Information Centre

When carrying out a domain name search for an available address, it can sometimes be a lengthy and frustrating experience if you continually find names have already been taken.

This is when a thesaurus can come in handy. A thesaurus is a book (or online service these days) that lists words in groups of synonyms (words having the same or nearly the same meaning)and related concepts.

It can be easy to be blinkered when searching - a thesaurus can help you think outside the box a little and find alternative addresses. This task is much easier if you are yet to register a business name as perhaps you can be a little flexible on that choice. It's really important when considering a business name to ensure that the equivalent .com.au domain is available before spending your cash on business name registration fees. 

For example, if you are starting a business you'd like to call Flarry Fast Food but find that address is taken, a synonym search on the "food" aspect of the name reveals a number of alternatives, including:

• cuisine
• fare
• meals
• feeds
• snacks
• chow
• tucker
• takeout
• takeaway

Any of the above might be suitable; e.g. Flarry Fast Meals - and that domain equivalent may be available.

Some synonyms you might not find in a thesaurus if they consist of multiple words. For example, using a business close to our heart - domain names. You just need to think around the issue a bit. Consider other multi-word terms that mean the same thing but are reasonably short, such as:

• web address
• web domains
• URL

You never know, being forced to settle on a synonym might see you winding up with a better web address than your original choice!

Pick up some more tips on choosing good domain names or start your domain name search.