Set Google Alert for Your Domain Keywords

I want to share a tip that might be helpful for domain investors, particularly those who have longer tail or unique keyword domain names. Use Google Alerts to monitor the usage of keywords that make up your domain names. This will not only give insight into businesses that begin using the keywords on their website, but it will also let you monitor the ongoing usage of them.

One domain name I own is WhiteEagle.com. I can set a free Google Alert for the term “White Eagle” and choose the Alert options that are most important to me (language, types of websites, region…etc). Every time a website or web page is published and archived in Google with that keyword term, I will be notified via email. I can set up alerts to be sent immediately, daily, or once per week, depending on how frequently I want to be updated about new search results. Google Alerts can be set up for a wide variety of keywords and keyword phrases related to my domain names.

Assuming the term is used commercially, I can be mindful about who might be behind future inquiries and/or I can be more aggressive and try to sell my domain name via outbound marketing. There is more risk with the outbound option because someone who lacks IP knowledge may think I was targeting them when I bought my domain name and make legal threats or try to take action. You should do your own risk analysis before doing outbound like this of course.

In addition to this, it is helpful to know if a keyword or keyword phrase is becoming more popular or more widely used. This information can be helpful in setting the price of a domain name or ensuring the asking price remains accurate.

It’s always nice to know who is inquiring about a domain name, and a Google Alert could offer real time intelligence on prospective buyers. It’s a free tool and can be particularly helpful with more niche keyword domain names where there may not be a ton of pages indexed in Google.