Keywords Vs Branding

Quick question.

[Dino_M]

I'm nearly ready to purchase my new domain name but have run into a problem - every two keyword domain name is already gone (Most are not being used but for sale for $5000)

I'm not really convinced of the value of a three keyword domain name so I was thinking of maybe going for a branded domain i.e. something like opodo.com.

Does branding of a domain name help small sites or is this best left to the bigboys?

Anyone have success with www.keyword1keyword2keyword3.com domains.

[starec]

My personal experience is that branding works great even for small sites.

The viral marketing that can be generated by the combination good brand + good USP (unique selling proposition) is in the long run more valuable than the referrals generated by keyword1keyword2keywordn.com.

Branding means more repeating clients and protects a business partially from the vulnerabilities of SE world...

[Woz]

If you are going the branding route, then you might want to consider combining parts of the keywords to come up with a domain that is unique, yet sounds like the target keywords.

For example, Blue-Widgets.com is gone, so try Blidgets.com, or Bluets.com, and so on. The subconcious values of the sounds can be very powerful as they can form memes.

You might want to read up[ on Memes [google.com]. Google [google.com] itself is a very good example.

Onya
Woz

[Tor]

I agree completely with starec. Go for a branded domain and try to come up with a short; easy to recognize and easy to pronounce name. If you manage to put together a name that contains part of a keyword that would be even better.

[Dino_M]

Good advice all, glad about that because my keyword domain was begining to look horrible.

memes - A contagious idea that replicates like a virus

I like that a lot :)

Going to put my thinking cap to come up with a name that slots in the brain and doesn't fall out! opodo has done it to me but they had quite an advertising campaign to back it up.

[chiyo]

Just to back up Tor's brilliantly concise post...

Only one of the reasons "coca cola" and "coke" are terms with the largest brand valuations are:

coca is an alliteration of the product class "cola". "Coke": just went a step further later on.

its is an association.. coke with cola. "coke" has gone pretty close to replacing the generic "cola"

it rhymes - helps in memorability and brand name recall.

its simple - as above.

Result high brand recall, brand recognition and later brand equity.

Branding is a lot about building associations between your product class and brand name. Verbal tricks like the above help a lot. Woz's blidget example is spot on. When you wanna buy a widget, you immediately think "blidget", if the blidget branders have done their job well.

[dingman]

"coke" has gone pretty close to replacing the generic "cola"

Pretty close? There are parts of the US where the word for soda is "coke". (There are also parts where the word is "pop", but that's another matter entirely.) And despite spending my semester abroad in Martinique, I don't even know another word for soda in French. Talk about successful branding!

[Dino_M]

If coke were to lose everything (all factories, trucks vending machines etc..) apart from their brand identity, they could be back to the same level within 5years.
If they were to lose their brand, they would be out of business within 5years!

Taken from the book Nologo (I Think)