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Registering a Domain
By now you should know what a domain name is if you're planning on creating and running your own website. If you don't know what a domain name is then it's the name which makes up the address of your website also known as your website URL.
The right domain name
This is the most crucial part of building your website because you should choose the right name that goes with what your website is all about.
You should at no point register a domain name which contradicts what your website is all about. This is actually your first step to get your website online so you definitely have to do it right. Therefore registering a domain should not be underestimated or taken for granted.
You should make your decision with caution. Registering a domain and choosing the right web host should be issues of great importance and you definitely need to make the right decision.
There are a variety of domain names ending in .com, .org, .info, .net and so much more. The decision is up to you on how you want your domain name to end depending on whether you want your website to be local, national, organisational or international. Again you have to get this right because it might affect the visitors you expect to visit your website.
Another important point to consider when registering a domain is the search engines. If being found in major search engines (Yahoo, MSN, Google) is important to you then your name should contain your major keywords but this is up to you. If you're running a registered business it might be difficult to choose a domain name different to your company name.
The majority of people searching in search engines search by subject. For instance, a domain name like ComputerComponents4Computers.com would be better than SimonsComputerCity.com. This might be of great help if you want to receive traffic from all angles of the web but again it is up to you.
When making this decision keep in mind whether you want to get your traffic from all over the web or you just want local traffic. If the latter is the case then you can register your business name as your domain. If you're just serving local clients in your local city then you might not mind of someone in another city on the other corner of the planet finding your website on Google.
Tips
When registering a domain, register a name that your visitors can easily remember. You can try registering a domain now with One.com
You can secure your name by registering multiple domain extensions like .net, .com, if you do not want anyone to copy your domain name. This keeps you safe from the copycats.
Try not to register domain names that are too long and have too many syllables. For instance, thisiswhereyoucancomeandgetcars.com. GetaCarhere.com would be much better.
If your domain name is going to be more than 3 words then use hyphens.
How do I register a domain name?
Registering a domain is a cheap and fairly easy process. Domain names can be as cheap as $1.99 to register.
All you have to do is shop around for the cheapest domain registration companies. There are thousands of them if not millions of them online. I will give you one company which you might opt to register your domain name with. GoDaddy.com. It's cheap to register your domain with GoDaddy.com right now.
What you need to do is go to the domain registration company’s website and you will find a box where you can enter the name you want to register your domain name as. If it's available you will be notified immediately and you can change your name options if it's not available until you find a name that is not registered by someone else.
When you have found the name you want then you go on to the registration process where you have to give your personal details and then make a payment. Most companies give you the option to register your domain name for as many years as you want or you can register for a year and at the end of that year you have to extend your registration.
Privacy
When registering your domain name you will normally get the option of keeping your domain name private. This will keep your account details (email address, name, etc) from the international internet database.
Don't forget to setup domain forwarding as well. This comes in handy if you want to register the .com extension of your site and other extensions as well. For instance, you can have your website in .com and have the .net extension forward to your .com website.
In conclusion
When you have applied all of the above on board you are ready to register your domain name. This then takes you to the next step which is a very vital part of your project. This is web hosting. It's crucial to select the right web host because this is where you build, maintain and publish your web pages.
All the best and enjoy registering your domain name. Hopefully, you find it easy to accomplish. |