As the world of SEO changes, so do the tactics that agencies use to help their clients rank higher in search engine results pages (SERPs). One of the more common questions we get asked as a digital marketing agency is whether or not exact match domains (EMDs) are still a viable SEO tactic. The answer, unfortunately, is not a simple one. Keep reading to learn more about EMDs and how they can impact your website’s SEO.
What are Exact Match Domains?
An exact match domain is a domain name that exactly matches the keyword or phrase that someone is searching for.
An example of this would be a company that sells tyres, registering the domain name www.buytyresonline.com. Not exactly the catchiest name. But the theory is that if someone searches for “buy tyres online”, this exact match domain has a better chance of ranking higher in the SERPs than a website with a more generic domain name.
So, do EMDs work?
The short answer is: sometimes. In the early days of SEO, EMDs were incredibly effective at helping websites rank higher in SERPs. It used to be possible to buy an EMD, throw up some content targeting the same main keyword, and wait for the traffic to come rolling in.
However, as Google’s algorithms have become more sophisticated, EMDs have become less effective as an SEO tactic. That’s not to say that they don’t work at all, but their efficacy has definitely diminished in recent years.
As far back as 2010, Google’s Matt Cutts announced that the company would start to devalue EMDs in their algorithms. Since then, there have been several major and minor algorithm updates that have continued to push poor-quality EMDs down the SERPs.
Every once in a while, however, we get surprised and find EMDs trumping pages that would otherwise eat their lunch on keyword rankings, and that tends to happen when a location is part of the domain.
When is an EMD Beneficial to my website?
So, there may be some circumstances under which an EMD can be helpful for SEO purposes.
If you’re in a highly competitive industry — like law or finance — and you’re a reputable business with a high-quality website, an EMD can still give you a bit of an edge over your competition, assuming all other things are equal.
This boost is particularly evident for local searches. So, if you’re a local business targeting a specific city or region, an EMD can still be beneficial (as we hinted at above.)
If there was really no benefit in using an EMD, domains like healthinsurance.com and hotels.com wouldn’t be worth millions.
The key is to ensure that the search term you’re targeting in your domain name matches the user intent and that you provide a high-quality user experience to the searcher who clicks through to your site. If you can do those two things, an EMD can still help your website rank higher in SERPs — albeit to a lesser extent than it would have a few years ago.
Should you choose an Exact Match Domain?
In short, while exact match domains aren’t the powerful SEO tool they once were, they can still be helpful in some cases. But an EMD used in isolation without considering all the other hundreds of ranking factors is not going to help you get more traffic to your website.
It’s a better strategy to find a good local SEO company that can develop a multifaceted approach to improve your website. This should take into account all the factors influencing the SERPS and focus on priorities such as:
- Content containing relevant keywords
- Title tags and meta descriptions that accurately reflect the content on the page
- High-quality backlinks from reputable websites
- Schema markup to help search engines understand your content better
- A fast, mobile-friendly website design
While an EMD can be helpful in some cases, it’s just one aspect of your larger SEO strategy. So, if you’re thinking about registering an EMD, make sure it’s just one part of your integrated online marketing plans. Otherwise, you might be disappointed with the results.
One more point as food for thought – It’s also important to consider the overall branding of your business. EMDs can appear spammy and, in some cases, may actually hurt your brand more than it helps. Which website sounds more trustworthy to you — “Local SEO Sydney” or “Agent 6”?
Our SEO agency has assisted hundreds of businesses in improving their organic search traffic. We’re always happy to help our clients choose the best domain names for their websites. Get in touch with us today to see how we can work together.