Quick Tip: Is This Small Mistake Hurting Your SEO?

As you may well know, succeeding with SEO (search engine optimization) is a delicate balance of many factors. Some of which are directly within your control and others are not.

While the most common SEO-improvement tips include link-building and keywords, did you know that the length of time your domain name is registered for affects your SEO?

Being a new website can be a setback in the eyes of search engines because that “trust factor” isn’t there yet.

If you only registered your domain for 1 year with plans to renew it every year, you’re hurting your SEO performance.

As far as search engines are concerned, a common trait of many spam or scam websites are that the domains are registered for short periods of time so the people behind them can quickly take advantage of people and disappear.

As a result, search engines prefer to see domains registered for longer periods of time in order to help protect its users.

We know first hand that every dollar counts when starting a business on a tight budget. So when looking at the option of registering a domain for 1 year at $15 or for 9 years at $135, the obvious budget-friendly choice is the $15 option.

We initially took the same route before learning how search engines frowned upon it.

So, if the 9-year option is a strain on the budget, try to at least register for 3-4 years upfront.

While having a short registration period isn’t an instant SEO success killer, it’s always good practice to try and stay in the search engine’s good graces.