Web Hosting,Domain Registration,Blogging

A friend emailed me, “I’ve found many tips regarding domain registration from the internet. But too many of them and I simply cannot remember them all. I don’t have that much time to spend on those. I wonder if you can provide me a quick summary of the major things I should look out for when registering a domain name, so that it makes life easier for me?”

If you’re like that friend of mine looking for short cuts, then here’s my advice…

Honestly, some domain tips are useful and some are not.

And for those truly useful tips, they can be further boiled down into 4 simple yet critical major rules that you can apply to guarantee your domain name’s quality and minimize the chances of others “stealing” it from you.

Here they are…

Rule #1: Short

Why short?

Firstly, most people cannot remember long domain name. Secondly, long domain name is prone to typo when people type into their browser.

You may have heard some so-called gurus saying that your domain name should be long so that it looks more descriptive and at a glance, people will be able to tell what you’re selling.

Well, this is true. But it may not be preferable because as mentioned earlier, long domain name is hard to remember and prone to typo. Agree?

Hence, as a rule of thumb, you should go for short domain name (like “Yahoo” and “Google”) so that people are more likely to remember your domain name and get on your website again and again and again…

Many people are complaining that it’s hard to get a short domain name nowadays. Well, not true. If you put in your heart and soul to think, you’ll definitely come up with one. I guarantee.

To get your creative juices flowing, you can try this: search for “expired domain name” in search engines.

Who knows out of the expired list you may find the right domain name for your website. Or even better, the list may inspire you to come up with your very own unique domain name. Right?

Rule #2: Logical

There are two ways here: either you register a domain name that logically matches what you’re selling or, you simply use your company name as your domain name.

For example, if you sell ebooks online, you should register ebooks dot whatever extension you like (preferably dot com because it’s still the most popular extension todate).

Or if your company name is called Example Pte Ltd, you should register “example.com”. Period.

Rule #3: Spell Check

ALWAYS do a spell check on the domain name before you proceed to make the purchase (register).

Just to let you know, registered domain name is refundable provided you request for the refund within 5 days from the date of registration.

If you register a domain name wrongly, for instance, instead of “example.com”, you registered “exampe.com” (short of ‘l’ — typo) instead, you can ask for a refund so long as you do not exceed the qualified period for refund which is generally 5 days.

(Note: Some domain registrars may have different qualified period for refund. Hence, it’s advisable for you to check with that particular domain registrar before you register the domain name with them.)

On the other hand, if you do not ask for refund within the qualified period, then that misspelled domain name will be attached to you until it expires (the minimum expiry period is one year).

You can’t edit the name even in your domain control panel, it’s fixed once registered.

See, you waste money on a domain name you can’t use due to its wrong spelling. So, don’t take chances. Spending just another 20 seconds to ensure your domain name is error-free is really a good bargain.

Rule #4: Register NOW!

According to statistics, more than 65 domain names are being registered worldwide in every second.

So, please do not wait. Once you’ve thought out a good domain name, quickly go snap it up before someone else does. Or you’ll be too late for the grab.

I hope you can always remember and stick closely to these 4 fundamental yet important rules when you register a domain name.

itting around wondering what domain name to register for your business? Having a website is essential for all businesses in this modern day and age. Websites are not just for online businesses. They are for brick and mortar businesses too. Many entrepreneurs are starting to discovery that many print and conventional methods of advertising doesn’t yield good results anymore. That is because people (your customers) are spending more and more time on the Internet. Even senior citizens are learning how to use the Internet to source for products.

With that established firmly as a fact, the next step to take is to get an online presence immediately. As a business owner, you need to put your offers in front of your target prospects, and you need to do so using the Internet. The problem is, many traditional small business owners still don’t know much about the setting up a website. Well, the first thing they need to know is this – registering a domain name.

A domain name for a website is like the brand name for your company. For brick and mortar stores, people have to remember where your store is in order to visit your store. On the Internet, all they need to do is to remember your URL. Therefore, it makes sense to register a domain name that is easy to remember. To come up with a suitable domain name, you need to be creative.

First, brainstorm for a list of possible domain names that you would like to register. Don’t worry about availability at this point. You can always do a check later on. The goal here is to get some good ideas that you can work with. Here are some suggestions. You can choose keywords that your target visitors are likely to use. For instance, if you are selling pillows, you can choose a domain name like “pillowspecialist” as your domain name. Or you can choose something that is short and easy to remember.

Your domain name doesn’t have to consist of words that make sense. Sometimes, words that sound weird are better choices because they are easier to remember (think Google and Yahoo). They are also more likely to be available when you go ahead with the registration.

Once you have a good list of domain names in hand, simply head on to a domain registrar to register for your domain names. You begin by making a search for the domain names on your list. If no one has registered for the domain, you can claim it immediately by registering for it. If a search comes up with negative results, just enter a new domain name to search engine. Some websites offer domain names suggestions as well. Browse through the suggestions to see if you are interested in them.

For better pricing, always register your domain names in bulk. For instance, if you have a few good ideas, don’t just register for one domain name. Register for all the good names. Domain names are like real estate in the virtual world. You need to stake your claim on your assets. If possible, register for all top level domains (i.e. .com, .net, .org, and .info) so that others cannot use the same name as you.

Godaddy is the choice of many when is comes down to buying domain names. The extremely easy to use interface makes the task of purchasing any domain name an extremely easy one and couple that with the fact that Godaddy are an extremely established and reputable company you really are on to a winner.

The prices for domain names on Godaddy are extremely competitive and you can bring the prices down even further by having a quick look on Google for ‘Godaddy voucher codes’. These codes are changing all of the time so next time you need a domain name take a look to see what voucher codes you can find.

The funny thing is, even without these codes, there are not many companies that are able to offer domain names for such competitive prices as Godaddy.

What’s more, if you decide to register a number of domain names you will be able to see at a glance all of them in the same place and you will have complete control of them all. You are able to change name servers and a variety of other tasks which is far easier than having to log into a number of different websites.

If you have never registered a domain name before the first thing to do is to go to Godaddy.com and use the search box to see if the domain name you require is available. Be sure to only put the actual name you want to register in the box, not the suffix, e.g. .com, co.uk. etc. These are chosen by clicking on the drop down menu.

So, if you want to see if mydomain.com is available simply put mydomain in the search box and choose .com in the drop down menu.

If it is available you simply go through the steps to the checkout but you must be aware that Godaddy will take every opportunity to sell you add ons along the way.

You don’t really need anything else but it is entirely up to you, you will also have the option to choose how many years you require the domain name for.

One of my favourite features of Godaddy is the ability to check if domain names are available and order in bulk. To do this you simply copy and paste a list of names into the bulk registration box, press the search button and Godaddy will run a search and then if the names are available you can go ahead and order them and what’s more you can perform this bulk search for up to 500 domain names.

If you just take the time to spend 5 minutes having a look around Godaddy I am sure you will see why it is so very popular.

Godaddy also offer other services such as hosting but I would advise that you give that a miss and just use godaddy for your domain name requirements, I can assure you that you will not regret it.