URL's ... Just how important are they?

[thorthedestroyer]

Would like some feedback. When optimizing for "red widgets", would it make the most sense to use which of the following for a main URL:

red-widgets.com or redwidgets.com

Also, I have a question about the .net and .us TLD's ... do these optimize well? More specifically, do they optimize as well as a .com or .org?

Thanks so much in advance.

[caveman]

I think you mean 'domain' not 'URL.'

Keywords in URI's do have some sway: Naming files for their content (e.g., Widgets.com/widgets/red.htm) is good for the SE's and good for users, because it makes it easier to see that a given page is about. The more info, the better.

As far as kw's in domains go, the days of keyword in domain counting for much from an algo perspective are pretty much gone. I don't see much evidence at all that G considers it, and very little that Y does now either.

HOWEVER, the people that completely discount kw's in domain are missing something VERY important. If your site ranks highly in the SERP's, consumers scan the information on the results pages very quickly. What they're most looking for are kw matches, and that's very well documented.

If the average surfer is searching on 'red widgets' and two of the top four results are from "RedWidgets.com" and "JimsGadgetStore.com", which site do you think will get more clicks? It's all about conversion and ROI.
;-)

[thorthedestroyer]

Thanks for the feedback :-) I completely agree with you regarding a consumer scanning a SERP and identifying keywords.

I do still have a question regarding hyphens in domain names. Do you find that a hypenated domain name ranks better then the alternative. For example, which ranks better: red-widgets.com or redwidgets.com.

Also, could you please rank the following in order of SE preference, i.e. which TLD's rank better.

.com
.org
.net
.us

Thanks so much in advance!

[caveman]

I think I already answered the domain name question. Pick what you most think addresses your marketing needs. Not an algo factor.

Re .com etc, there are plenty of non-.com's out there at the top of their respective SERP's. If there is any weight at all to the choices you mention it's negligible and I don't believe there's any at all.

There may be some higher level of creditiblity among surfers for .com that is not there with the others extensions, and more type in traffic, if you have a short generic name (redwidgets.com will get some type in traffic for 'red widgets', i.e., some people type redwidgets.com into the browser bar before searching on 'red widgets').

We always try for .com first. If that's not available, we don't care much which other extension we use.

[thorthedestroyer]

thanks again...have a good one!

[caveman]

I'll add one more thought. These days, sites like This-Is-A-Site-I-Want-To-Rank-For.com seem to come under some suspicion at the SE's as being spammy. We actively avoid this approach now, though we still see sites doing well with it.

[thorthedestroyer]

very helpful...i try to help people out to when they have qustions that i am qualified to speak about.