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How to choose a good domain name - and register it

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Domain Name - Choice and Registration

Which Domain Name Suffix?

Your domain name enables a browser to locate your site on the world wide web.

Your site name (the brand name promoted on your site and elsewhere) should ideally be the same as your domain name, so that no one gets confused. (You may wish to exclude the www and suffix from your site name.)

The suffix (also known as TLD) for your site can reflect the country where you expect most of your traffic to come from, unless you expect your site to attract visitors internationally, in which case .com is the most universal.

If you intend that your site should promote a local business, or sell a product or service in your home country, then use the local country suffix. People like to buy goods and services from local suppliers when they can.

Other suffixes such as .org, .info, .biz are sometimes used by website owners who would have liked to obtain a .com, but the domain name they wanted was not available. Rather go for the suffix that is most appropriate, even if that means finding another (good) domain name.

The best domain names have NOT all been taken!

The domain name you originally wanted for your site may well have been taken, particularly if it's a .com .

But you can have a name just as good as that one, for example by adding a short word in front or behind, to make it unique.

Suppose you wanted to register www.grilledfishrecipes.com. Its taken, I know - I just looked it up. But these haven't been taken (at time of writing):

www.hilarysgrilledfish.com
www.thegrilledfish.com
www.mygrilledfishreceipes.com

They're not bad are they? Maybe just as good, in fact. And you could probably dream up another twenty if you needed to. (If you're not good at dreaming, then visit a domain registration website. Most of them will offer suggestions if the domain name you wanted is not available.

What is a good domain name?

Good domain names are

as short as possible
as meaningful as possible
as easy to remember as possible
without hyphens

I prefer domain names whose individual words stand out from each other, so you can tell when you read them where one word ends and another begins. For example www.smartideas.com is O.K but I don't like www.wiseideas.com as much. The e at the end of "wise" run into the i at the start of ideas and makes it a little harder to read or commit to memory.

If you already know what search phrase a visitor might use to find your site, then it is a very good idea to use that phrase, or perhaps some of its words, in your domain name. (Search engines will rank your site higher for those keywords).

You may have noticed that some of these suggestions can conflict. In the end you just have to go with what feels and sounds best - and with what is available.

To find out if a domain name you like has already been registered, check it out at any of the domain registration services. If the name you like is still available, maybe you should register it yourself, before someone else does.

Buying the Perfect Domain Name

Where the best domain name for you has already been taken, but you see no evidence of a website, you can approach the owner to see if he would sell you the domain you want.

Some people make a business of registering good domain names for the sole purpose of selling them at a profit. Other people register domains intending to develop a website, but don’t get around to it. Some people have grown tired of their website and would be happy to sell you the domain name with the site.

There are many online domain registration services that allow you to check if a name is available, and if not, then who owns it.

But unless your website is going to be an extension of an existing business, I think you can create your own perfect name without buying one. Who would have thought that Google was such a good name, or Yahoo, or Twitter?

Domain Name Registration

Domain name registration costs anything from about $8-$30 for one year, depending on who does it for you.

Before you actually pay for this, make your decision about your hosting service provider. Some of them, for example Hostmonster, currently includes domain name registration of your first website as part of their service, at no extra charge.

It may make sense to get your domain name registered by your hosting service provider. It may be cheaper and you will only have one supplier to deal with.

Domain Name Registration Privacy

One feature I like, currently offered by some domain name registration services is the ability to register your domain name in the name of a proxy, so that your own personal details are not recorded in the register.

As it is very easy for anyone to look up the registered owner's details for any domain name, you may prefer to retain your privacy. Sometimes you pay extra for this service, because the proxy owner has to pass enquiries on to the real owner.

One last point about registering a domain name. Once you've done it you really feel committed. You've paid for the domain, you own the rights to it, and things are moving on your new website!

Our next tutorial deals with how to find the Best Web Host...

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Links / Resources

TLD=Top Level Domain

Article on choosing a domain name:

The Sitewizard: Tips on choosing a good domain name

Check out a domain name:

Names Direct

Find out who owns any domain name:

Whois.DomainTools

Domain registration services:

Cheap-Registrar

Names Direct

Whois

Registration services associated with hosting service provider:

Hostmonster

Go Daddy

Find out who owns any domain name:

Whois.DomainTools

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How to choose a good domain name, and keep it