Let’s discuss how to choose the right domain name for your purpose. There are some tips and tricks that can help you pick an ideal domain name for your online journey.
Ever since the world has gone digital, every individual and business is working on improving their online presence. And bringing themselves in front of more and more customers. The internet real estate is growing day by day which in turn, is opening more doors to online success.
One of the strongest and worthy tools in this battle is the domain name. It’s the face of any blog or business in the digital world. Domain name not only highlights the purpose behind the website but also creates awareness, interest and curiosity in the audience which in turn, drives traffic over time.
What is a Domain Name?
A domain name is a digital address representing a personal blog or business in the form of organized pages and websites.
DNS (Domain Name System) is the professional naming system that assigns URLs to web servers and web pages. Let’s learn about domains along with how they work and what are the elements that you will need to consider.
Origin of Domains
When it comes to the purpose and existence of a domain name, a domain name is responsible for translating a particular name to an IP address. Web servers are assigned an IP address which is quite difficult to remember. Domain names were invented to make internet usage easy by using simple names instead of IP addresses.
This IP address consists of 4 sets of 1 to 3 digits, separated by dots in-between example 149.112.112.112. These sets are translated by the DNS into a graspable language so that users can remember them easily.
Now, the governing authority behind this entire process is ICANN, abbreviated as Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers.
They are responsible to coordinate numbers and names to map to the desired website. Followed by maintaining the stability, interoperability and security of the website. They work in 5 RIRs or Regional Internet Registries to allocate IP addresses.
Domain Formatting
Contrary to the common left-to-right rule of English, domain name hierarchies work from right to left.
The first and foremost thing is their general descriptors or TLDs (top-level domains) that are placed on the right for the domain names- like .com, .net, .org etc. The most common TLD is .com. According to research by Searchmetrics, 75% of the world’s web links are directed to .com
To their left, there are specific descriptors or SLDs (second-level domains) that explain what the domain is all about- like Wikipedia, Google, Facebook, etc. Last but not the least, there are machine names i.e. www.
Reasons to Get a Domain Name
Practically, there are 3 reasons as to why you should be getting a domain:
- Own a Domain: To bring your blog or your business to the internet, you always have to register a domain. Although several website creation platforms offer free domain names like yourname.blogger.com they wouldn’t give the required credibility. This is why it is crucial to get a professional domain registered.
- To Reserve a Web Address: Obviously, you wouldn’t want anyone to use your business’s name. To avoid any conflict in the future, it’s better to reserve a web address so that no one can claim it afterwards.
- Source to Reach Maximum Audience: One of the worthwhile reasons to get a domain name is to increase the chances of grabbing the attention of a huge population. Whether you use social media platforms or marketing and ad campaigns to drive traffic, rest assured that you are reaching out to many more people than you used to do before a web address.
Tips on how to Choose a Perfect Domain Name
It’s really important to do proper research before choosing a domain name. Yes, not every domain name would yield the desired results. You have to be vigilant about which domain to go for and why.
Brand Name
If your brand already exists in the market and people identify it then search for a domain name that matches your brand name. Go ahead perform a domain name search to check if your brand name is available.
In case of availability, immediately reserve it for yourself; though, if the exact name is not available, think for some variation or go with country-code TLD instead of .com, be careful about the length.
On the contrary, when it comes to registering a completely new brand, try not to exceed 2 to 3 words because the shorter the name, the easier it will be for people to recall and find you. Searching for a domain name is simple, visit the domain name search page enter the desired name and click search.
Simplicity
Avoid using difficult words or complex characters, especially dashes or special characters. The audience must be able to spell the domain name correctly.
Keywords
The use of relevant words in the domain can affect traffic coming to the website. The keywords must explain what you are offering and why you want to receive a response from them. To target locals, adding a location in the domain name is helpful.
Think Beyond .com
Practically, the most common and famous TLD or domain ending is .com but, there are more options to try out. Check out ICANN complete list of new TLDs, which includes domain ending like .photography, .coffee, .xyz, etc.
With such a wide range of options, you will have countless opportunities to create a unique domain name that explains everything about the purpose.
Domain Privacy and Protection
When a domain name is registered personal details of the domain holder like name, address, contact number and email address are reported on the WHOIS database.
Keeping your domain contact information private helps prevent unwanted spam calls and emails, and makes sure you’re in control of what information is publicly available.
All of our domain names include free basic privacy and protection which automatically hides your name, street address, phone number and email address on the WHOIS database.
Domain Restrictions and House Rules
There are some restrictions and basic rules that you have to follow
- Restricted top-level domains (rTLDs) like .aero, .biz, .edu, .mil, .museum, .name, and .pro, require the registrant to represent a certain type of entity or belong to a certain community. For example, the .name TLD is reserved for individuals, and .edu is reserved for educational entities.
- Country-code TLDs (ccTLDs) represent specific geographic locations. For example .uk represents the United Kingdom and .eu represents the European Union. Some ccTLDs have residency restrictions. For example, .eu requires registrants to live or be located in a country belonging to the European Union.
- No space in-between the domain names; rather, you may use a dash to distinguish words in SLDs.
- You can use numbers, dashes and letters in domain names but no special characters i.e. ? ! &.
- SLDs must have at least 2 characters that can go up to the 63 character limit.
Wrapping Up
Now that you have got enough knowledge about what is a domain name and why is it necessary for every individual, it’s time to move ahead choose a domain name and get it registered. Visit the domain name search page enter the desired name and click search to check availability.
