A domain name is the name (usually in English) which your site will go by on the internet. This name is associated with an IP address as well, since computers and network infrastructure use these numeric addresses to locate your site -- the domain name primarily purpose is to help humans to find your site.

Surprise! Do you know that having a domain name for your website is not a requirement? In contrary having an IP address is a necessity, since that's how computers will find you on the web. Having only an IP address for your site can make it difficult (to say the least) for web surfers to find your site, however.

During the early development of the internet, domain names were chosen with the goal of making it easier for people to remember the name of your site, because it was important for users to be able to type that name into their web browser. Nowadays thought with search engines, bookmarking and social media being much more useful, it is becoming less important for surfer to memorize a name.

Let me be quick to point out that however, from the standpoint of marketing it is still a good idea to have a memorable domain name for your site, for instance, greatmaps.com is better than fantasticcarstographicofrepresentationandgeographicalfact.com. While they are both descriptive of your business, it's without reasonable doubt that one is far easier to remember than the other.

Remember also that the name you decide on for your site can have a big impact on how much traffic you'll receive and how long this will take to begin. If you have a great website or great products and/or services, the word will get around eventually. Having a good name will make things much easier for you for instance like them or not, Google chose well for their name.

Given that there are literally millions of websites out there, you may not be able to get your first choice for a domain name. You might have to try a few names to find one which you want. Since there are simply so many websites, it is unlikely that you will get your first choice of domain names; but domains do expire, so you may be able to obtain the name you want at a later date if it is not available now.

You can also choose an expired domain names service or software that will search for and alert you whenever a good name becomes available. All you simply do is ask for the domain name you want and when this name becomes available you will be notified and given the opportunity to purchase it. Always remember though that it's good to have a good name but don't fret too much if it's taken.

Here is something to think about, suppose Google as we know it today as a top notch search engine was not performing well, their name would still be short and memorable, but who cares about a non performer and run down company? A good name matters a lot but to be effective the name must be backed up with something remarkable.