Importance of Having a Domain Name to Support Your Unique Selling Proposition

When one of our clients asks a question about something that we take as obvious, we learn what isn't so obvious to everyone. This post, then, is an answer to a client's question.

Let's take an imaginary scenario:

You've figured out your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) although you are not yet ready to have a website. But you do want to have a professional email address (not a gmail or yahoo or similar one) to use on your business cards.

Plus, now that you know your USP, you want to protect it.

What do you do?

You get a domain name from a registry company such as Register.com and, although there is no website yet on that domain name, you have the registry company set up an email account for you with that domain name.

Imagine I didn't yet have millermosaicllc.com set up. But if I wanted the email address pzmiller@millermosaicllc.com I would simply have my registry company set up an email account for this address.

On the other hand in this imaginary scenario, I couldn't give out www.millermosaicllc.com as a place for people to go because, although I now own that domain name, there are no website files sitting on a host server for that domain name.

In fact, some registry companies use these non-existent sites on which to advertise. You actually might go to a domain name you bought and find advertisements at that domain address. This is because you haven't yet set up a website that goes with that domain name.

Obviously in a perfect world you would have a website accompanying the domain name you bought. But if you don't yet have a website, you could have the domain name "pointed at" one of your social media profiles.

For example, you could have your registry company point the domain name to your Facebook (business) Page. Then, when you have your own website, the domain name will be pointed to that site instead of your Facebook Page.

Caution: Just any website won't do so don't rush into getting a website. As I said in the Miller Mosaic blog post "Something Is NOT Always Better Than Nothing":

Thus, while it's a good idea for professionals to have their own websites or blogs, I would NOT recommend you include on your LinkedIn profile a link to your website if that website does not reflect positively on your reputation.

P.S. And speaking of business cards, see the Miller Mosaic post "Networking: Impact of Social Media on Business Cards"

© 2011 Miller Mosaic, LLC

Phyllis Zimbler Miller (@ZimblerMiller on Twitter) is the co-founder of Miller Mosaic Social Media Marketing. Download now the company's free report "5 Tips for Staying Top of Mind With Your Prospective Target Markets" at www.millermosaicllc.com/los-angeles-social-media-consultant

And for help in figuring out your Unique Selling Proposition, see our one–hour branding brainstorming service.