One of the most important parts of your online presence is the domain name. It’s your address on the web and redirects users to your website.
The domain name system is not at all complex, but not each one understands how it works. This article is for all those who want to learn more about domain name so let’s take a plunge into some of its basics.
Pick a Domain Name Carefully
While launching your new website, it’s important that you have your own domain name for your business. Having a domain name makes it simpler for people to find your business online. Your domain name is a part of your brand, so you should pick your domain name rationally.
Pick a web hosting provider and a plan that fits your website requirement. Let’s say you have a website built in WordPress, then you must choose WordPress hosting plan for your site.
When you pick a domain name, make sure that the same name is not taken. There are chances that the same domain name with different spelling is registered already. Avoid such domains that will create confusions.
The next step is deciding on the domain name extension. The very popular domain extension is .com for over the years now. But these days it’s rarely possible to find a domain name that’s available with a .com extension. The domain name that you want might already be taken by somebody else. There are numerous new domain name extensions available nowadays such as .net, .edu, .site, .clubopening doors for the availability of domain name that you want.
Choose the domain extension that is relatable to your business. For example, if you have a training institute you can go with the .edu extension which lets people quickly figure out what type of niche you are in from the URL itself.
Buy Multiple Domains
You must have seen businesses buying multiple domain names along with the one they’ve registered for their site. Generally, they reserve these domains to protect their brand by buying other domain name extensions related to their business.
Issues that occur with domain names:
- A person purchases misspelled version of your domain name to get hit by huge traffic on their website. For example, someone can buy adibas.co.in to take advantage of adidas.co.in
- Domain squatting (also known as cybersquatting): Domain squatting means when someone buys a domain name and resells at a higher price. This swindle started back when the Internet was just a new thing. Even companies like Hertz, Panasonic, Fry’s Electronics and Avon were the victim of this scam.
To sum up, let’s just say that if you don’t want anyone to have a similar domain name to yours then purchasing multiple domain names is a good way to prevent your online brand identity.
The Renewal!
Sometime back, a popular email marketing technology provider experienced a mishap in its business when all its domains expired. The whole website was down for a few hours and the customers were not able to log in. Now, even after renewing, the company has to work on gaining customer’s’ confidence on their platform.
The point is, although you purchase a domain for your business, you may not own it forever, so it’s important that you renew your domain before it expires. A domain can be registered for a minimum of up to 1 year but you can register for up to 10 years at a time. It’s important to keep your domain active always so that some doesn’t grab the opportunity to snatch it.
What About Privacy?
While registering the domain you are asked for your details such as name, email id, contact number, etc. All these details are easily available to anyone on the internet. This information can be used by the spammer/ hacker for phishing attacks, domain hijacking, identity theft, domain-related spam or you may even get spam calls/ emails / SMS, etc.
Using domain privacy will help you mask your personal information. Thus, keeping you safe from any of those attacks. A lot of hosting providers offer WHOIS privacy protection that will hide your actual information.
Domain Management Services
Some web hosting companies offer domain management services to their clients.
What do they do?
They ensure that the domain is working and is pointing where it is expected to be. Additionally, it also keeps a timely check on the domain expiry so that it gets renewed on time.
As mentioned earlier, there are a lot of cases where the site goes down due to non-renewal of the domain or due to the previously added credit card which has now expired.
Some of the site owners don’t even know where their domain is hosted. This is why a lot of site owners go for domain management services.
Closing Thoughts on Domains
Your business domain is something important. It’s not only because you can be found on the internet by that name, but also it helps people identify your business with that name.
So, choose your domain name wisely and stick to it.
