Does a real domain help rankings?

Is it worth it to go from geocities.com/MyPenName to MyNewCompany.com/MyPen

[dwilson]

My geocities site is now well down on the 2nd page of results for the keywords I target. It's being beaten by some good sites & some lousy ones.

Is hosting on Geocities / Angelfire, etc. bad for rankings?

[rfgdxm1]

>Is hosting on Geocities / Angelfire, etc. bad for rankings?

AFAIK, no. However, I still suspect Google gives some benefit to keyword in domain name. If so, then mypenname.com may do better than geocities.com/MyPenName to MyNewCompany.com/MyPenName for "mypenname".

[globay]

If you are really interested in getting visitors, I can definitely recommend you to buy a domain name. That money is well spent!

[Dreamquick]

Depends what sector you're trying to market to - non-business sites can be hosted pretty much anywhere as long as they can get crawled, the enforced code isnt too bulky and the adverts aren't too annoying.

However having a properly hosted domain is a must if you are trying to run a business or just look more professional or you might just want more control over your site configuration.

The only reasons I can think of that a non-domain would hurt your rankings are;

1) You hit your transfer limit and they "close" your site temporarily
2) Something outside your control (such as the advert serving mechanism) spooks the crawlers somehow - rare but it could happen.
3) The fact that it's a free host / advert supported may deter people from linking to you or listing your site because they want to look more professional and so link out more selectively.

- Tony

[KenB]

Domain names and paid web hosting can be very inexpensive and I highly recommend it. Here are some advantages:

1) portability - if you don't like your web host and you have your own domain name, you can take your site to a new host without changing your URLs.

2) your own email address - if you have your own domain name, it can also be your email address. This aids portability and looks more professional

3) credibility - a site with it's own domain can appear more credible than a site hosted at say geocities

4) better search engine indexing - many search engines have a natural bias against sites that are hosted by free hosts like GeoCities.

[Mohamed_E]

4) better search engine indexing - many search engines have a natural bias against sites that are hosted by free hosts like GeoCities.

Not so sure about that. My main earthlink.net site does very well on a large range of keywords, and my toy geocities site does remarkably well given how little effort I have expended in getting links to it.

For a commercial site I have no doubt that a "real" domain adds credibility in the eyes of the user, but this post is in the Google News forum.

[DVDBurning]

I would definitely recommend getting your own domain, and setting up your site on a decent web host. The cost of registering a domain and getting web hosting is minimal, and it gives you more options and flexibility. It is especially good for e-mail purposes... you can set up your own e-mail accounts (usually most web hosting companies include some level of e-mail service).

[rfgdxm1]

>1) portability - if you don't like your web host and you have your own domain name, you can take your site to a new host without changing your URLs.

This is the reason that I bit the bullet for my amateur site and got my own domain name. When I was a clueless newbie webmaster, the site went through a couple free hosts with no ads that either went bankrupt, or in the case of the second one started charging. It occurred to me that other minor amateur sites were able to get their own domains, and if I learned how the system worked, I should be able to do the same. I then did the research, and found that managing ones own domain and finding suitable hosting wasn't exactly rocket science. And, with a stable web address I would never have to worry about getting other sites that linked to me to change the link.

>2) your own email address - if you have your own domain name, it can also be your email address. This aids portability and looks more professional

Another advantage I later realized. The nature of my sites is such on occasion I have had to deal with public officials to obtain relevant scientific information that they tend to be reluctant to give out to just anyone. I actually had one such official I was talking with on the phone ask me for the domain name of the site I told him I ran. I told him my domain name, and after quickly surfing to it using the computer on his desk, and seeing the home page of my site, immediately was willing to tell me everything I wanted to know. ;) Since then I always when sending e-mails use one off the domain of my site, because the domain name itself is such that it anyone in the know would realize that only someone serious would run a site with such a domain name. Domain names are sufficently cheap they are worth it.

[BigDave]

A real advantage to having your own domain name is that it is easier to get links than getting links to accounts on geocities.

I will put a link to one of my site member's personal home pages if they are on geocities, but I will strongly recommend to a manufacturer or a retailer that wants a link that they get a domain name, because I really hate doing custodial work on those links later.

[antrat]

Is hosting on Geocities / Angelfire, etc. bad for rankings?

Unlikley. However, for the small cost I would dump them as they are generally slow loading. A real domain is professional, instils a degree of confidence in your visitors and is unique.

So unless you are doing a site for the love of it, go for your own domain. While it's getting harder as times goes by, try to keep to 2 simple rules.

1)Make it short and easy to spell.

2)Include your keyword(s) if possible, e.g www.widget.com

[g1smd]

Another advantage is that you will also get to see the server logs for your site. You will then be able to see exactly what people were searching for in the search engine that brought the visitor to your site, and which pages were visited (and the order of travel). This should give you yet more ideas about content that you could add to improve the ratings of lower rated pages.

You will also be able to see which bots came by, what they did, and when. The logs are stuffed full of useful information.

[abates]

Another good reason: if you do a search for keyword on google, pages on the same host are grouped together and only the first two are shown in the SERPS. You're therefore not just competing with all the other sites out there, but with all the sites on the same free host as you.