Any new website venture online will include a domain name. Sometimes the domain is purchased from a domain broker - someone who specializes in reselling domain names. The majority of the time, however, it will be registered through a domain registrar. No matter how it is purchased, in all cases, the domain name (or names) for a website should be carefully considered. The basis of the marketing for the website will be the domain name chosen.
Having been a domain name appraiser for a few years now, I can tell you that the choice of names for your site is critical to marketing. When I appraise a domain for value (in both dollars and marketability), I use basic criteria for my judgment of the domain. The most important of those criteria is length and readability. If the domain is too long or too hard to read (for a human), its value is very low. If it cannot be spoken and typed correctly (most of the time), it's also of low value. A well-thought-out domain name is the first step in a successful marketing campaign.
When choosing and registering a domain name for a new website, there are three basic steps to follow to ensure a marketable name for your site. Follow them every time and you'll have successful domains every time.
Step 1: The Name Choosing a name may be as easy as "your business name dot com" or it may be more difficult (especially if you have a common name for your business). In all cases, your business' name should be your number one pick for your domain name. If your business name is difficult to spell easily, try to register misspellings of it as well.
For instance, my business name is "Aaronz WebWorkz," so I obviously own "AaronzWebWorkz.com." Since this is regularly misspelled by potential clients, I also have "AaronsWebWorks.com" registered so that all email and web requests go to the original AaronzWebWorkz.com site. In addition to this, I purchased "dotcom-it.com" as an alternate domain and use that when giving out the URL on the phone or in situations where I can't hand someone a business card with my URL printed on it.
If your business name, as an example, is "Widgets, Inc.," however, you'll have a hard time getting the domain name "widgets.com" or "widgetsinc.com" and will have to find alternatives. I have a simple process I use and recommend when this is the case. Even if your product or product type isn't in your business' name, it's a good idea to purchase domains with that product in the name to use for marketing purposes.
First, make a list of words or short phrases that have something to do with your business. Six to ten of these is good to start off. Once you have the list, remove all of the ones that have more than twenty characters in them (this keeps them short). Then create new additions to your list by replacing empty spaces with "-" and "_" characters. Finally, compress the spaced words into one word (e.g. "widgets galore" becomes "widgetsgalore") to ad to the list.
Now that you have this list, prioritize it by numbering the entries from 1 to 10 (or so). Now see if these domains are available (step 2).
Step 2 - Domain Availability This step is easy and will take just a few minutes to do. Take your list from Step 1 and begin with #1 on that list. Go to any domain registrar (see list below) and enter the domains in the order they are numbered on your list. Usually, you can just enter the domain without a suffix (.com, .net, etc.) and find out if any of the variations are available. Most registrars will also produce a list of alternatives you may want to consider as well.
As you proceed through the list, check off any domains that ".com" is available for. Don't worry about most alternatives since, for business, dot com is where it's at. Cross out any names on your list that aren't available. Once you're finished, you should have a short list of available, good domains for your business.
Step 3 - Register the Domain Now that you know what's available, begin registering those domains! Domain registrars are all over the Web with varying prices and services. A good registrar is worth any extra money that may be spent since a registrar going out of business could easily cause headaches and nightmares for you. I have used, worked with, and recommend the following registrars:
In addition, you may wish to use the domain tools offered at easyDNS. Especially if you register a lot of domains are are in need of "extras" that aren't normally offered by a registrar. EasyDNS: http://www.qksrv.net/click-1357406-5590844
Good luck with your new venture!
Domaining, as it is known, requires nothing more than buying domain names for websites and parking them through services or selling them outright to others. The business does take some time to master, but the rewards are generally thought to be well worth the effort. The financial payoff comes in one of two different ways - advertising dollars or resale pricing on the site names.
To get started in domaining requires buying website names, having them registered and then parking or reselling them. How much or how little one can make will vary greatly on the amount of natural traffic the domain name tends to pull in or how highly sought after the name happens to be.
There are a few methods to use for figuring out what types of domain names to register and buy. The most common are "type-ins" or "typos." Typos are names that are similar to existing websites or brand name products. Typo sites receive traffic due to accidental "typos" people make in trying to reach other sites. This type of buying can get a little tricky, especially when trademarked names are being used though. Some domainers don't feel the typo route is the best way to go for legality issues. Another route to take is to buy actual "type-ins." These are domain names that are commonly used in web searches. For example, "organicdogfood" or other actual words that might be used in searches. This is considered by many to be more legitimate. Another option is buying formerly used domain names that have traffic or backlinks and simply parking them or reselling them.
The options for buying and selling domain names are many. Some investors choose to get their names in bulk from sites like Moniker.com and then research them at a later time to determine their money-making potential. Other buyers go to domaining forums like DNForum.com or DomainState.com. These forums are designed for the buying and selling of domain names. On these sites, domains are traded and sold in much the same manner as real estate is in the "real world." These sites do present some challenges though; it is up to buyers to figure out if a sale is legitimate. Not all deals work out. Some of these forums, however, do offer a ranking system for buyers and sellers to help with checking the integrity of a sale. Some buyers and sellers simply opt to use escrowing services to handle their deals to ensure they go through smoothly.
Arriving at the real value of a domain name can be the hardest part of this venture. The price and value tends to hinge on what a buyer believes a name is worth. Buyers can, however, request revenue and traffic reports in some cases to help them figure a fair price.
After domains have been secured, there are ways to really make them pay off financially with little effort involves. Parking service sites are the most common way to make this happen. Services like these let owners "park" their pages with little content on them. This means the pages will appear in web searches, but they won't contain a lot of content. Although content doesn't go with this deal, these pages can have text ads on them. This means the owner of the domain name will reap the advertising revenue if the sites are viewed and used. The other common option for making money is to sell the domains to those who want to develop or park them.
There are a few rules of the road for parking services, such as Sedo and Parked.com, that need to be kept in mind. While these services will allow text ads on parked pages, they don't allow for a lot of backlink generation. They expect traffic to come in through natural, organic means. This means by accidental hits, normal searches or backlinks that were present from the past. It is possible to have pages taken down by parking services if they are generating more traffic than what comes naturally.
The practice of domaining is a fairly simply way to make money on the Internet. It doesn't take a lot of work to get involved with. Becoming a master of the practice does take some time. Although some forms of the practice are considered unfair and even shady, the overall practice is not and it does work to make a lot of people a fair amount of money.
Both Aaron Turpen & Jeff Alderson are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Aaron Turpen has sinced written about articles on various topics from Networking, Software and SEO Search Engine Optimization. Aaron Turpen is the proprietor of Aaronz WebWorkz, a web services company providing consultation, development, and more to small businesses online. Aaron publishes several newsletters regularly and is the author of many ebooks, including "The Layman's Gui. Aaron Turpen's top article generates over 9900 views. to your Favourites.
Jeff Alderson has sinced written about articles on various topics from The Internet, Internet Marketing and Site Promotion. About the author: Jeff Alderson is a software developer and online marketer. He is an expert on PPC and SEO tactics. To boost sales, Jeff advises using a . Jeff Alderson's top article generates over 14800 views. to your Favourites.