18 November 2013

Domain Registration: The Naked Truth

By Ty Laurendeau


In this age of the internet, many businesses are going live on the world wide web, and more and more people are realizing just how much potential for income there is in cyberspace. If you are looking to establish an online presence for your business, setting up a website for it is necessary. But in order to get a place for your website on the internet, you first need to register domain name.

Have you ever wondered why it's important to have a domain name for your site? It's this that gives your website identity and it having it registered provides it a place on the world wide web. Domain names are completed with their extensions - .com, .net, .info, and .org are just a few examples. Whichever name you choose, make sure it is completely relevant to your site's theme.

In the process of choosing domain names, it is ideal that you come up with a set of keywords that best describe what your website is all about. So if your business is about selling pet supplies, it would be something like petsuppliesforsale.com. You may also make your brand name as your domain name. Just be careful not to use trademarked or copyrighted names since that would be illegal.

Another critical step to register domain name is to find a reputable domain registrar. Domain registrars are entities authorized to do business with domain names. With so many companies to choose from, it can be sometimes confusing which one to choose. A good rule of thumb is that you should check if the company is accredited by the ICANN (Internet Committee for Assigned Names and Numbers).

Before you register domain name with a particular registrar, you should review carefully the terms of their contract. Each will have terms that could potentially be beneficial or risky for your website. Domain registrars will usually offer a variety of packages that can cover everything you will need to get your site up. Also, make sure that your registrar provides timely notifications once your registration is about to expire.

There are a good number of domain registrars out there that are more than capable of providing you with quality services, but of course, they charge some fees for it. At $10 per year, you should be able to get your website existing on the internet. Be careful about those that offer something less than $5 or even free - they are not always as good as they seem to be.

It is not an uncommon scenario that your first few choices of domain names are already taken and this is the time that you need to be creative. As much as possible, try to register domain name under the .com extension since it commands the highest authority. When you are ready to get your domain registered, you will be required to provide personal information similar to having an actual business registered.

When you register domain name with a particular company, it is recommended that you host your website a separate company. Hosting is important because it is where the actual contents of your site are located. Experts recommend having separate accounts as a way to spread out your risk just in case something goes wrong with either your domain registration or hosting provider.




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