Design And Build Your Website
With everything else in place, it is time to look at building your online identity. Having a website is like having a shop front on the Internet. It becomes the hub of your business and all your marketing efforts. Websites are used by different businesses in different ways, you have to figure out how you will use yours:
- As a brochure site
- Lead generation
There are many different platforms available for you to build a website on, some DIY and some that require experts. We recommend that you consider the following when deciding:
- Ensure that your site has a Responsive design.
- Build your website on a content management platform like WordPress.
- Ensure you have a bespoke design for your business.
- The website should also have a well-thought-out UX, to enhance the customer experience.
- It should be SEO optimised Keywords relevant to your business, landing pages built with SEO in mind, great coding, call-to-actions, etc.
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Youve Bought A Domain Name Now Do This
So, these were the 10 fun ways for everyone wondering what to do with their purchased domain names.
The possibilities are endless, you just have to decide what you have your passion in and what can be profitable for you on the long run.
The best option to use your purchased domain is to make a website/blog around it. Eventually, this can become your own online business and you could add more elements to it in the future.
So, what have you thought about using your domain?
Are you still worried about what to do with your domain? Got any idea that I didnt cover?
P.S.If you liked this article, you would also like the article10 mistakes to avoid when building a successful blog from scratch.
How To Set Up Your Nameservers
Heres that same screenshot again from Namecheap. You can see theres a space for your nameservers at the bottom. Theres usually two so youll want to make sure you copy and paste both into the form fields for nameservers at your domain registrar.
Thats really all there is to it. You can see Im using Siteground hosting for the domain above and I had 2 nameservers to enter . Then Im set.
Heres another screenshot that shows the dropdown menu under Custom DNS.
To start entering in those nameservers you want to select Custom DNS.
Dont use Namecheap or Godaddy web hosting because youre afraid of this step.
This step is very simple. Just select Custom DNS and enter in the nameservers your host has given you. After this, youre actually all set.
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Start A Photo Sharing Site
You dont have to make any content on this, just click epic pictures, upload them, and showcase to the world. Now What to do after buying a domain name? start an image sharing site.
You have to be very careful and active on the platform as the administrator. You dont want people to upload images or content that is not appropriate. Also, as easy as it sounds it is difficult to scale up your site as a big brand. So, you have to do a lot of promotions for people to start uploading and sharing.
If it is for you personal sharing as in between friends andfamily or invited users only it is going work just fine.
Much like the others this too has a lot of free and premium software which will just do. For free you have Piwigo, Coppermine, Zenphoto, iGalerie and many more.
I personally love Chevereto it has two versions free as well as the premium. What I like you might not and will not satisfy your needs. So, they are free to use try them and select which you like.
Where To Go From Here
Okay, at this point, you have boughtyour domain name and pointed it to your website. If youre not sure what you need to do next, please readHow to Make / Create Your Own Website:The Beginners A-Z Guide for the details. The guide takes you through all the steps needed to make your own website,and points to specific tutorials that will show you how to design, test and promote your website.
Good luck!
Copyright © 2009-2020 by Christopher Heng. All rights reserved.Get more free tips and articles like this,on web design, promotion, revenue and scripting, from .
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What Happens After I Backorder A Domain Name
After backordering a domain name, the recommended first step is to set up domain monitoring to help ensure that you start staying up-to-date on any changes to the domain right away, as well as become informed of its current status. Learning of the domains current status will help to determine the best next steps to take in effort to acquiring the domain name you want.
After backordering the domain name of your choice, you will then learn more about where it is currently registered, as well as if it is able to be obtained by the backorder service.
To learn even more about the process and what to expect, check out: What happens after I backorder a domain name?
Get Started With Email Marketing
With the rise of social networks, the term Email is dead has become an age old adage, but it couldnt be further from the truth.
A well-maintained customer mailing list is an absolutely vital asset for any business/website owner. And why wouldnt it be? The people on your mailing list are familiar with your brand, products and services, and in many cases are ready to buy!
Growing and understanding your email list will result in more sales
Launching a new product? Offering a big discount? Got big news to spread? Your ever-so-valuable email list should be the first place you turn to.
Still not convinced? Heres some numbers
And to top it all off its super-easy to do yourself without the need for any techy marketing knowledge or design skills.
However, you cant just do email marketing using your regular email address/setup.
Day-to-day email services are not geared up with mass email marketing in mind. Its not practical and you could end up getting your email address blocked by providers such as Gmail, Hotmail, BT, etc. pretty quickly.
Thankfully there are dedicated email marketing solutions out there which will handle this for you, and for this guide were going to recommend our favourite email marketing provider MailChimp.
If you want to send more, or remove that logo, you can easily move onto one of their flexible paid-plans.
- Creating a list
- Avoiding spam filters
- Understanding MailChimp reports.
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Managing Editor Techradar Pro
Désiré has been musing and writing about technology during a career spanning four decades. He dabbled in website building and web hosting when DHTML and frames were en vogue and started writing about the impact of technology on society just before the start of the Y2K hysteria at the turn of the last millennium. Then followed a weekly tech column in a local business magazine in Mauritius, a late night tech radio programme called Clicplus and a freelancing gig at the now-defunct, Theinquirer, with the legendary Mike Magee as mentor. Following an eight-year stint at ITProPortal.com where he discovered the joys of global techfests, Désiré now heads up TechRadar Pro. He has an affinity for anything hardware and staunchly refuses to stop writing reviews of obscure products or cover niche B2B software-as-a-service providers.
Domain Names Allow Us To Distinguish Sites
The number of worldwide websites exceeds one billion, and that number is growing by the second. Domain names allow humans to distinguish one site from another instead of having to use the long unique string of numbers known as an internet protocol address. Domain names are made up of the domain extension , the second-level domain , and a host name . Together, these details make up a uniform resource locator .
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Choose A Domain Name That Reflects Your Brand
Before you ever take out your wallet to buy a domain name, you must first create a custom domain name that accurately reflects your brand.
Avoid dashes and numbers for the purpose of readability. If your domain name is already taken, you can add a service, product, pronoun, location, or action to the domain, such as buy or shop. These additions help you create a custom name without straying too far from your brand name. Examples include:
Trademark Your Business Name:
The safety for your business isnt always restrained to registration only. You need to sign up a trademark in case you are involved in protecting your domain name, and in particular if the name is so unique and its far going to be the subsequent massive business name.
A trademark will secure you against infringement which includes domain name trademark infringement and can help you take legal action, which can, in turn, win you compensation from an organization that violates your trademark.
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Run A Domain Name Search
Now that you have found a registrar through which to register your domain, the next step is to perform a domain name search.
When choosing a domain name, make sure to pick the right domain extension as well its the suffix at the end of a web address. Domain name extensions are also referred to as top-level domains .
There are different types of domain extensions available, such as:
- Country Code Top-Level Domain . This kind of TLD represents a specific country, letting both users and search engines know that a site is designed for visitors from a particular region. An example of this is the .us domain, which is the ccTLD for the United States.
- Sponsored Top-Level Domain . Its a type of TLD restricted to certain types of groups and organizations. Some of sTLD examples include .mil, .gov, and .edu.
- Generic Top-Level Domain . Its the most common type of TLD it doesnt rely on a country code and can be used for general purposes. A few examples of gTLDs include .com, .org, and .net.
When deciding on the extension that is suitable for your domain, look for a TLD that represents the purpose of your website. Choosing the wrong suffix can confuse visitors and make your brand name prone to being misinterpreted.
For example, a .com or .biz extensionmight be best for an eCommerce business. On the other hand, if you plan to create a blog to keep an online journal, an extension like .me can be an excellent solution.
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Does The Country I Live In Effect My Domain Name
While there are country domain names you can use to tell people where your business is based, your location has no real effect on your domain name. When youre buying a domain name, you can choose country-specific domain names such as .it for Italy and .ir for Iran. However, you dont need to know your countrys domain extension or use it to create a website. No matter which country youre from, you can create a website using one of the standard domain extensions, including .com, .net, and .org.
One thing to remember is that certain country-specific domain extensions are only available to residents of that country. For example, you can only register a .it domain if youre a natural or legal citizen of the European Union, so you cant have an Italian domain for an American business. When it comes to .us domains, things are a bit different. Any company or individual thats licensed in or a citizen of the United States can register a .us domain, but these domains can also be registered by certain foreign organizations that have an interest in the United States.
In addition to country-specific domain extensions, there are also domain extensions that are designed for specific types of websites. Schools and other educational organizations often use .edu domains, while official government organizations use .gov domains. While these domains arent all restricted from being used by other organizations, its best to stick to a simple .com domain, so you dont confuse your audience.
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Connect Your Domain Name To The Web Hosting
The next step is to connect your domain name to the web hosting.
Its very easy to do. Just go to the domain registrar and update the nameservers. . Then add the domain name to your web hosting.
If youve registered a domain name from Namecheap or GoDaddy and bought the hosting plan from HostGator, check the following tutorials.
Connect Your Domain To A Cms
This is an optional step but can help you manage your website with ease. A CMS, or content management system, gives you full mastery over your content. It’s easier now more than ever to connect your CMS to your domain name with HubSpot’s Custom Domain Connection.
With this tool, you can connect a custom domain, establish your brand, and create a beautiful user-friendly website in minutes.
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Make Sure Your Domain Is In Good Hands For Years To Come
Purchasing a domain name is an exciting step for a new business, but theres more to it than just finding the perfect name. Before you begin, there are a few things you should know.
Not all companies who sell domain names are the same. Some use tactics such as hiding fees or selling your information to make more money, which can have a lasting impact on your business. The good news: With a few simple tips, you can know what to look out for before buying a domain.
How To Buy A Domain That Is Already Registered
You can buy domain names that are already established. This tactic is usually employed by internet marketers and aims at generating traffic for their websites. These domain names can be searched in the domain aftermarket or anywhere through a general Google search, either via specialized services vending them or commercial websites such as eBay. If your ideal domain name is in the domain aftermarket, you can bid on the domain name, which can save you time on getting your website up and running. For this, you need to enter the domain name of interest, contact information, billing information, and bid price on the vending website. However, if the domain name is not listed on the aftermarket, you need to make efforts to purchase it directly from its current owner taking into account your budget and timeline before contacting the domains owner. To do this, you may want to consider using a domain buy service.
One other option is to look for domains that are expiring. Sites such as GoDaddy, Flippa and eBay often auction off expired domain names. These existing domains can sometimes be purchased with their standing content, Page Rank, traffic charts, history, and links.
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Set Up An Email Address
Does any business run day-to-day without email anymore? There might be a few people holding out, but for the most part, using email is an integral aspect of running a website / company.
Not only is email the most common form of business communication, its also a hugely effective way to inform customers of new products and offers. Well get further into email marketing later on, but first, lets set up a professional email address for your domain.
For this, were going to already assume you have a hosting package that comes with email.
Receive mail and be as happy as Ralph
First, youll need to think about what your email address is going to be wed recommend keeping it personal, something like yourname@yourdomain.com or something simple such as info@yourdomain.com.
The shorter the better, as misspelling an address is a common reason for emails not reaching their intended recipient.
Getting an email address set up via your host should be the easy part. Here at LCN it couldnt be simpler: Just log in to your LCN account and look for the Email addresses icon on the my account page.
Wondering why you should get email working on your own domain instead of using a free service like Gmail or Hotmail? Having an address like john66rockstar@googlemail.com plastered over a company van doesnt really scream professionalism.
What might your email address say about you? The Oatmeal
Submit Your New Website To Search Engines
Since search engines use web crawlers to find new and updated content, they dont rely on manual submissions to find a new site. However, submitting your site gives it a better chance of appearing on the result pages.
To do that, you need to create a sitemap to help search engines find your website pages and content. It lists the pages, videos, images, and other relevant content on your site, as well as the relationship between them.
Most search engines use links to discover new pages and index them. This can be an issue if you have a lot of pages that are not linked to each other, as they can be invisible to the crawlers.
Thus, submitting your site is a great idea when you change the websites pages and structure. It tells search engines that they need to crawl the website again.
We have a complete guide for submitting your site to search engines. However, to sum up, here is what you need to do:
Submitting your website to search engines is only part of the work. For the website to rank high, youll need to optimize it. Here are some of our SEO tips:
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