How important is it to have keywords in a domain name?
Why Webmasters Stack Exchange recommends it
Webmasters Stack Exchange answerers cite it as Google's own word that keyword-rich domain names are worth little for SEO and that brand and content matter more.
Recommended by 1 people across 1 different months, 2011 to 2019.
What it is
A short Google Webmaster Help video from 2011 in which Matt Cutts answers a viewer question about how much keywords in a domain name matter for search ranking. He says keyword domains carry less weight than people assume and leans toward memorable, brandable names backed by good content.
What people said
Recommends user1555320 · 2013-05 · Webmasters Stack Exchange · on “SEO blog Indexing: wordpress.com subdomain vs a registered domain?”
As stated in other answers, keywords in domain name have today less value than they used to. In this video [this video] Google explains why, and gives hints about how to choose domain.
Cites Mike Hudson · 2011-03 · Webmasters Stack Exchange · on “Renaming site, moving domain after 3 yrs. Should I reconsider?”
Two Points: Exact match keyworded domains, while powerful now, will be less-so in the future. Google's web-spam team has already indicated this [this video] . If it ain't broke - don't fix it. Really, it's the content that will win moving forward, not the domain name (unless the domain is unique like Twitter/Google/Yahoo/Techchrunch/etc).
Cites Mike Hudson · 2011-04 · Webmasters Stack Exchange · on “Getting a second domain to help direct traffic to my main domain?”
Keywords in the domain - while helpful, aren't the be-all and end-all that a lot of people make out, in fact there's probably more examples of where it's not a factor than the opposite. Keyworded domains are also expected to come under closer scrutiny from Google in the near future ( as mentioned by Matt Cutts [this video] ). The solution you are proposing (setting up the keyword domain website) might sound good on the surface, but it does require that your new domain get authority in the eyes of the search engines before those links end up gaining any value - so you'd be better off putting effort into getting links to your main domain with the keywords "Ant Farm Society" in the first place (ye o
Cites Mike Hudson · 2011-06 · Webmasters Stack Exchange · on “Does the main URL of the website matter most in Google?”
The question is slightly ambiguous because of the term 'URL' as opposed to being specific about the domain. The URL refers to the whole web page address, including the domain name (good reference for those who want more: [LINK] ) Most people who optimize sites for a living agree that having your keywords somewhere in the URL has some benefit in terms of SEO, and that exact match domains, or key-worded domains do fare better (all other things being equal!) than those that don't have keywords in them: [LINK] But it is important to recognise, as Itai mentioned in a comment, that this is likely to diminish over time: [LINK] [this video] In terms of understanding ranking factors (including URLs/Domain
Cites rlcabral · 2012-11 · Webmasters Stack Exchange · on “SEO implications of domain name change”
It may have some implications, but not because of the 301 redirects (if done correctly). If you are worried about the new domain name: How important is it to have keywords in a domain name? by Matt Cutts @ Google [this video]
Cites Andrew Lott · 2014-01 · Webmasters Stack Exchange · on “Short brandable domain vs. long keyword domain”
Bing have just recently written [LINK] about how little importance the keywords have in a domain name. The gist is that good content and a memorable domain name are going to be more valuable to your business. Google's Matt Cutts has also done a Google Webmaster Help video about this exact subject [this video] . He tends to lean more to brandable domain names that will easily be remembered. A shorter domain name is not just more memorable, it's also easier to type it out, show on Twitter, or print on packaging/flyers/advertising.
Cites Martijn · 2017-03 · Webmasters Stack Exchange · on “What is the effect if I use famous actor's name as the domain name for a classified website?”
A negligible amount, because the name does have value, but keywords in domainnames are barely worth anything. Especially when the site isn't about him at all. The risk is that his lawyers sue you. And if you're making money of his name, that'll be a claim way higher than you'll ever make by using his name. Just pick a name related to your site. How important is it to have keywords in a domain name? - on YouTube [this video] As Cutts explains, the key to having a well-ranking website has become less about having certain keywords in the right places and more about having great content that people actually want.
Cites Warren Halderman · 2019-02 · Webmasters Stack Exchange · on “Could it be good for SEO to use keyword rich domains under the .forsale TLD?”
If we are to buy "accessories" domain, and apply different subdomains like mobile, laptop would that have any SEO impact? Google has not provided a hard line answer to that question, though they do have a couple old videos covering that topic: How important is it to have keywords in a domain name? [this video] Is Google putting more weight on brands in rankings? [LINK] In my experience working with such websites, having broad keywords within the domain name will not give you a leg-up in ranking for those terms.