Registering a Domain Name – The right way to do it
Whether you’re a complete novice when it comes to the internet or you’re a ‘webmaster’ at some point in time you had to register a domain name. The reality is if you want to make money on the internet, you won’t have just one domain name so it’s something you’ll very likely do often, it’s not expensive and guarantees you full ownership over the traffic and brand name, if you have one.
What you have to remember is your domain name is your property and in the same way you wouldn’t leave your mobile phone or laptop out in the street while you sleep at night, you have to protect it as it’s essential to making money online.
One of the biggest mistakes you should avoid is – getting a “free” domain. Some forums “give you” a domain name for free by forum posting (hostbidder.com, ddboard.com are some of these) and in other instances if you sign up for an annual hosting plan, as a bonus, companies include a domain name. Now, I am not saying there is a catch and that you don’t get the domain, problem is, you don’t always get to own it. The first question you should be asking before taking up these offers is, “In whose name will the domain be registered?” If the answer is anything other than your own name….WALK AWAY! Companies, especially small ones, get resold and domains “pass” to the current owner, who may choose to take it away from you and there is not much you can do. I’ve personally heard many stories about people working on their traffic and ranking only to end up losing because this domain was initially free and not registered in their name.
The crazy thing is, domain names are pretty cheap and quite a lot of companies offer promotional codes when you first register. For .com domains I personally recommend NetFirms as their price of $5.95 (approx £3) for the first year is hard to beat, especially when you consider it includes Domain Privacy. Even $9.95(approx £5) for renewal is still pretty cheap when the Privacy option is taken into consideration. Click here for more info.
You register .com domains for a minimum period of 1 year however .co.uk domains are registered for a minimum period of 2 years however they are usually about the same price, depending on where you register them. Domain Privacy is built in to .co.uk domains so you don’t have to pay extra to have your details away from prying eyes, just remember to activate it! If you are looking for a reasonable place for .co.uk domains, try Selfless Mind Hosting who currently charge £7.10 for 2 years registration.
At the end of the day you are looking at investing between $7 to $10 (£3.50 to £5) a year for your domain name and believe me, even a low traffic site with Google PR1 is worth that investment.
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