The PCNames domain search engine does exactly what might be expected of it – it searches for domain names and returns results with details on their availability. It does this virtually instantaneously as well – when you being typing the engine offers details on .com, .net, .org, .info, .biz and .us. Ideally I would prefer to see a wider variety and from a British/European perspective the addition of .uk and .eu would be enormously helpful, but even without that, it’s very useful.
Once a search has been run it is then possible to get WHOIS information to research the site, or if a site is available for registration the search engine provides a list of companies that can be used to register it. This is how the site makes money – not by direct reselling but from donations and commission from affiliates.
The benefits of the search engine are clear for those people who wish to register domain names. As a searcher the resource is also useful to quickly check not only to see if a domain is available or not, but to check on the ownership of the site – useful for authority checking, and as a quick way to locate a domain if you can’t remember if a recently visited site was a .com or a .org for example.
The most impressive thing about this search engine is its speed; it really is lightening fast and will save you time immediately. There are also a variety of other tools available on the site as well, which are equally useful for web authors and searchers alike.
The Domain Suggestion function allows users to type in words, phrases or domains to get suggestions. I was impressed with some of the ideas that it came up with – based on the input of ‘search engine watch’ I got a number of interesting possible domain names to register, such as ‘googlewatch.us’ for example. In some instances I could also get more indepth suggestions, and pagerankwatch.net could be broken down to include .org, .info, .biz and .us.
The Word Search function allowed me to quickly see which domains were available, deleted or expired. I was astonished at the number of available domains that mentioned ‘google’ that hadn’t been registered. Googlesite.org anyone?
Of less interest as a searcher, but still fascinating was the opportunity to see which 3 character and 4 letter domains were available; a surprisingly large number in fact.
The Dictionary tool showed available domains using names that could be found within a standard dictionary and Search and Replace allows searchers to replace one word with another to check availability of domain names.
All in all this is an excellent collection of niche resources focusing on domain names. While it is clearly aimed at individuals that wish to register domain names there are lots of ways in which an enterprising searcher could use the resources, both when training others and searching for themselves. This is certainly a site that I’ll be adding to my own collection of well used resources.
Related reading
The merged approach: How combining traditional and digital brings marketing success
Digital is vital to the success of any marketing strategy. Or is it? It's a bold statement but one that is only true if combined with traditional marketing, to really allow brands to effectively dominate the advertising space within their market place, regularly targeting and connecting with the consumer.
IWD 2018: Eight SEO ladies give their advice on being a woman in search
In honor of International Women’s Day 2018, we wanted to highlight the perspectives of women working in SEO, and how – if at all – they think gender affects the industry and the work that they do. Search Engine Watch spoke to eight successful ladies in SEO to find out their thoughts and advice on being a woman in SEO.
Ranker: How to make a Google algorithm-proof website
Any SEO or webmaster who has ever had a website affected by a Google algorithm change – or feared being affected by one – has probably wished that they could find a way to make their website “algorithm-proof”. One site believes it has found the formula.
Mystified by martech? Introducing the ClickZ Buyers Guide series
Search Engine Watch sister site ClickZ has just launched the first report in its new series of buyers guides, which aims to to disentangle and demystify the martech landscape for marketers.