How To Research Domain Names

How Do I Check If The Domain I Want Is Available

There are few different ways to verify if the domain you want is available.

While all processes are kept secure and confidential, the most straightforward is the domain name search tool. Simply type your desired website domain name in the search bar, and youll be presented with a list of results.

The search results will show the domain you want along with its availability, as well as options in other extensions and related suggestions. If the domain is taken, youll be able to review the WHOIS record to see information on the current owner and when it is set to expire, along with a link to our domain brokering services in case youre interested in acquiring that domain.

In addition to Webnames domain search, you can also check out our domain wizard or our domain marketplace to discover more great options.

Use The Right Domain Name Extensions

When you choose your domain name extension, you can be sure of one thing: .com is still the best.

According to research from Domain Name Stat, 37% of all domains have the .com extension.

Why? Well, .com is the most familiar and easiest to remember.

While there are many successful websites with a .net and .org, your website will probably do better if it has a .com extension. Its the safest bet.

Our advice: Go with .com. If thats taken, try .net or .org. If these are taken too, youd be better off brainstorming a new domain name. And oh! Avoid those weird extensions like .club, .space, .pizza and so on.

Stay Unique And Brandable

A unique domain name can help your business stand out and potentially help you avoid legal trouble. It can also contribute to your marketing efforts, so youll want it to be brandable.

StitchFix is an excellent example of a unique, brandable name.

StitchFix checks all the boxes when it comes to marketable domain names. Its fun to say, doesnt have any inherent meaning, and is easy to remember and spell.

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Pick A Domain Name Thats Flexible

Your domain name is one area where you dont want to paint yourself into a box. While you should be specific enough to attract an audience, you dont want to be so precise that theres no room for your website to grow.

For example, shutter.photography might be perfect for a photography blog. However, if you decide to write about other art forms as well, youll be stuck with an inaccurate domain name. So its smart to consider upfront how your site or business may expand over time.

Make Sure Your Domain Is Easy To Pronounce And Spell

You probably want your domain name to be memorable. However, if youre thinking of going the Elon Musk baby-naming route, dont. No matter how cool it looks spelled out, there will come a time when youll have to give someone your website or email address verbally.

Word-of-mouth is still powerful advertising. Whats more, it only works when people can actually pronounce your domain. This also makes the name easier to remember, increasing the odds that people will visit and pass the site along to their networks.

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How Search Engines View A Domain

Your goal is to study the visibility of the domain in popular search engines .

It is better to check the history of the domain in two stages:

First, search for a domain like this: site:example.comThis will show you all of the pages on the domain name that are indexed on Google.

Next, search for the domain name in quotes like this: Example.comThis will pull up references to the domain name, potentially including news stories about the website that used to be on the domain name.

Many SEOs think that is extremely important to study the position of the domain. They say that high performance increases the likelihood of successful websites promotion in the future. Pay attention to all search traffic, top queries and their fall.

SEOs recommends to use multi-functional SEO tools like SEMRUSH, Majestic, Afrefs.

SEOs also recommend to study the reference profile.

SEOs think that site with spam or dubious links is not the best purchase for those who crave rapid development and growth.

SEOs recommend to consider:

• the number of pages linking to the site
• spam in the anchor list
• lack of questionable resources
• the quality of websites with backlinks .

F5 Studios SEOs recommend: Dont waste your time on useless tools and unhelpful actions. Google might reset all the good things, all the past links, and such when the domain name is sold.

Keep Your Domain Name Short

There are several reasons short domain names work better. First, shorter names are easier to remember and type. Therefore, they are beneficial for branding purposes.

Also, an overly long domain name is yet another way to look suspicious. If you dont use too many keywords and make your name easy to pronounce, on the other hand, your domain will probably be short naturally.

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How Much Does It Cost To Get A Domain Name

The cost of a domain name can vary significantly, depending on several different factors. Here are a few things to consider when thinking about how much your domain name will cost:

Type of extension: The cost of acquiring a domain name can be heavily impacted by the TLD itself. For example, a promotionally priced .cyou domain may cost less than US $5.99/1st year, while a more exclusive TLD like a .inc can be priced in the thousands. Prices can also be impacted by the domain registry, any discounts at the time, along with the operator of the domain. The most popular and familiar domain extensions tend to fall somewhere within CA$20/year to CA$50/year.

Promos & Term: Domain names are sold as annual renewals, not dissimilar to subscriptions. If youre looking to get a domain over a multi-year term, be sure to consider the annual renewal price as well. Often domain names are sold at a discount for the first year, with the price of renewal being significantly higher. Consider the total cost of ownership when committing to a domain.

Availability: If youre looking to get a domain that is already taken, the cost of acquisition can vary significantly from seller to seller. In cases where youd like to acquire a domain thats been taken, enlist a domain broker to get an accurate valuation of any aftermarket domains youre hoping to acquire.

What Does Make Offer Mean In Domain Name Search Results

New domain extensions like .CLUB, .XYZ and .NINJA can cost as low as USD $14.99 while others including .ATTORNEY, .LAW and .CONSULTING can be priced a little bit higher. The varying prices are affected by the domain registry or domain operator of the extension.

You might also encounter domain names marked as Premium. These Premium domains are designated by the gTLDs registry and you’ll frequently see one-word and generic names marked as such.

For new domain extensions that don’t have any pricing information included, this simply means that the domain has not been assigned to an operator or the domain operator has not released information about it yet. When the domain becomes available and as we receive more information about it, we will update the domain’s pricing and inform you about it.

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Make Sure Its Easy To Pronounce

As easily as your domain name rolls off the tips of your fingers, it should roll off the tip of your tongue.

This makes it easier for visitors to share your domain name by word-of-mouth and makes it easier for you to share your site with friends and potential customers.

You can test this the same way as with the spelling.

Write your domain name on a piece of paper and ask 10 people to pronounce it. If more than a few people struggle to pronounce it, you should simplify it.

Heres what to keep in mind: You want your domain name to be passed along easily by you and others. The only way for that to be possible is if its 1) easy to spell and 2) easy to pronounce.

Top 5 Tools For Researching Domain Names

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If you are planning to start a new website and buy a domain name you will probably need to spend time researching domain names that youre considering. This article does not focus on finding the right domain name, but rather the research that should be done once youve found a domain that you want to use.

The domain name that you purchase may or may not have a history and thats what you need to know. Its possible that the domain has been penalized by Google or other search engines for the practices of previous owners, which is certainly something that you will want to avoid. A domain with a negative history can carry over when you start hosting your site on that domain.

On the other hand, the domain may have some valuable elements as a result of a previous owner, such as Google PageRank, Alexa rank, inbound links, etc. In these situations, the domain will typically be for sale by the owner or through some type or re-seller service, but not always.

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Smart Tips For Choosing A Winning Domain Name

Choose domain name that wins.

http://webfia.com/domain/

Many business owners mistakenly think of a domain name as just an address for their website. But as Rand Fishkin over at Moz recently explained, its so much more than that.

Consequently, there are a number of factors you should seriously consider when brainstorming domain name ideas. Below, we give you a quick rundown of 8 tips for selecting a great domain name. Youll be able to nail one thats smart and effective by sticking to these simple guidelines.

Your domain name is the face of your companyin the form of a URL. Therefore, you should make sure it actually sounds like a brand.

So, how do you do that? With simplicity, novelty, and memorability. Avoid inserting hyphens, numbers, or anything else that makes it sound unnatural and complicated. A great example is Pepsi.com. That domain name is leagues beyond inferior options like Pepsi-cola.com or Pepsi-2-drink.com.

This tip is closely related to our first bit of advice. Even though users arent likely to be saying your domain name out loud, pronounceability is still important. This is because of something called processing fluency: the ease with which our brains can process information. Names that dont require a person to think too hard are usually the easiest to remember, and also more likely to inspire positive associations.

Avoid Hyphens And Numbers

Remember how your domain name should be easy to spell and pronounce? Hyphens and numbers make it more difficult.

Imagine explaining Facebook if it had a hyphen in there

Have you seen this new site Face-Book? Theres a hyphen in there by the way, between the Face and the Book.

Facebook might not have spread so quickly if that was the case.

The bottom line? Your domain name should be smooth and punchy hyphens and numbers get in the way of that.

Stick to the letters!

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Is It Compulsory I Choose A Dot Com Or Another Domain Extension

Finding the perfect domain name for your business is a bit difficult in this era. There is a popular saying that most of the brandable domain names are gone. Its a nice feeling to own a .com domain name because of its popularity. For this reason, the price of a.com domains keeps increasing, compared to what it was in the last 5-10 years. Way back, you will find the exact match for your domain brands , not anymore. It will surprise you to know Chinese investors bought all 4-letter words combinations. Even HKRV .com yes, someone bought it already.

Search Engines And Social Media

If current ownership information is not available through a WHOIS database or not directly shown on a site, it may be possible to track it down through other kinds of information, such as social media profiles or links to related sites. For example, a searcher might find the site owner through a Twitter account or LinkedIn profile, even if that information is not on the domain or in a WHOIS database. Even a Google search might turn up clues to a domain owners identity and contact information.

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Easily Check Whois Records

The WHOIS records for domain names allows you to find out who owns domain names. If you come across a great domain name thats already owned by someone, you can use WHOIS records to contact the owner and maybe negotiate a deal. With InstantDomains, you can easily check for WHOIS records for domains that are already taken by someone else as well.

Short Is Better Than Long

In general, when it comes to the length of your domain, shorter is better.

According to research from Domain Registration.com, the most common name length is approximately 12 characters.

All of this data shows that you should keep your domain name concise.

Aim for 6-14 characters and remember the shorter, the better. Most likely the shorter domain names are taken a LONG time ago and sold for thousands of dollars. If you cant find something short, make it brandable.

Our own site websitesetup.org is exactly 12 characters.

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Avoid Using Doubled Letters

Using doubled letters in a domain name is practically asking for typos. Doubled letters are hard to read and even harder to type correctly.

If mistakes happen often enough, you may end up with someone typosquatting and stealing your traffic. Plus, having to spend even a few seconds longer than necessary trying to figure out how to spell your domain is an unnecessary distraction.

How To Select The Best Domain Registrar

Domain name registrars are companies that manage the purchase and sales of generic top level and country level domain extensions. Hundreds of companies have been authorized by the ICANN to act as domain name registrars. However, no two registrars are alike with some offering benefits and services that others dont. So, how can you identify the best domain registrar for your business?

With a domain name search, youll discover that there are a few key areas in which leading registrars tend to shine:

• Pricing: The best domain name registrar is the one that offers excellent deals on registrations and renewals. Sometimes you can find deals for as low as $5 per year.
• Control panel: Ideally, you want to opt for a registrar who offers a simple user panel to help you control your domains. Maybe you want to transfer your domain name to someone. Perhaps you want to modify the domain names CNAME records. An intuitive control panel can simply such tasks.
• Privacy protection: At the very least, the domain name registrar should give you the option to conceal your personal information from those who would to peak at your website records.
• Payment methods: Popular registrars allow you to pay for domain name registration online by bank transfer, PayPal, or credit card, and that is what you should do. While some give the option to send checks via mail, that could be risky in the fast-moving world of the internet.

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