Submit Your Domain Name Yourself
One way to register your domain name to search engines is to visit each search engine and manually register your domain name with each one. While this can be a time-consuming process considering that, by some accounts, there are about 300 search engines. Keep in mind that many of the smaller search engines pull domain name lists from the big boys . Due to this, some people think that submitting a domain name to the top few search engines is enough to get your website indexed by the search engines.
See the References section of this article for more information on the links to submit your domain name to the top four search engines.
Importance Of A Domain Name
There are a number of good reasons for having a domain name:
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If you ever change your web host , your domain name goes with you.Your regular visitors or customers who knew your site name as www.thesitewizard.com will not needto be informed about a change of web address , since as far as they are concerned,the site is still at the same place. They can simply type your domain name, as before, andbe transparently brought to your new location.
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If you are a business, a domain name gives you credibility. Few people will be willing to dobusiness with a company that does not have its own domain name.
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If you get a domain name that describes your company’s business or name, people can rememberthe name easily and can return to your site without having to consult their documents. In fact,if you get a good name that describes your product or service, you might even get people who weretrying their luck by typing “www.yourproductname.com” in their browser.
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If you want good sponsors for your website, a domain name is usually helpful.It tends to give your website an aura of respectibility.
Dots And Dashes Dont Do It
Over the years we have seen many entrepreneurs effectively working backwards when looking to acquire a standout domain name. They may choose a brand name or an amalgamation of company name, location and business type and then find it has been taken in the main top-level domain forms. What do you do next?
Well, what you dont do is start adding dots and dashes to secure a name you have been after. The moment you have to spell out your domain name to ensure people type in the right URL is the time to give up. Over the years we have become accustomed to leading domain names which are effectively words joined together with no dots and dashes or any other type of punctuation. Some people may argue that regular visitors to a website will save it in their favourites and simply click a link. However, why take the chance?
If you have a striking brand name and there is a URL with no dots and dashes and your URL with an array of dots and dashes, which one would you remember first? Be honest, when was the last time you typed in a website URL with dots or dashes in between words? We guess you have probably answered your own question.
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You Cant Buy All The Extensions
Entrepreneurs often become very protective of their businesses and indeed their brand names. In a bid to ensure that third parties are not able to benefit from the time, effort and investment in their business, many will chase all domain name extensions. In years gone by, when it was just the likes of .com, .co.uk and .net which were leading the way, it was fairly straightforward to buy a group of domains with the same name but different extensions. The level of protection this offers is welcoming but unfortunately those days have long gone.
There is still a relatively tight knit group of main TLDs. However, the overall list of TLDs is literally in the hundreds if not thousands. There is no way on earth you can chase every extension. How do you manage it? How can you afford it? And how is it really helping your business?
From time to time you will receive emails from domain squatters who may have acquired a variation of your domain name or one with a relatively small addition such as a dot or hyphen. These very helpful people might offer you this domain for a relatively small amount of money as they seek to do you a favour. Tempted as you may be, unless you need that extension of your domain and it is a fair price, resist at all costs.
How To Register A Domain Name: 4 Options
To get a domain name, youll need to call dibs with ICANN. ICANN is a global non-profit authority that maintains records on which domain and IP address belongs to whom and manages access to them.
But ICANN doesnt provide registration services, it only maintains records. Thats where domain name registrars come into play.
The primary role of a register is to:
- Coordinate claims on different domain names.
- Match specific domain names with Domain Name System nameservers.
- Ensure that there are no duplicate domain names.
Technically speaking, you are not buying a domain name from a registrar company, but reserve its usage for a specified time. You can pay to reserve a domain for 1-10 years at a time, depending on the registrar. After your initial subscription expires, youll need to renew it and pay a fee again. You can re-purchase your domain name over and over again.
When registering a domain name, you sign a long-term lease of your domain . You can read more about the domain costs here.
In practice, all of the above is much simpler than you think as we will show below.
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Cost To Register A Domain Name
According to HostGator, domain name cost ranges from free to tens of thousands of dollars, with the average domain name settling around $10-$12 annually. These factors will affect what you’d pay for a specific domain:
- The demand for the particular name you choose
- The TLD domain extension
- The domain registrar you’re purchasing from
- Whether the domain has already been purchased by someone else
- Whether you commit to an annual payment or another payment schedule
- Add-ons such as privacy
Whether you choose a free or paid domain will depend on your budget and your website’s purpose. For example, you might need a basic website or something simple and temporary. In that case, a free domain name might be a good option.
However, paid domain names look more professional and are more likely to grow with your brand. You should ultimately decide what will work best for your business and goals.
What If Someone Already Has The Domain Name I Want
This is a valid concern, given that over 1.7 billion websites are live on the Internet right now. Chances are a lot of great domain names are taken, and when this happens, the cheapest option by far is to brainstorm a different name. But if youre dead set on a domain thats taken, and dont want to compromise, you still have some options.
You can use resources like snapnames.com to see domains that have recently become available . Otherwise, youll have to pay much more for an aftermarket domain, usually by dealing with online auctions in which youd bid on an already-registered domain to be transferred to you.
Aftermarket domain prices are so expensive because the value that a short, relevant domain name can bring to a brand is, well, invaluable . For example, if you were looking for car insurance and werent sure where to start, you might head to CarInsurance.com a domain which sold for $49.7 million in 2010.
Of course, not all aftermarket domains will go for millions, but as a rule, any useful one will still be pretty expensive. Since most of us wont be dropping our lifes savings on a domain name, were going to have to come up with our own. So you might be wondering
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They Will Technically Own Your Domain
One of the dangers of private domain registration is that the registrars and web hosting companies technically own your domain name. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers is the ultimate authority in the domain. The way they consider ownership of a domain name is by looking into the WhoIs database. Whoever is listed on the WhoIs server owns the domain name.
However, if you register under a legitimate registrar or hosting company there is nothing to fret. After all these companies want to do business with their customers and have almost no reason to betray their trust. However, if you register under a fraudulent company then that is when you should be worried.
Set Up Your Hosting And Website
If you do not have a web host, you can let the registrar park your domain name at a temporary website specially set up for you. This lets you secure your domain name before it’s too late and take your time setting up other aspects of your website.
After registering your domain name, learn about building your website from a number of sources. The most popular option for building a website is using a self-hosted WordPress blog. Most web hosting companies support WordPress.
Your registrar, web hosting company and the World Wide Web should offer ample documentation and ideas for you. Now that you’ve read through the domain name registration process, get started as soon as possible to get the domain name you deserve!
Getting your website up and running is just the start. Once you’re live you’ll want to focus on the important things like getting website traffic, building your email subscriber list, and converting visitors into sales.
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You’re Not Stuck With Paying Forever If You Want To Quit
You are under no obligation to keep paying for the domain name. That is, if you decide in the end that you want to close yourwebsite, simply don’t renew your domain name. Normally, when your domain name is about to expire at the end of its registration period,the domain name registrar will send you an email message to remind you that it’s time to renew. If you don’t want to keep the domain,just ignore the email and don’t pay for the next year’s fee. Their system will then automatically terminate your domain name atthe end of that period, and that’s that. When you type that domain into your browser after that date, you will no longer seeyour website.
Note: if you have originally asked your registrar to automatically renew your domain name, and now don’t want it done,you will need to return to your registrar’s website to disable the automatic renewal. Otherwise the registrarwill go ahead and charge your credit card for the renewal fee when the domain is about to expire .
What’s A Domain Name And Web Address
A domain name is a unique name corresponding to one or more IP addresses .
A web address reflects a domain name , and is sometimes referred to as a URL or Uniform Resource Locator.
A web address is how people find your website on the internet. People can type your web address straight into a browser such as Chrome, Firefox or Safari on their computer, or into the internet application on their smart phone or tablet. People using a search engine like Google or Bing can also find your website by typing in a question or keywords, and searching.
You may also use your domain name in your email address To set up an email address you’ll also need to purchase an email service or hosting, which is different to registering a web address.
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Can Anyone Register A Domain
Anyone can register a domain.
However, if you are registering a domain name for a known personality or brand, the registrar may need you to show proof of identity or authorization to register a name on behalf of someone or a business entity.
This may be required to prevent identity theft or misuse of brands and trademarks.
Complete The Registration Process Including Payment
The registrar will ask you to provide contact and technical information when you register a domain name. These details will be sent on to the registry of your domain name to confirm your qualification for holding the TLD and entering your new domain name in the DNS database.
You will also enter into a contract with the registrar that you or your reseller has selected. Once your domain name is in the registry and you have signed the contract, you own the domain name.
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Will I Have To Continue To Pay A Fee To Keep My Domain Name After I Buy It
One of my visitors wrote to ask me, “what happens after the year for which I paid to own the domain name?Who would I be paying in order to have the right to keep the domain for a second year or more? If my site issuccessful, am I likely to find the registrar demanding an inflated price for me to keep that name?” This article attempts toclarify the issues pertaining to registeringor “buying” a domain name.
Do Domain Names Need To Be Registered
Domain name registration is something that a lot of businesses take for granted.
You may have established your brands name reputation, but you might forget about claiming your name on the Internet through registration. You may be a household name or a go-to expert in your field, but does that automatically grant you ownership of your name on the Internet?
Do domain names need to be registered?
Domain names need to be registered to properly establish ownership of your name or brand on the Internet. This serves as your identification and will be the point of reference when people search for you.
If you have established your social media presence using one name, it is important you also claim a domain under the same name for brand consistency.
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Avoid Numbers And Hyphens
Imagine asking your 10 friends to spell or pronounce a domain name filled with numbers and dashes. It wont work.
If you choose a domain name with these elements, youre likely going to lose traffic to people who cant remember your domain or effectively tell someone else how to find it. We probably wouldnt have Facebook today if you had to go to Face-Book.com to reach the site.