture search engine traffic then STOP. Don’t go any further until you’ve finished reading this article. Before we go any further let’s step back for those that are unsure of “exactly” what I mean when talking about exact match domain names. Here is a definition and example for you:

• An exact match domain name (EMD) is a domain name that precisely matches a targeted search engine query. In plain english for example “Brisbane plumbing services”  might have an exact match domain name of “brisbaneplumbingservices.com”

Why would a business do this? Well, in years gone by having a domain name that was an exact match for your target keyword may provide your website with a boost in rankings and in many cases would allow you to achieve number 1 results more easily (at times it was almost a given). It also allows anybody linking to your website to link to you on your target keywords again benefiting your ranking for that term.

Another technique used is to register numerous exact match domain names, why buy one when you can buy them all, and use them as pointers or bridging domains, back to a primary domain. This technique was used to try to rank highly on many different keywords and send that traffic through to your main website.

Back in October 2012 Matt Cutts, from Google, addressed that Google would be implementing an algorithm update that would result in exact match domains being less effective as a method for attaining high-ranking. While this wasn’t considered a penalty for those already using exact match domains is was the first of many attempts to adjust the playing field.

Do Exact Match Domains Still Work?

The simple answer is yes! Unfortunately they can still be successful and in particular with Bing which hasn’t quite caught up to Google in terms of its algorithm maturity. However as shown, by Matt Cutts from Google, work has already begun in 2012 to reduce the effectiveness of exact match domains and this has only been refined over the past two years.

SEOMoz has also noticed a change in 2013 which highlighted a reduction of partial match domains (PMD) appearing in search engine results. The graph highlights the reduction of PMDs, for a period of 90 days, appearing in the top ten google results .

Graph provided by SEOMOZ.

So if the effectiveness of EMDs is now reduced along with Googles outspoken support to content and brands why would you choose an EMD over a domain that is cooler and more memorable? An exact match domain name in many cases highlights that your online marketing is thin and you’re looking for quick wins and old tactics to get you results. In some cases you may even be penalised by Google for over optimisation of your link profile as websites will be linking to you on your exact keyword which appears unnatural and spammy.

You don’t want this to happen. If the age of the penguin penalty you might find that you’ll spend more money on making your exact match link profile feel more natural in the future.

Finally you need to be very careful of the exact match you use within your domain name. Brands and technology are ever-changing and therefore it doesn’t make any sense for you to include something that might not exist in five years time. Your business might change too as well as the services you offer so you don’t want to have to change your domain names in the future because it no longer makes sense for the services you’re offering.

What Exact Match Domain Names Suck

Just the other day I was asked for advice on why a local business website wasn’t generating any leads and customer enquiries for their services. I enjoy reviewing websites so I took the opportunity and rolled with it. They gave me their domain name and I almost cried when I looked at it. This was epic business fail at it’s best and a quick way to send business directly to your competitors.

So what was their mistake?

Let’s say the business in question was Brisbane Glass Doors (it wasn’t) and they’d decided they wanted an exact match domain name. They had originally tried to purchase “brisbaneglassdoors.com.au” online to find it was already purchased (warning sign No #1) so instead they registered brisbanesglassdoor.com.au with the added “s”.

Just think about that for a second…….?!?!?!?!

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see this rookie error. You’re basically relying on your customers to add an extra ‘s’, which is a spelling mistake, in order to find your website Guess what happens if they don’t include the ‘s’ when typing your domain name? *dun dun dun*

THEY GO STRAIGHT TO YOUR COMPETITOR

If you’re relying on spelling mistakes, slang variances or any other form of butchering then you need to stop right now. Think about the phone test, does your domain name hold up to telling someone over the phone without explaining or spelling out every single letter? If it doesn’t then this is a good sign that you should look at something new.

Why Branded Domains Are Better

Google loves brands and has been quick to inform that their support is behind brands and content that establish your website and business as an authoritative source for your industry. Here are some quick benefits of branded domains:

• Branded domains are typically shorter
• Branded domains sound less spammy
• Branded domains are more memorable
• Branded domains stand out from competitors
• Google is giving less preference to EMDs and PMDs so why not pick a cooler name?
• You’re less likely to over optimise your site and link profile because you won’t be stuffing it with your keywords.

Respect Thy Authority

It’s simple, if you take the quick and easy path it’s likely you’ll build thin content around a poor online marketing strategy. Think about long-term instead by developing natural content that makes your business the authority for your industry. Make sure that your brand name is the one that is mentioned when customers are discussing services in your industry, don’t get your name and reputation confused with the competition.

Save yourself the time and money of buying countless exact match domain names in the hope that one of them will stick. Forget about building countless sub websites and focus on just one website that targets the areas that your business services, not only will this save you money but also time in maintaining a unmanageable network of websites in the future.