Your domain name is the foundational block to your success online.
Over the past ten years we have been asked to help people find a domain name that will help their business on the Internet. In this article we will show you how you can purchase the best domain name for your business.
First let me lead in by answering a common question: “What is a domain?” A domain is what people use to find your business on the Internet. For example, www.newportdesignconcepts.com is our domain. You must purchase a domain before you can have a website. One key thing to remember when you purchase your domain is that your purchase is actually more like renting your domain. You do not really own it, you just rent it for the time in your contract. You do not have an option to buy, but you can rent it for a very long time. We have a client who renews his domains for 10 years at a time, just so he does not have to worry about it. A domain will cost you on average about $10 per year.
When choosing a domain, you want your domain to match your company name or at least describe what you do or your product/service. We recommend matching your company name to your business name. Realistically you should decide on your business name and domain name at the same time. For example, you can utilize our domain lookup service to find a domain. Once you find the domain you are looking for check your state's secretary of state to see if the business name is available. The cost for registering your business name with your state is somewhere between $125 and $500 depending on your state.
Now that you have your domain you need to work on two other components - email and your website. The first one is easy but missed by most people. Make sure that you use your company's domain for email, such as This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and not some free service or your Internet service providers email system. This looks extremely unprofessional and is not needed. Like most good providers we offer a free email account with the purchase of your domain. This allows you have a professional looking email address. Not doing this will actually lose you business. Most people will not do business with a company that uses free or ISP based email systems, because they do not feel like the business is legitimate or do not think they will be in business long term. This is a simple thing you can do and will allow you to maximize your marketing efforts. We will go into more depth in a future article on how to help maximize your email.
Once you have your domain and have setup your email using your domain, you will need to focus on your website. We will be releasing an article shortly on creating your website and marketing it, but for now know that your website should look professional and not like it was done using your favorite word processor. When building your website look at your competition, your site should look 100 times better than theirs. There are many online services like our Website Tonight that lets you create your own website using your browser. This will work for the business just starting out if you are tight on budget, but once your business is bringing in some money, plan on making the investment to have a custom website created. The starting price for a five page website is between $1000 and $2000 depending on what part of the country you are located. Consider your website to be a living thing. You need to feed it all the time, add articles, information, etc. If an article is not being looked at remove it or rewrite it.
Now that you have your domain, email and website up and running, put it on everything. See if your friends will link to you on their websites. Put your website on your vehicle(s), business cards, EVERY email you send out. If you do brochures or advertise in the newspaper, magazines and bill boards make sure it is on there. You want to direct everyone to your domain. This will be the foundation for your success on the Internet. Check our website for our upcoming articles focusing on how you can increase your sales using your website.
The first step is to purchase your domain. Click here to begin purchasing your domain and begin your successful online business!
