In an effort to keep our clients and potential clients informed and educate, we’ve put together this
“Top 5 List” of key items you should understand prior to taking your business online.
5) Domain name
What is this?
This is your address on the World Wide Web. Without a domain name it would be difficult for potential customers to find your site. Think of this as your home's street address.
Cost:
As with most of the items we'll cover in this article, there is a pretty large cost range in which to purchase a domain name. Not taking into account specials or promotions, the majority of registrars will charge between $9.00 and $15.00 to register your domain name for 1 year. Also many companies now also offer the ability to "private register" your domain name. This service "hides" your personal registration information (home phone, address, name, etc.) from the general public. This is similar to having an unlisted home phone number. Cost for this service ranges from $6.00 - $15.00.
Pitfalls:
Registering a domain name that's too long or confusing - Keep it short and meaningful. Often times new customers may only get a 3 or 4 second glimpse of your domain name on the side of your vehicle or on a billboard or where ever else you choose to advertise, so make it easy to remember.
Read the small print when "getting a deal" on your domain name. Some companies advertise very low registrations fees for new customers, only to jack-up the domain renewal price for subsequent years. In one case, we saw a registrar who was offering $1.99 domain deals for new registrations, but in the fine print noted that the domain name would automatically renew at the regular $35/year fee. Not much of a deal if you plan on staying in business for longer than a year.
Domain cancellation policy - Once registered, ICANN (the international domain name governing body) requires that a domain name remain registered for not less than one year. So what does this mean for you? Simply put … It’s highly unlikely that you’ll get a refund for any fees associated with your domain registration. So choose your name wisely.
Domain Searching/Researching – Be careful where and how you search for that perfect business domain name. A practice known as “Front Running” is becoming more popular among some of the bigger, more well known registrars. So what is Front Running? It’s a way of “locking-up” a domain name for several days, so that you can only purchase it from the registrar that has it “locked”. How can this affect you? Remember the example of the $35/yr domain registration. Front-Running in effect can force you to purchase your domain name at a price that is 3-4 times more than the market average.
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5) Domain name
What is this?
This is your address on the World Wide Web. Without a domain name it would be difficult for potential customers to find your site. Think of this as your home's street address.
Cost:
As with most of the items we'll cover in this article, there is a pretty large cost range in which to purchase a domain name. Not taking into account specials or promotions, the majority of registrars will charge between $9.00 and $15.00 to register your domain name for 1 year. Also many companies now also offer the ability to "private register" your domain name. This service "hides" your personal registration information (home phone, address, name, etc.) from the general public. This is similar to having an unlisted home phone number. Cost for this service ranges from $6.00 - $15.00.
Pitfalls:
Registering a domain name that's too long or confusing - Keep it short and meaningful. Often times new customers may only get a 3 or 4 second glimpse of your domain name on the side of your vehicle or on a billboard or where ever else you choose to advertise, so make it easy to remember.
Read the small print when "getting a deal" on your domain name. Some companies advertise very low registrations fees for new customers, only to jack-up the domain renewal price for subsequent years. In one case, we saw a registrar who was offering $1.99 domain deals for new registrations, but in the fine print noted that the domain name would automatically renew at the regular $35/year fee. Not much of a deal if you plan on staying in business for longer than a year.
Domain cancellation policy - Once registered, ICANN (the international domain name governing body) requires that a domain name remain registered for not less than one year. So what does this mean for you? Simply put … It’s highly unlikely that you’ll get a refund for any fees associated with your domain registration. So choose your name wisely.
Domain Searching/Researching – Be careful where and how you search for that perfect business domain name. A practice known as “Front Running” is becoming more popular among some of the bigger, more well known registrars. So what is Front Running? It’s a way of “locking-up” a domain name for several days, so that you can only purchase it from the registrar that has it “locked”. How can this affect you? Remember the example of the $35/yr domain registration. Front-Running in effect can force you to purchase your domain name at a price that is 3-4 times more than the market average.
NEXT