DOMAIN NAMES
Research/Registration/Transfers
Although your domain name is the smallest part of the website equation from a cost point of view, it is actually the most important.Proper hosting service is what makes your website visible on the internet.
- Each website has its own unique website "address".
. For example, if you choose www.mydomainname.com, no one else can use that as long as you pay the yearly fee for that name so that it doesn't expire.
- The date on which you register your domain name becomes the date on which everything is based.
- Even if you transfer your domain name from one Registrar to another, the initial registration date stays with the domain name.
- For instance, if you registered www.mydomainname.com for a one-year term on January 1st, 2022, it would expire on January 1st, 2023.
- If you transferred it to another Registrar on June 1, 2022, it would still have an expiry date of January 1st, 2023.
- The transfer will incur a fee equivalent to a one year registration cost, but the transfer process adds one year onto your original expiry date of January 1, 2023, to become January 1, 2024.
- There are many different "extensions" available for the same name, though. For example, even though www.mydomainname.com might be taken, perhaps www.mydomainname.ca, or www.mydomainname.net is not.
- The most popular domain names are .com, .ca, .net and .org, as well as many more.
- There are many " Country" extensions where you must live in that country in order to use that extension. For example, .ca is for Canada, .us is for the United States, .au is for Australia, etc.
- Your domain name does not have to be the same as your business name. Choosing a domain name that includes your business " keywords" can often be very beneficial when it comes to internet searches. For example, a domain name of www.amw.com does not tell anyone who you are or what you do. Choosing www.allmywidgets.com tells people that you deal in widgets.
- Most people register their domain name for a one year period, although you can renew for up to 9 years all at the same time.
- No matter which domain name you choose, make sure that no one in your market area has the same or similar name, although with a different extension, which could confuse your potential customers.