What is a Domain Name ?
If you are looking for a domain name for a website, or if you want to invest in domain names, it can be difficult to figure out what to register. There are so many domain name extensions available. A domain extension, or TLD (top level domain), is the final part of a domain name, the part that comes after the dot on the right. A Domain Name is ‘unique’ and is the name of your website. It's what people type in the address bar of their web browser to visit your site.
Think long and hard about what you're going to call it, it needs to be memorable, and easy. You don't want to be changing it once you're up and running and people are becoming familiar with your site. So make sure it relates to what your website is and does. When you have decided on a name for your website, you will need to register it.
All domain-registering companies are similar; you just need to hunt around for a decent price. The .com domains are the most popular, but dependant on your site content and location; you may prefer a more descriptive domain extension.
It doesn't matter what country you're in or what currency you're dealing in, but you might want to deal with a company within your location in case something goes wrong. You buy for a period, generally of one or two years, and you'll receive emails when your domain registration is about to expire so you can renew it and keep your website up and running. Bear in mind you're only buying the rights to the name at this point, you won't be able to host any of the files that make up a website.
Once it's registered and up and running, you own the domain and can type it into your favourite Internet browser. The next step is to buy some hosting so you can set up an actual website. In order to make your web site visible to the world it has to be hosted on a Web server.
When registering your domain name, you are usually given the option of adding some web space and other options, or your domain name may include the basic essentials to get you up and running.
Dependant on if you are using your website for business or personal use, the amount of web space and additional options are of paramount importance in order to allow the smooth uninterrupted running of your site.
Which extension do I use?
Is .com king?
In the world of Internet marketing, web hosting, and all other things website-related; it’s common to hear that something “is king”. For example, SEO professionals are known to declare that “content is king,” while those who register domain name addresses will sometimes say “.com is king” over other extensions such as “.net” or “.org.”
But is that true? Is .com really the best domain extension for every website? Not surprisingly, the answer is more complex than a simple yes or no. The appropriate extension depends largely upon the content and purpose of the website itself, as well as on the target audience that the website’s owners seek to reach.
.com is the most popular extension on a global level. If your website, especially a business website, is meant to appeal to an audience in more than one country, regardless of geography, then you should put emphasis on .com domains during your domain names search process.
.co.uk is, of course, popular in the UK, and serves a very different purpose. If your business is relevant to nearby customers (within your town, county, or country), then a country specific domain extension adds legitimacy by showing that you are nearby
How to select a domain name
When you feel your business is growing fast enough to get its own website, it is a very exciting moment. Although domain names are cheap enough to get another if the first doesn’t work, this is very clumsy marketing so it pays to get it right first go. Brainstorming is always a first port of call for any decision such as this. List the main points of your business or what you want to get across and see if that gives you any ideas.
Of course, if your business has a name, you could use that but beware; your business name might well be unique locally, but nationally – or even globally (it pays to think big) – you might find it is in use by many other firms. In that case, don’t be tempted to tweak it to make it work. If people remember it wrongly – in other words, without your unique tweak – you will be driving business to your competitors. Similarly, don’t use a famous name already in cyberspace – even if your name is Mr Bing Google!
Keep it simple with no wacky spellings. If your company sells dog food, spell it fido-food, not phydough-phood. No one will ever remember it in its entirety and they will get tired looking. It’s nice to be a bit unusual, but a domain name that sticks in people’s minds accurately is what you need. There are lots of suffixes available - co.uk, com, org, tv etc; coms are usually considered the best, followed by your national suffix. If you don’t have the option of .co.uk or .com you should either reconsider your domain name or choose an available suffix which best reflects your business type.
And lastly, try writing it down. Many great domain names sound wonderful on the tongue but don’t look so good written down with no spaces. You want your domain name to be memorable, that’s certain, but only in a good way.
