Choosing a Domain Name
The next step in getting your free website is choosing a domain name. This step can and should be done at the same time I’m working on your website, so be sure to get me the info from Step 1 as soon as you have made your choice. While I’m working on getting your website ready, we can be discussing the domain name you want to use.
Generally, the best domain name choice for a missionary team is the team name, if applicable. For instance, here are some examples taken from other websites I host for IMB teams.
- heartlanders.org
- teamgoldenring.org
- impactjapan.org
A one-word domain is great, if one is available (such as “heartlanders” in the first example above), but it is very rare to find those still up for grabs. Usually, we will have to use variations, for example “TeamRussia” or “RussiaTeam”, as a name focused on an area, or “TeamMestizo” or “MestizoTeam” as names focused on a people group.
And “Team” is not the only word we can use… I host or have hosted variations based on phrases such as these:
- Reach Volgograd
- Pray Kiev
- Baltic Hope
- Go Moravia
- Outreach Japan
The possibilities are almost limitless. The point is to get the idea across in a short, easy to say word or phrase. And yes, I mean easy to “say”. That brings me to my next point…
What NOT to use as a domain name
I always recommend against using domains that substitute numbers for same-sounding words (also known as a homophone for you brainy folks), such as 4/for, 2/to, etc. For one reason, it fails the telephone test. When you use a number in your domain name, it makes it harder to verbally tell someone the address. Here are some examples of what I mean (read these out loud to get the full effect):
“Our new website address is www dot pray 4 folks dot org, using a 4 instead of “f-o-r” in the middle.”
“The new address is www dot pray, the number 4, folks dot org.”
“The address is www dot pray 4 folks (use the number four) dot org.”
While these types of names may look OK in print, in my opinion they fail the phone test. If you have a better way to verbally express this kind of domain, post a comment below and perhaps I’ll adjust my recommendations.
Now let’s try one that doesn’t use any numbers-for-words.
“Hello, my new address is www dot team folks dot org.”
Simple, and they’ll understand exactly what you mean. When your domain name uses a number as a word, It causes a lot of confusion as you try to explain where the number goes. And remember, misspelled attempts do NOT reach the website. If you tell someone www.hope4folks.org, some of them WILL try hopeforfolks.org and hopefourfolks.org. Of course, you could register variations to cover all your bases, but that way lies madness.
Plus, this is just the trouble that native English speakers will have. Trying to explain to someone in another language (and this is particularly relevant to overseas missionaries) why on earth we’d ever use a number for a word, and why this particular number for this particular word, adds another layer of potential confusion. To an American, we “get” the 2/to and 4/for connections, because when we hear the number, our brain automatically connects it with the word. We see “pray 4 us”, and our minds properly translate this as “pray for us”. Now, for a Spanish speaker, “4″ is cuatro and “for” is para (at least, according to the Google translator). So, when they see “pray 4″, even assuming they speak English, their mind is not going to automatically translate this into “pray for”. Folks tend to think in their native tongue. They’ll get either “pray cuatro” or more likely, their brain will translate the whole phrase into “rogar cuatro”. Either way, it’s NOT going to register the way it would for a native English speaker
In short, don’t do it. I can work with you to come up with a better alternative that will avoid this type of confusion. That said, if you are determined to use a “number for a word” type domain, I will host it for you… after all, this is your website, and these are only my recommendations. The final decision is yours.