While discussing search engines and web design recently, I was asked if the duration of a domain name registration had any affect on a sites consideration by search engines. I had to admit, this was the first time I had heard of this so, I set out to see what I could find on the matter and it turns out there may be some truth to it.
It seems Google had applied for a patent in 2005 that includes an algorithm (or something along those lines) that takes the duration of a domain name’s registration into account when indexing web sites. I also found that Microsoft (MSN Live) had also submitted a patent application which allows the search indexing to including the age of those sites which link to you. The idea is another in search engine’s efforts to thwart spammers and junk site builders and reward true web site owners, as well as provide better results to web searchers.
The overall consensus from the discussion boards seemed to agree that no one had any idea just how important this particular factor had in overall indexing results but it was probably enough to consider it seriously. Some suggested it might be a tie-breaker if all other factors of two sites were equal. There was a portion who considered the idea at least equal to the other factors considered by search engines.
I have to admit, I’m a little suspect of Google on this one, and I’m always suspect of Microsoft. Imagine owning a company that leads in search engine use by internet users and implementing a feature that requires people spend more money if they want to be in your results, and then selling that very item. In this case, domain names. It is essentially saying ‘if you want us to take you serious, you should register your domain name for 5 or 10 years, by the way, we sell those, how many years will you be needing?.’ I guess, from a business standpoint, you can’t knock them. They are a business, after all.
So how long is long enough? Good question. Some articles suggested 5 to 10 years while others suggested finding out how long your competitor’s registration is and then registering yours for 2 or 3 years more. Somehow, I don’t think too many people have the time to research their competitors domain names. I think it might be safe enough to just register as many years as your budget allows. Since no one seems to know just how important the factor is, there is no need to get carried away. in addition, most registrars have a maximum registration of 10 years anyway so you can’t that carried away anyway.
In the end, I think the logic behind the theory (and patents) is solid enough to say the duration of a domain name registration probably should be taken into consideration if you plan on taking your web site, and it’s appearance in search results serious. I can’t imagine Google or MSN expending the effort to register patents for technology they had no intention of using.