What is a domain name? A domain name is the web
address of your website, i.e. yourwebsite.com
It can be liken to your business name in offline business which you are expected to register with the relevant authority in your country. However, before you do this, you must have your website planned.Once you have your website planned, the FIRST
step is to register a domain name to use with a
web hosting account.
It is a common misconception to people new to
creating a website that a domain name is exactly
the same thing as web hosting.
This is untrue!
A domain name and a web hosting account are
completely different services… but you will need
BOTH to publish a website on the internet.
Now, some web hosting companies offer a “free
domain name” as part of their features, but ALWAYS
ensure that this will not affect your interest in the long run. Some web hosting company will
take control of the domain name if it is part of their
“service” and you will have trouble obtaining it from
them, should you decide to move to another web
host. So check to ensure that this will not be the case.
My company http://www.reliabledomainhost.com though offer Free domain name registration as part of their website hosting package, but you have absolute control over your domain name. You are also free to register your domain name yourself if you so wish.
Now, you’re probably wondering how to register a
domain name…
…but, don’t worry! This is quite simple and
straightforward…
To register a domain name, you will need to search
the internet for a domain registrar, which is, quite
simply, a web company that deals in registering
domain names.
There are many domain registrars on the internet,
but I recommend www.reliabledomainhost.com
OK, so www.reliabledomainhost.com is my own domain
registration company, so, maybe, I’m being a little
biased, but I’ve made sure that my company makes
the whole domain registration process as simple as
possible, with an easy to use web-based control
panel for managing your domain name with ease.
It is ABSOLUTELY imperative that you choose the
right domain name for your website. I really cannot
stress this enough!
Write down a few ideas on a notebook and pick the one best for you. If your website is going to be an online
business, then make sure it is your company name
or, failing that, it needs to accurately describe the
kind of website you will be running in a memorable
way. For instance, if the main focus of your website is the sale of computers, then the domain name could be “cheapcomputers.com.
Your domain name should be as memorable and as
easy to remember and/or spell as possible. Try to
make it as short as possible too, as a domain name
with more than twenty characters is not a good idea.
Try to AVOID using hyphens and numbers in your
domain name and try to obtain the .com because, if
you go for something like .net , then, chances are
that someone else will go for or already own the
.com version of the same domain name.
Once you’ve chosen your desired domain name, go
to www.reliabledomainhost.com and type your domain name into the Search box.
The reason you need to perform a search is
because there might be a chance that your choice
may already be registered by somebody else. If
your desired domain name is already taken, then
you will have to choose another one.
If your .com domain name is already taken, then
DON’T fall into the trap of registering an alternative,
such as .net or .biz.
This would spell disaster as you’ll only create direct
competition for yourself, because, say, for example,
if a friend told someone else just the NAME of your
website, chances are that they’d type in the .com
website name, which would lead them to your
competitor‘s website.
The .com extension is the most widely known used
extension (many users have never heard of .biz or .net) so
don’t waste your time registering an alternative if the
.com is already taken.
If it’s taken, choose another domain name!
Once you’ve found a good domain name that isn’t
taken, then you can now go through the registration
process. If you’ve thought of a good domain name,
it is always a good idea to register ALL of the
extensions at once and not just the .com extension.
If possible, purchase the .net, .biz, .info and any
other main extensions right away.
The reason I say this is because this safeguards
your “brand” and prevents a competitor from
registering the alternative extensions.
Believe me… many competitors WILL do this if they
fear that your website will be successful, in the hope
that they can drive traffic away from you.
Though unethical, but it DOES happen!
You must remember, though, that, contrary to
popular opinion, you never technically “own” a
domain name.
Instead, you register a domain name for a certain
duration of time. The default duration for a domain
registration is a year, but you can register a domain
name for longer periods, such a two, five or even
ten years.
You MUST remember though, that, once that year
(or whatever duration you choose) has expired,
then you will need to re-register that domain name
for a further year. If you do not re-register the
domain name, then you will lose it and there is a
chance that someone else will register it.
It is perfectly legal for someone else to register your
domain name after it has expired, even if you
previously held it for a number of years, so don’t
forget to renew it before it expires.
We stop here today. Next time we shall talk about how
to chose a reliable and efficient hosting company.
Remember to check out here first.
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