My First Website – Choosing Domain Name
Choosing a domain name is one of the obstacles beginners face when they are trying to create their first website. Most good domains are already taken and it is not so easy to find a free name that will represent the content of the website. Because the domain will represent your website on the internet and there is no easy way to change it later you need to be very careful not to make a mistake.
Domain Registration
You can register domains at various registrars or while creating the hosting package at the hosting company. The later is easier for beginners since you get all you need in few simple steps but keeping domains and hosting separate is advised for easier changes later when your sites will grow and you will need more flexibility. Hosting companies are not the best registrars and vice versa. Prices vary–spend some time and check what popular registrars offer.
Top Level Domain
This is the name at the right side of the domain. It tells what type the site is. If you are not targeting a specific country you can choose com, net, org or info domains. These are general purpose domains where com is the most popular top level domain. If your website will be in local language or your website will target only a specific country then you can also choose a country domain (e.g. de for Germany, it for Italy, fr for France, etc.). The selection of right top level domain is very important because this will influence ranking in search engines. Country domains do not perform well outside target country.
The Name
The domain is usually also the name of the website and should represent the purpose, content or name of the site. You always start with the domain and then you create a website and never the other way. If your website will be commercial and will offer specific product or product group then this should be reflected in the name of the site. If you are creating a personal website then you should consider using your name or nickname. Anyway, you should spend some time to go through various options and think twice before you make a final decision.
The Name Is Already Registered
It is very likely that the chosen name is already registered. Unless the domain is for sale and you are willing to spend some extra money for it you should try to find an alternative name. Simply try various word phrases that are related to the website you are creating. Sooner or later you will find a domain that will be a perfect name for the site.
One typical example where a general name was used is the Free Quark website. This site is a collection of articles related to web hosting, domain names and internet marketing. The name of the website is not directly related to the content but it is still an easy to remember word phrase and the domain was available.
