One of the steps to starting a website that people do not put a lot of thought into is the domain name. It is understandable that people would be more focused on marketing plans and deciding what inventory to buy. However, you should not neglect this very important thing. Having the right domain name could mean a lot more traffic will go to your site. Therefore, you should give your domain name the attention it deserves. Here are the steps that you will need to take in order to get the perfect domain name for your site.
1. Start to think of possibilities for your domain name.
You would be wise to get some of your friends together so you can start throwing some ideas around for your domain name. You will have a better chance of coming up with something catchy if you get a lot of people involved. You might have your sights set on reserving a domain name that matches the name of your company. However, you need to have some ideas to use as backups just in case the name you want has already been selected. You should try to keep all of your ideas as short as possible. You should also make them simple for people to spell. You need to be sure that people will be able to find your site very easily.
2. Star to look for a registrar that will register the name of your site.
All domain name registrations need to go through a registrar. You will not own your domain name. You will basically only be renting it. You will be able to choose how long you want to register it for. Many sites only register their domain name one year at a time. However, you need to be aware that someone else can register your domain name if you forget to renew it. You should try to find the registrar that offers the cheapest domain name registration.
3. Submit your domain name suggestions and try to register one of them.
You have now chosen your registrar. Now the time has come for you to register your domain name. You should have the list of ideas for domain names you and your friends came up with arranged in the order of most desirable to least. Now you can submit your first suggestion. Keep trying to register different domain names until you find one that has not already been registered.
4. Contact the current owner of a domain name that you are interested in obtaining.
There is always the chance that the registrar will tell you that your number one choice for a domain name has already been registered by someone else. If this is the case, all hope is not lost. You still have another option that you can use to get ownership of that particular domain name. You can ask the registrar to contact the owner of the domain name on your behalf. Find out if the person wants to sell the domain name. If so, you can try to negotiate a price with the person. You might be able to come to an agreement. In any case, it is always worth a try to attempt this option. You have nothing to lose.