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With one of the fastest growing business costs being the internet, knowing how to get free domain name registration on the internet can actually go a long way in making things run a little more smoothly. Whether you have an online business or simply a website for your real-world business, your web presence is important. At the same time, you do not want to have to worry about the cost of domain registration in addition to your monthly hosting fees, web design fees, and possibly even email hosting as well. So what is the answer? Here are a few tips that can help you learn how to get free domain name registration on the internet.
Learning how to get free domain name registration on the internet is not difficult. There are really a couple of strategies you can use to avoid those extra nagging fees for your web presence. You can work through either an online registration and hosting company or a local company that will serve the same functions for you, but will do so from close by so that you have more human contact.
When working with an online domain name registration and hosting company, you can really afford to shop around and get the best deal. The best deal, in every case, should include free domain name registration. Any hosting company worth their salt on the internet will at least toss in the domain name registration for you. If they do not, you have to ask yourself what they are really doing for you. Using a company for your web hosting, email, and domain registration is how to get free domain name registration on the internet with little or no effort.
Another recommendation for how to get free domain name registration on the internet is through a local hosting company. You will be able to get the benefit of face to face work, while still using a company whose primary function for you will take place on the internet. Like the companies online, if you are going to use the company for internet hosting and email, you should ask them about getting free domain name registration on the internet. It is a saved fee for you, and compared to what they are getting, it is a small cost for the hosting company to eat. If they do not seem eager to offer to throw in the domain registration for you, then it may be time to take your business or personal internet needs elsewhere.
Though domain name registration is not a huge cost, it is a recurring annual cost. In addition, if you have a larger company or want a major web presence, you may want to register multiple domain names. Either way, knowing how to get free domain name registration on the internet can save you money. How much money you save will depend on a lot of factors, but no matter the amount, it is still money in your pocket. So insist on free domain name registration from your internet hosting company and put more money in your pocket.
1. Free Domain Names from Dot TK
It is possible to get a free top-level domain name from Dot TK (www.dot.tk).
According to their website, "Dot TK is a joint venture of the Government of Tokelau, it's communication company Teletok and Taloha, Inc., a privately held company. The Government of Tokelau has appointed Taloha, Inc. as the exclusive registration entity."
Of course, for free .tk domains, ownership remains with Dot TK. This means that you can't sell it. As well, there are other restrictions and disadvantages of free .tk domains, including:
-You can register only a maximum of three free domain names;
-You need 25 visitors within a ninety day period;
-You need to have existing web content somewhere so that your dot tk name can be forwarded to it; and
-Dot TK uses frames to show your website. This being the case, you may have issues with navigation (bookmarking or finding specific pages) and search engine friendliness.
For serious business use, you might want to pay the nominal cost for a domain name.
2. Why Do They Offer Free Domain Names?
Still, it is free. Why would they do this when they could make money from the sale of domain names?
According to their website: "Why does Dot TK give away free domain names? We believe that the Internet was supposed to be 'Free'. Meaning no charges, payments or expected return favors."
3. How Can They Afford to Give Away Free Domain Names?
This logically leads us to our next question: How can they afford to give away free domain names?
Dot TK makes money from paid domain names, including some special and trademarked names.
To help support Dot TK, you can optionally have an ad displayed on your website. Thus, they do receive some advertising revenue from this. However, the big money would be in the sponsorship by large corporations.
4. Other Free Top-Level Domain Names
By the way, this is not the only ccTLD (country code Top-Level Domain) that gives away some domain names for free.
As just one example, cg is the ccTLD for the Republic of Congo. Each of its citizens and lawful residents are allowed one free .cg domain name.
5. Free Subdomain Names
Additionally, subdomain names are also available for free. For example, eu.org states on their website that their goal "is to provide free subdomain registration to users or non-profit organizations who cannot afford the outrageous fees demanded by some NICs, especially in Europe."
As well, nr is the ccTLD name for the Republic of Nauru. You can receive a free subdomain name from co.nr. Thus, your domain name could be something like yourcompany.co.nr.
Why do countries give away free domain names? They want their citizens and others to be able to enjoy the benefits of domain name use without cost being an issue. It can also be a promotional method designed to get the word out about their ccTLD.
How can these countries afford to give away free domain names? Advertising revenue and the sale of paid domains are two ways of funding free domain names.