How to Make Money Online
Purchasing & Selecting Domains
A domain name is also known as a website address. Whenever you type in "something.com", you're typing in a domain name. The ".com" portion is known as the domain extension, or the TLD (Top-Level Domain). There are many other domain extensions, including: .net, .org, .gov, .edu, .mil, .info, .me, etc..
The function of a domain name is to provide a human-friendly method of accessing a desired website. Technically, when you type in a domain name and hit {enter}, through your Internet Service Provider's DNS (Domain Name System), it matches the domain name you typed in, with a physical server located elsewhere. The domain name is tied to an IP Address (Internet Protocol Address) which is tied to a server. A server is a special computer optimized for hosting websites. When the DNS properly connects the domain name to the server, the server "serves" the website to your browser through HTML, which displays the layout, images and content you see on your screen.
Choosing a Domain
There are several things to consider when choosing your domain name.
- Availability
There are millions of already registered domains. The domain you choose has to first be available. How do you know if the domain you want is available? Easy, you just use a domain registration service to search and discover which domains you want are available or not. Try http://www.instantdomainsearch.com - Type in a domain and you will see it provides you with immediate results over .com, .net and .org.
- User-Friendly
No one wants to visit a website with a domain that is either too long, or too difficult to type. An example of an unnecessarily long domain might be something like: JoesFishingBusiness.com, or one that is too difficult to type: 43rdStreetBananas.com. You want to make it easy as possible for users to access your website.
- Company Name
If the purpose of your website is for a specific business, you want your domain name to match the name of your business. This seems like a no-brainer, but some people will actually choose domain names that aren't their actual business name. You want everyone who knows your business name, to assume there is a website using that same name, because people will commonly type in a businesses name in a search engine like google, to see if they have an existing website.
- Memorability
This ties in with the "Company Name" bullet point above. If your website is for your business or a service, you want the name to be unique and memorable. The goal is to make people remember your business name / website address. For example, TheDirtyTrout.com would be more memorable than JoesFishingBusiness.com.
- Keyword Domains
This is the exception to the previous 2 bullet points. Let's say for example you own a fishing business, in which you sell fresh fish to local markets. Sure, you could choose a domain like TheDirtyTrout.com, but what if the domain: FreshFish.com were available instead? Or how about BuyFish.com? The benefit to these domains is that they're considered keyword domains. They're domains that contain popular keywords which are commonly searched for in search engines. The reason you would want a keyword domain is because by having a keyword as your domain, you make it much easier on yourself to allow your website to rank for that specific keyword. I will go into more depth about how this works in the "Generating Backlinks" section of Search Engine Optimization
- Domain Auctions
Sometimes you might want to purchase a domain that's up for auction. There are several domain based auction sites and services. SitePoint Marketplace, eNom.com, afternic.com, and sedo.com
- Expiring Domains
Thousands of domains expire every day. When you register a domain name, you register it for a period of time. The minimum registration period for a domain is 1 year. Sometimes webmasters will allow a domain to expire willingly, and other times they simply forget! The two major services available for snatching up expiring domains is SnapNames.com, and Pool.com. A major upside to purchasing expiring domains is for the potential that they've been with established websites that have established backlinks, a backlink is simply another site that links to that domain. The good thing about this is it makes it much easier to rank for the keywords associated with the website's industry (I will cover this in more detail in the Search Engine Optimization section). A downfall is their cost, which is several times higher than that of a newly registered domain.
Purchasing a Domain
Once you know the name you want to register, you then need to purchase it through a registrar. A registrar is a service (a website) that allows you to register and own the domain name. Purchasing a domain name is very simple, you type in the domain name you want, specify how many years you want (more often than not you will want to register it for just 1 year since you never know whether or not your new venture will succeed), and then order it.
After you have ordered it, you then need to specify your web host's nameservers. Your web host will provide you with their nameservers, and then in the administration area of your registrar you select your domain name, and edit the DNS settings. In the DNS settings, you specify the nameservers. This ties the domain name to your web hosting service.
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