Ken Evoy — April 2, 2017 
It used to be that a great domain name was all you needed. Today your brand needs to make it on social media, too.
Everyone knows the importance of grabbing a short, memorable, brandable domain name. Most don’t also check to see if it’s available as a username at all major social sites.
Why does consistency matter?
Suppose your domain is mybrand.com. A mish-mash of social names dents your memorability and credibility…
- facebook.com/my-brand
- twitter.com/mybrand2016
- instagram.com/thereal-mybrand
Not very consistent, right?
Here’s the Step-by-Step…
- Use namechk.com to check domains and social usernames all in one place. (It also checks for trademarks — but we all know to check for those, right? Right? )
- At a minimum, your proposed domain name should be available at Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. Why these? They’re the major players, and each behaves quite differently. You can’t know for certain which will be your best choice(s) early in the process. So play it safe.
- Add LinkedIn if yours is a B2B biz, or if you think you might do a company account. Finally, while Google+ is not a social force, it’s still a good idea to use the same name as your identity at Google.
- If they’re all available, register all usernames immediately. Do not wait until you’re ready to start a social presence — some will be gone.
- Other social profile names are optional. Take none if you feel it’s unlikely that you’d be doing any others. Or register another 50 if you have OCD — they’re free!
What If The Biggies Are Not All Available?
It’s your call…
On the one hand, your “perfect” domain name is likely not the one and only! Find another “perfect” domain name for which the major social usernames are available.
On the other hand, if only Google+ is unavailable, or if you’re 99% sure that you won’t use the channel that’s missing, go ahead and commit to your name everywhere else.
Already have an established domain name (for which the social usernames are unavailable)?
Use namechk.com to find a social name that’s related to your brand name and is available on every major channel. For example…
Suppose “MyBrilliantDomainName.com” is perfect for your new business idea. Or perhaps you’ve already established some name recognition for that domain name through all your efforts, and now you’re ready to start working on social media. Bad news…
“MyBrilliantDomainName” is taken for Facebook and YouTube. However…
“MyBrillDN” and “MyBrilliantDN” are both available for all social media. Why not take one “short and different name” that’s also memorable for all possible social channels?
We recommend short-short-short for this situation, so you finally choose to register “MyBrillDN” for all major channels. It’s going to feel like a social media nickname to followers.
Bottom Line Takeaway?
Checking for social username availability is an integral part of choosing a domain name. Unifying your brand is critical!
Researching and registering the perfect domain name is a critical part of laying a solid foundation for your online business. Day 5 of the Solo Build It! Action Guide walks you step-by-step through choosing and registering a brandable domain name, one that is also available on the primary social channels.
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