Well many SEO experts seem to think so.. In the art of Search Engine Optimization the age of a domain is frequently heralded as one of the key factors the Google algorithms target when ranking a domain. It has been long been thought that Google sees older domains as solid and reliable and the mere fact that they have been around longer demonstrates stability and continuity which in turn should transpose into rich content…

Of course not forgetting that the older the domain is the more likely it is to have a high number of backlinks – simply because it has been around longer and has had more time to acquire them using white hat techniques that Google loves. This is versus a newly registered domain name that may or may not have any links but if they do Google will be more suspicious of these links as it is felt acquiring too many links too quickly can be as bad for your site’s search optimization as none at all.

With all that said are these experts correct can domain age really impact your sites search ranking with Google? And if this is true do the thousands of people who have purchased one or more of the newly registered GTLD’s not care about search optimization now? One possible answer to my second question is that no they don’t care as they plan to hold onto to these domains and resell them if and when this particular market stabilizes and matures….

I for one like older expired domains specifically those registered prior to the year 2000 with my primary reason having nothing to do with number of backlinks, it really is quite simple as this is when the best and most original domains were registered. You are much more likely to find an exact match domain or a one word four letter .com when filtering and searching through the expired domain lists from domains registered pre 2000.

So that’s my reason but what’s Google’s? Well Google Engineer, spokesperson and renowned blogger Matt Cutt’s explains that Google’s love of older domains is somewhat of a myth. He reiterates once again that content and relevancy is king in gaining website authority and age should not be a prevailing factor if a younger website has spent at least a couple of months developing content.. Check out his exact comments here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-pnpg00FWJY

This absoloutly makes sense in the post era of Panda and Penguin where Google has tried its hardest to rank higher websites with quality content over those that link bomb and use other black hat techniques to drive traffic.To then add a preferential weigting to their algoritums simply becuase a domain is “older” would fly against everything these updates stand for.  With thousands of new GTLDs being launched this year clearly the domain Registrars and the buying public think so too.

So we have talked a lot about Google in relation to buying older expired domains but how do they rank with the other Search Engine…. Bing cites its 4 top priorities that a domain should have have to gain website authority as being.

1) Content

2) Social Interaction

3) User Experience

4) Link Building

There is no explicit mention of age though possibly it could be interpreted that only quality link building can be achieved through time which in turn translates to domain age…

With all this said there is still a hardcore belief within the SEO community that age does indeed matter and buying an older expired domain is a better investment than a newer one. For me I buy domains that are relevant to me, the name is more important than the age, I can develop content and links over time but you can never change the name of a domain that you bought simply because of its age. Relevancy is always my first priority.

To find the full list of Expired/Expiring and dropped domains go to our free Search Engine http://www.expired-domains.co

Clare Coggins

clare@expired-domains.co

There was a time not so long ago in the Google world before the infamous Panda/Penguin updates that domain names which happened to match exactly a specific keyword they targeted did pretty well in search rankings. Many SEO experts would specifically advise clients to find domain names to buy which would if at all possible match exactly their top keyword, that though was until Panda and then Penguin was released and things changed very suddenly…

After these updates many sites which had previously ranked high on search found themselves languishing on page numbers with double digits and subsequently they saw the organic traffic they had come to rely so heavily on completely dry up. Many of these sites happened to be EMDs and therefore people were quick to rush to the conclusion that as part of the Panda/Penguin algorithm updates Google had targeted exact match domains and were now being penalized rather than rewarded.

Upon further analysis though it became more obvious  this isn’t necessarily the case. Matt Cutts and the Google Team whilst never truly revealing the exact target areas of these algorithms have been very vocal about explaining the strategic direction with both Panda and Penguin was to reduce spam and poor content and it just transpires that a lot of the spammy websites that were penalized because of this happened to have Exact Match Domains. At the time though you have to remember this was a well used SEO tactic to increase traffic for a specific keyword and had been extremely successful.

So yes we did see a decline in search success after the updates but what about now? If content is really king and you own a legitimate EMD are you being treated fairly by Google? Matt Cutts would answer yes but there are still whispers out there that you will receive a lower score as put simply Google is still suspicious of these sites.

As an owner of an Exact Match Domain I find myself on a swinging pendulum on my thoughts with this subject. Yes I will be the first to admit I purchased http://www.expired-domains.co a couple of years ago having run my business from a different domain name which had better brand presence but little key word relevancy without much success with Google.

Ok so now I am doing better on my search results but I do still question is this because of or in spite of my domain name.. These days I try to be a good Google Soldier and follow the rules maybe I am just being rewarded because of this and maybe I could do even better if I didn’t use an EMD…?

With the launch of the new GTLDs where much of the focus has been on exact match domains for example – photography.club, gardening.expert etc. It is is obvious that a significant proportion of these domains will target high traffic keywords but how will they rank? It is my feeling that Google may have to revise their thinking if there is a level of penalty going on to incorporate these sites into the search results – but I guess time will tell..

Google aside looking at the trends in the Marketing Industry it really is becoming more and more popular to have a business name that may not explain your targeted business stream, branding and advertising is key to success both off and online with a name that is not transparent and with my own Marketing hat on I am torn as be warned it really is hard to build a brand around a keyword……

Clare Coggins

clare@expired-domains.co

Fresh off the heels of the release of the new GTLD’S that we discussed here last month, Registry.co.com last week started selling hundreds of .co.com domains for a mere snippet of the premium .com pricing. I have to say that having our business registered under a .co TLD this news got my attention.

There is absolutely no question in my mind that having a simple .com domain would in most cases be the most preferable choice, how many times do we all just automatically put .com at the end of a website of interest that we may have seen advertised on a billboard in a magazine or on television and actually end up at a different site to our original intention.

With over 30 millions .com domains registered last year I think we can safely say the demand is still as strong as ever despite the growing competition from other GLDS extentions. With all that said I have to find myself wondering are the new.co.com domains a way to even the playing field? The guys at Registry.co.com seem to think so! With most small business’s not even online when the best .com’s were registered and now they are are so in demand small and start up business’s cannot afford the premium pricing that they carry, is grabbing a .co.com domain instead a chance to really compete on a equal footing in the online world…?

One thought is that if you own a .co.com domain you may benefit from keying errors with the intended destination being your .com counterpart, but increasing traffic and driving loyalty this way is a dubious tactic and one that I cannot see standing the test of time. On the other hand I do see a certain element of stickiness to these TLD extentions that I have never really felt before. Having lived a period of my life in the Uk I saw first hand the rise of the   .co.uk extentions. Currently there are over 7 million of these registered and only recently one was sold for a six figure amount. To the British to type in a .co.uk comes as naturally as to many in the US to type .com and for any business that is purely based in the United Kingdom this TLD is seen as a premium extention to have.

But the big but with this example is outside of the Uk this TLD is rarely seen so if you want your business to have a Global presence on the web you most likely will have to look elsewhere….

This is where the .co.com TLD becomes interesting for me. Currently there are 60+ countries that use .cc.com extentions proving they already popular and succesful and the double . truly has gone global. I for one think that coupled with the relativley low price you can pick these up for they are worth a second look.

For that reason we purchased ExpiredDomains.co.com yesterday and I have to say I think it looks kinda cool!

Clare Coggins 

Clare@Expired-Domains.co