According to Alexa.com, out of the top 6 most popular sites world wide, 4 are Search Engines. The two sites in the top 6 that are not a search engine are YouTube.com and Facebook.com .
All this data has recently changed as well if you had looked in the past, so you might want to revisit it. The last time I checked, Yahoo was ranked # 1 but Google.com has taken over that spot. MSN.com dropped from # 5 and Facebook.com moved into the top 5.
The current Top 6 Global Ranks are: Source Alexa.com
- Google.com (SE)
- Yahoo.com (SE)
- YouTube.com (Video Site)
- Live.com (SE)
- FaceBook.com (Social Networking)
- MSN.com (SE)
So I wanted to do a random check based on keywords at search engines to see what REALLY ranks # 1 for search, compared to the keyword and the domain name used. I will be using the top 2 Search Engines and will only be placing the # 1 Natural Search result. Please keep in mind that SE’s search results differ per area, so these are what I see.
I want to see the top TLD (.com, .org, .info) how many domains have Hyphens, how many are Sub Domains etc. Now many things come into play for SERP’s, like SEO, content, domain, popularity of a term etc. but I want to focus on the domain names.
Again, these are random terms I am typing in and doing it as I write this.
~ Keyword(s): popular keywords
Google.com: SearchEngineWatch.com
Yahoo.com: SearchEngineWatch.com
~ Keyword(s): wireless
Google.com: VerizonWireless.com
Yahoo.com: wireless.att.com (sub)
~ Keyword(s): best computer
Google.com: ConsumerSearch.com
Yahoo.com: BestComputerUSA.com
~ Keyword(s): baby names
Google.com: BabyNames.com (site links)
Yahoo.com: babynamesworld.parentsconnect.com (sub)
~ Keyword(s): make money online
Google.com: moneymakerinfo.blogspot.com (sub)
Yahoo.com: JohnChow.com (dot com mogul)
~ Keyword(s): free credit report
Google.com: AnnualCreditReport.com
Yahoo.com: AnnualCreditReport.com
So far, one thing is very clear! The .com TLD is KING no matter what term was searched for on either SE. Only one domain name was an Exact Match to the search term (BabyNames.com) but only on Google. Each search engine returns mainly Different sites for the same search result. Only Two terms returned matching # 1 results.
~ Keyword(s): business.com
Google.com: Business.com (site links)
Yahoo.com: Business.com
~ Keyword(s): domain name news
Google.com: DomainNameNews.com
Yahoo.com: DomainNameNews.com
~ Keyword(s): website development
Google.com: InfoCreek.com
Yahoo.com: WebMetro.com
~ Keyword(s): low rate credit card
Google.com: CreditCards.com
Yahoo.com: CreditCards.com
Ok, I think you get my point. .com domain names are a MUST! Not only are they the most commonly advertised TLD which makes them the most known by the mass, Search Engines rank them very well and nearly Always at the # 1 spot! I would say .org is the second most ranked TLD, but that depends on what the keywords searched for are.
Now this was only 10 examples, so keep that in mind.
Owning the Exact Match domain name does not automatically mean your site will rank # 1 or even on the first page on an SE. With proper SEO, good and often updated content, will greatly help you rank better while owning the exact match domain name. A couple times the exact match domain WAS in the top 10 for the search term, but not always # 1.
Sub domains are nothing to sneeze at!
If a domain didn’t match exactly to it’s search term, the majority of the time it pertained to the search term in one way or another.
Keep in mind that search engines are only "part" of the web. A large amount of Direct Navigation takes place and leaves out the search engines totally. With direct navigation, only one can own the term in the .com TLD.
Advertising with a clear, easy to remember, catchy or an already known term will never go away. Free Natural Branding (matching your domain name to a generic product like Shoes.com or a popular "search term") is very important. This keeps the demand high for these domain names in the .com TLD which raises value.
Thinking of putting a hyphen in your domain? 0 out of the 10 terms I searched for above had a hyphen in them. Thinking of a .net? 0 out of the 10 terms I searched for were a .net.
