How to Purchase a Domain Name?

A website cannot exist without a domain name. When you need a website – be it business or personal – the purchasing a domain name for your site is the very first decision you have to take. You have the choice of doing a domain name search at a domain registrar’s website, purchasing a domain name from domain brokers or domain name resellers, and participating in domain auctions. If the domain name you want to purchase is already taken, you can even consider backordering the domain.

Whatever method you choose, you need to purchase a domain name before you can launch your website. The process of purchasing a domain name explained below will help you make the right choice that will be most beneficial to your website in the long run.

Importance of purchasing the right domain

Purchasing a domain name is a decision that is more important than most people realize, because the right domain name can directly impact your business performance online. Purchasing the right domain can influence how your website ranks in search engines, if it has your primary keyword in it. If you’re new to the entire process of building a website, choosing and purchasing domain names, there are just a few basic steps involved in the process of buying a domain name:

• Doing a domain name search and choosing your domain name
• Checking to see if the domain name is available
• Purchasing domain name and deciding on the duration for which you want it registered

Purchasing a domain names isn’t rocket science and can be as easy as using your company name along with a “dot com”. However, think carefully about the domain name before purchasing it. Below are some of the steps you should follow before purchasing a domain name.

Purchasing Domain Names Step 1: The Name

Your domain name may be as easy as “your business name dot com” or it may be more complex (especially if you have a common name for your business). Also consider whether the primary service or product you offer, or the industry you belong to can become a part of the domain name.

A well thought out name hence is the first crucial step for any marketing strategy and successful website. While doing this research, keep the following points in mind:

• Pay close attention to the length of your name, you don’t want it too long. People are less likely to make a mistake typing in your domain name if it is short. Try to keep your domain name under twenty characters. The shorter the phrase, the easier it will be to remember.
• You want a memorable domain name that will not be too hard to spell or remember. Length and type of name adds monetary value to any website.
• Think whether you want a domain name with or without hyphens. Sometimes, people may forget to type the hyphen and you could lose visitors to competitors. It is also difficult to tell someone what your domain name is verbally if there is a hyphen in it.
• Similarly, whether or not your domain should have a number in it is worth thinking about. When someone mentions your domain name, it can be confusing whether the number is to be spelled or typed as a numeral.

The bottom line is, before you purchase a domain name, keep in mind that — if you can easily remember it, spell it, say it, and type it right, it is most likely to drive traffic to your website.

Purchasing Domain Names Step 2: Keywords

One of the other things to keep in mind is the use of keywords. If your domain name has a frequently searched for phrase that is also relevant to your business, it can be half the battle won. You need to take a call early whether you want a domain name that reflects your company name or the products/services you offer.

Using the name of your business in your domain name is usually the best unless your business name can be commonly misspelled. If that’s the case, you might want to purchase both versions of the domain name — the correct spelling and the misspelled version just for safety reasons.

There are times when you should use a keyword relevant to your business in your domain name. A fine example would be if you own a company that sells wallpaper, a good idea for a domain name would be: wallpaperforless.com or Aaronswallpaper.com. Both of these domain names have the major keyword in the domain name, making this easy to remember, points to the product, and will be easy to find. If your product type isn’t in your company’s name, it’s still a good idea to list it in your domain name. This will enhance your marketing results.

This is important because, when people link to your website, most will link with your domain name as the linking text. If your primary keyword is present in the linking text, it will help your website rank better for that keyword.

Purchasing Domain Names Step 3: Options and Variations

Sometimes, the domain name you want to purchase may not be available. It is always a good idea to make a list of alternate domain names that you would like to consider in case your first choice domain name is not available.

Purchasing Domain Names Step 4: Check Availability

Use your list to check availability by starting with your first priority. If the name you want the most, or your first choice is not available, move to your next choice and so forth till you find a name that you can use. The best way to do this is make a list of at least three variations of five different names. If you already have your list of domain names ready, you can type them into the box below to check availability.

Purchasing Domain Names Step 5: Purchase the domain name

Once you have found an available domain name, your next step is purchasing. The actual purchasing of the domain name is easy once you know it is available. Make sure to research the domain registrar before purchasing domain names. Many domain registrars offer packages to choose from. When searching for a product or service, people often associate free or cheap services a bad omen. This can lead to the assumption that your product or service is not worthy. This may or may not always be true. In some cases, large volumes can allow domain registrars to offer cheap domain registration and in the case of others, it can be desperation to get some business. Keep in mind credibility is important.

You can be judged by the company you keep, so to speak. You don’t want the value of your website to be diminished because of the perception your domain name and hosting company creates.

The end result is to keep in mind that you want to communicate your specific service or value to the public. You want to do this right off the bat, take out the guess work for your potential client or customers. Purchase domain names that are right for your business and that are right for you. By doing this, you are purchasing domain names that are right for them as well.

Domain Registration Services from Ballistic Domains

Ballistic Domains has been in the domain registration and website hosting business for many years now, meeting the growing needs of a number of clients. Over the years, we have emerged as among the leading providers of domain name registration and web hosting services. Talk to us about your requirements and you will find it hard to find a service provider as flexible, responsive or affordable as Ballistic Domains.