Some of the best names are invented words that sound like companies. Others simply describe what a business does. Both sell, but to different buyers, for different reasons.
- Brandables sell to startups choosing an identity. Exact-match names sell to businesses already in a category.
- Brandables need to be short and easy to say. Exact-match names need real commercial demand.
- A balanced portfolio holds both, because they reach different buyer pools.
What each one is
A brandable is an invented or unusual name with no fixed meaning, like Zoomra.com or Veralo.com. It becomes whatever the company makes it.
An exact-match domain, or EMD, is a phrase that describes a product or service, like WebAnalyticsFirm.com or BuyBeerGifts.com. It tells visitors exactly what they’ll find.
The case for brandables
- Flexibility. A brand can expand into new products without outgrowing its name.
- Trademark potential. Distinctive names are easier for a company to protect.
- Large buyer pool. Almost any startup in any industry is a potential buyer.
What makes a good one: five to eight letters, easy to pronounce, no awkward letter clusters, and no negative meanings in major languages.
The case for exact-match names
- Instant clarity. Customers understand the business before they visit.
- Trust in local and service markets. A clear name signals that a business is established in its field.
- Commercial intent. In valuable categories, buyers have budgets to match.
What makes a good one: a phrase people actually use, in a category with real businesses and real money. Search engines no longer reward exact-match names on their own, so the value comes from clarity and credibility, not a ranking shortcut.
How they score
On our NAR Score, brandables tend to win on length and brandability, while exact-match names win on word quality and commercial intent. Neither profile is automatically better. The right comparison is between names of the same type.
Pricing differences
Brandables are priced on how well they sound and how many startups could use them. Buy-now pricing works well because founders often decide quickly.
Exact-match names are priced on the value of the category. A phrase in insurance, finance, or health can command more than a similar phrase in a low-margin niche.
Which should you buy?
- If you’re good at spotting names that sound like companies, lean into brandables.
- If you know specific industries well, exact-match names let you use that knowledge to find buyers.
- If you’re building a portfolio, hold both. They sell in different ways, which smooths out your sales.
Our Farm Team holds both kinds. Browse the brandables and the keyword names, and read the valuation framework to price your own.