Picking your own domain name

[curvefan]

Hey guys, It's been awhile

I was hoping to get some of the experts opinions on here when it comes to choosing a professional/social domain name.

Let's just say my name is John Doe, and I live in Miami FL.

Would any of the following names be appropriate?

1. johndoe@miami.com
2. jdoe@miami.com
3. johndoe@southernfl.com
4. jdoe@southernfl.com

And of course all variations of other names off of John Doe.

Or,

How about using a name such as doesmail.com? or doemail.com?

1. johndoe@doesmail.com
2. johndoe@doemail.com

or even,

1. johndoe@doeinbox.com or johndoe@doesinbox.com



and lastly, if needing to use gmail,

1. contactjohndoe@gmail.com

2. emailjohndoe@gmail.com

Any of those names jump out at you?

Thanks......

[FredOnline]

I recently purchased a cool 4-character .com domain name for $10 from the NameSilo Marketplace.

Perhaps that is also something to consider?

[curvefan]

Originally Posted by FredOnline

I recently purchased a cool 4-character .com domain name for $10 from the NameSilo Marketplace.

Perhaps that is also something to consider?

Thanks, yeah I've looked at quite a few names down through the years and finally picked a few domains that I liked. Not any four letter ones such as yours, although I did acquire my name (John Doe) @usa.com and (J Doe) @mail.com as well as (John Doe) @email.com. My actual real name is pretty common, although not as common as johndoe.

So I have some decent names, I'm just trying to pare them down and use my actual domains more exclusively.

Was wondering whether a domain name that listed an area in the country or a name associated with actual email would be more preferable?

Thanks again....

[janusz]

Originally Posted by curvefan

Was wondering whether a domain name that listed [...] a name associated with actual email would be more preferable?

What do you mean by "a name associated with actual email"?

[curvefan]

Originally Posted by janusz

What do you mean by "a name associated with actual email"?

I meant a name such as in my example above.

johndoe@doemail.com
jdoe@doesmail.com
johndoe@doeinbox.com
jdoe@doesinbox.com

Something with mail or inbox or box in the domain name as opposed to a location in the domain name, such as:

johndoe@centralfl.com
jdoe@doesburg.com
johndoe@smithville.com

BTW: Happy Fathers Day to all you Dads out there..........

[janusz]

Personally speaking, I'm not enthusiastic. But its appeal depends on the availability of "simpler" domains, which would be my clear preference.

[Berenburger]

Discussed before:
http://www.emaildiscussions.com/show...556#post587556
http://www.emaildiscussions.com/show...010#post578010
http://www.emaildiscussions.com/show...552#post572552

[jeffpan]

please use: john@thedoes.com as email account, that looks more professional.

[TenFour]

Personally, I would say avoid the location-specific domains for a business email unless you run a business that is hyper-local and you want to really identify with the place. For example, maybe you are a real estate agent for a particular city. But, for general purposes, I would suggest not to. Some people just don't like one place or another and that could be a slight negative. Or maybe you are pitching services to people around the world who might be put off if you are in a different country or a city on the other side of the country.

In general, the shorter the better. I prefer something friendly like firstname@12345.com. If possible, get a four- or five-letter domain that is easy to spell and remember, and only use .com, .net, or .org. The best is .com. Most of the others have worse deliverability and cause errors. Even if it isn't .com people will enter .com by mistake. In general, the longer your address the more often it will get entered incorrectly and cause lost messages. I collect email addresses for a nonprofit and it is frustrating how often we find email addresses entered incorrectly the first time. If you just use firstname@12345.com it sounds friendly and not intimidating, and if you have it set up correctly they will see your full name in the email header.

The #1 factor with a professional email address is to sound like a real person reaching out. I think using your real first name does that.

Having written all this, I see every variation of email from all types of professionals every day. I am amazed how many "professionals" use some rinky dink yahoo or aol address they set up in high school, or a professional that shares an email with his wife and family. Don't do it!

[FredOnline]

Originally Posted by TenFour

If possible, get a four- or five-letter domain that is easy to spell and remember

Also consider your initials instead of your name, for example:

JD@domain.tld

[TenFour]

Also consider your initials instead of your name,

Once you have your own domain you can experiment with different addresses, and have a variety for different purposes. I do use my initials for some purposes and it is easy to type, though strangely I think using a name or a word that is common is even easier for most people to understand and enter properly. Of course, if your name is spelled Czywk or something difficult, don't expect it to be entered correctly! That's where the initials might make a lot of sense.

[curvefan]

Thanks guys for your helpful ideas and suggestions.

Very much appreciated.

[Cory]

My vote is also for firstname@lastname

That's what I use for my email and all of my family members use it! It's great!

[janusz]

Originally Posted by Cory

My vote is also for firstname@lastname

That's ok for social use, less so as a professional address.

There is no simple "X is good, Y is bad" solution. It all depends on personal preferences and the availability of domain names.

[Cory]

Originally Posted by janusz

That's ok for social use, less so as a professional address.

There is no simple "X is good, Y is bad" solution. It all depends on personal preferences and the availability of domain names.

We use them for our business and I’ve never had an issue. That was one of his options wasn’t it?