What Is a Domain Name?
Where Is the Best Place to Buy a Domain Name?
Domain names put a friendly face on hard-to-remember numeric internet addresses. Every computer on the internet has a unique internet protocol (IP) number. A domain name represents this IP number. For example, the IP number for the domain name whitehouse.gov is 104.109.178.94. The purpose of a domain name is to give users an easy-to-remember handle so that when sending an e-mail to, let’s say, the President of the United States, you can type [email protected] instead of the more unwieldy [email protected].
Where Is the Best Place to Buy a Domain Name?
Anyone can buy a domain name. The most straightforward way to do so is to visit a domain name registrar, such as A2 Hosting , Hostinger, Google Domains, or Namecheap, key in the domain you want to buy, and pay a fee. The first two mentioned companies are web hosting services (more on that in a bit), while the last two are dedicated domain sellers. You can’t buy just any domain, of course—only one that isn’t already registered by another person or business and that bears a valid domain suffix. In general, you’ll want to buy something that is catchy and short so that it’s both easy for people to remember, and easy for them to type in—like “Webhostingplanets,” for example. This is good for search engine optimization (SEO) and it’s also common sense. You might also want to do some research on key terms for your business. If you can get a good one into your site’s name, that’s all the better, from an SEO perspective.
Where Is the Best Place to Buy a Domain Name?
You can expect to pay anywhere from $1 per year to Scrooge McDuck bucks, depending on the domain name and suffix. In fact, if you’re in search of a highly desired domain with a popular suffix, you may have to open your wallet in a big way, because chances are someone else already has it registered. Carinsurance.com, for example, sold for nearly $50 million! As mentioned, there’s also a thriving industry of squatters who look to flip domains (even those that are less obviously important than carinsurance.com) for profit. Some of them ask you to make an offer, suggesting that anything less than $500 will be ignored.
How to Register Your Website's Domain Name (For Free)
Have you ever encountered a domain name that has made you think twice about a website’s credibility? I have, and it’s not a comforting feeling. When you register a domain, you select a welcome sign that guides visitors to your business in the digital realm. Securing a solid domain name for your website makes it effortless for users to discover your brand. Plus, your domain name can even help solidify your foothold in the digital marketplace.
Connect a Custom Domain to Your Website Free
Your domain name is prime digital real estate, so learning how to register a domain name is an essential step in bringing your business online. Getting your dream domain may require an investment, but the returns regarding branding, credibility, and ease of use are invaluable. Additionally, there are opportunities to snag fantastic domain names for free or at a modest cost, especially when bundled with hosting services.
I’m here to walk you through everything you need to know about selecting and registering a domain name. I’ll teach you how and where to register a domain name, plus best practices for selecting one for your website. Whether you’re on a shoestring budget or ready to invest, I’ll teach you how to register a domain that will accentuate your brand’s digital presence, not detract from it.
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Why register a domain name?
I like to think of a domain name as my website’s street address on the internet. When visitors plug an address into their browser’s address bar, they get transported to your website’s virtual front door. Beneath the surface, this name is a shiny facade for an IP address: A distinct sequence of numbers that pinpoint the exact location of your website’s data.
In the age where your digital footprint can make or break your brand’s success, having a memorable domain name isn’t just an option — it’s necessary. Here’s why securing — and registering — that domain is so crucial.
Establish Brand Authority
As I mentioned before, visitors will raise their eyebrows if your domain name doesn’t match their perception of your brand. Say I have an ice cream truck business in New York City called ‘Ice Cream Dream,’ and I register this domain name:
www.webhostingplanets.com
That might seem a little strange, right? What about this domain name — does this seem like what you’d expect?
www.mindngrow.com
If so, you just proved my point. Domain name matters in establishing brand authority.
Professionalism: A custom domain signals that you’re serious about your business and its digital representation.
Trustworthiness: Customers tend to trust websites with custom domains more than those using generic or shared domains.
Boost Brand Recall
Continuing with my ice cream truck example, do you think visitors would think it’s strange if I used the domain:
www.mindngrow.com
Even though on social media and in real life, I go by ‘Ice Cream Dream?’ (The answer is yes.)
Memorability: A well-chosen domain name sticks in the minds of your visitors, ensuring they return and recommend.
Consistency: Align your domain with your business name or primary service, reinforcing brand consistency across all touchpoints.
Optimize for Search Engines
I mentioned that my ice cream truck business is based in NYC; a great way to optimize for search engines would be leaning into a domain extension that’s geo-specific.
Instead of www.mindngrow.com , and even better domain would be www.icecreamdream.NYC
SEO Boost: Search engines like Google often rank websites with custom domains higher than those without.
Location-specific Tailoring: Geo-specific domain extensions (.nyc, .london) can enhance local search visibility.
Customized Email Addresses
Say a customer is inquiring with my ice cream truck business about a private event. Which email address gives a sense of professionalism? Is it [email protected], or [email protected]? The first address seems a bit amateur by comparison.
Professional Communication: Elevate your business emails from “[email protected]” to “[email protected].”
Trust in Transactions: Customers are likelier to trust and engage with business emails from custom domains.
Protect Your Brand
By owning my domain name, I fully control how my ice cream truck business is portrayed.
Avoid Brandjacking: Registering your domain, especially across various extensions (.com, .net, .org), prevents others from tarnishing your brand name.
Control the Narrative: Owning your domain means controlling the content, ensuring your brand’s story is told how you want.
Create Tailored User Experiences
I can also create more personalized, user-specific experiences for visitors on my ice cream truck’s website with a customized domain name.
Landing Pages: Promote campaigns using subdomains like “promo.brandname.com.”
Segmentation: Direct various audiences to specific sections of your site, enhancing user experience and conversion.
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Check for domain availability
When users enter a URL in their browser, the browser sends a request to a global network of servers that are able to locate your website using something called the domain name system (DNS).The DNS is a universally recognized, decentralized system for naming websites. This is what allows computers, phones, and any other device that can access the internet to find the webpage a user is looking for. Checking domain availability takes only a couple of seconds, and nearly every registrar and hosting service has a free domain name search tool that allows you to do this (via a record system called WHOIS or RDAP). Here are a few tools for quickly checking the availability of a domain:
- Shopify
- Greengeeks
- Hostinger
- Liquidweb
- A2hosting
- WpEngine
- Cloudways
- Google Domains
- Kamatera.com
- Hostpapa
- IONOS
- TmdHosting
- Dreamhost
- Bluehost
- Domain.com
- Namecheap
- HostGator
- MochaHost
- Scalahosting
- Kinsta.com
- Rocket.net
- Web.com
- Accuweb hosting
- Fastcomet
- Justhost
- Interserver
- Hostwinds
Establish Brand Authority
As I mentioned before, visitors will raise their eyebrows if your domain name doesn’t match their perception of your brand. Say I have an ice cream truck business in New York City called ‘Ice Cream Dream,’ and I register this domain name:
www.webhostingplanets.com
That might seem a little strange, right? What about this domain name — does this seem like what you’d expect?
www.mindngrow.com
If so, you just proved my point. Domain name matters in establishing brand authority.
Professionalism: A custom domain signals that you’re serious about your business and its digital representation.
Trustworthiness: Customers tend to trust websites with custom domains more than those using generic or shared domains.
Boost Brand Recall
Continuing with my ice cream truck example, do you think visitors would think it’s strange if I used the domain:
www.mindngrow.com
Even though on social media and in real life, I go by ‘Ice Cream Dream?’ (The answer is yes.)
Memorability: A well-chosen domain name sticks in the minds of your visitors, ensuring they return and recommend.
Consistency: Align your domain with your business name or primary service, reinforcing brand consistency across all touchpoints.
Optimize for Search Engines
I mentioned that my ice cream truck business is based in NYC; a great way to optimize for search engines would be leaning into a domain extension that’s geo-specific.
Instead of www.mindngrow.com , and even better domain would be www.icecreamdream.NYC
SEO Boost: Search engines like Google often rank websites with custom domains higher than those without.
Location-specific Tailoring: Geo-specific domain extensions (.nyc, .london) can enhance local search visibility.
Customized Email Addresses
Say a customer is inquiring with my ice cream truck business about a private event. Which email address gives a sense of professionalism? Is it [email protected], or [email protected]? The first address seems a bit amateur by comparison.
Professional Communication: Elevate your business emails from “[email protected]” to “[email protected].”
Trust in Transactions: Customers are likelier to trust and engage with business emails from custom domains.
Protect Your Brand
By owning my domain name, I fully control how my ice cream truck business is portrayed.
Avoid Brandjacking: Registering your domain, especially across various extensions (.com, .net, .org), prevents others from tarnishing your brand name.
Control the Narrative: Owning your domain means controlling the content, ensuring your brand’s story is told how you want.
Create Tailored User Experiences
I can also create more personalized, user-specific experiences for visitors on my ice cream truck’s website with a customized domain name.
Landing Pages: Promote campaigns using subdomains like “promo.brandname.com.”
Segmentation: Direct various audiences to specific sections of your site, enhancing user experience and conversion.
FAQ
How do I register my own domain name?
Domains can be purchased from a number of different types of businesses. You might choose to purchase one from a website-building platform (like Shopify, Squarespace, or WordPress), a web-hosting service (like HostGator or Bluehost), or directly from a domain registrar (like Greengeeks, Namecheap, or Hostinger )
Is it free to register a domain name?
Most domain names have an annual fee, along with a small ICANN fee (although not all domain extensions will include that fee). Privacy is an additional feature that can be used with many domain extensions, which is meant to keep your registrant information out of WHOIS searches.
How do I permanently buy a domain name?
You cannot buy a domain name permanently. Domain name registration is done on a yearly basis. However, you can pre-pay for up to 10 years, which guarantees that you will have a domain name for 10 years.
How do I get a 100% free domain?
Dot TK and Freenom are domain registrars that let you obtain a domain for free. They let you search for a domain, and choose from one of five, non-cost extensions: tk, . ml, . ga, .
Who owns domain name?
Who is the domain owner? Domain names are owned by whoever first registered the web address with an accredited registrar, such as Domain.com.
How do I give my website a domain name?
How to connect your domain name to your hosting account
Access your Domain Registrar Account.
Find DNS Management or Name Server Settings.
Find the Name Server Settings.
Update the Name Servers to Your Hosting Provider’s Name Servers.
Update Your Name Servers.
Click Save and you’re done.
Verify the Connection.
Can I host a website for free?
Kind of. Free hosting exists, but while it won’t cost you money, it will cost you visitors. Free services are slow, unreliable, and insecure, and if you use one, you should expect anything from frequent downtime to your entire project being hacked and/or blacklisted. It’s best to avoid these issues altogether, and go with a great cost-effective solution like Hostinger and Hostgator instead.
What is the average cost to host a website?
If you intend to pay monthly, you’ll find that most shared hosting services go for around $10 a month. The best deal is InterServer’s shared plan at $7 a month. Premium managed hosting providers, like Nexcess and Kinsta, are more
expensive, but come with a lot of added value. Don’t forget to consider domain name costs when making your budget, and keep in mind that long-term contracts will get you better deals – up to 85% savings with Hostinger, for example.
Other hosts that my colleagues and I tested were Namecheap, Dreamhost, A Small Orange, iPage, Web Hosting Hub, FatCow, and One.com. The conclusion is the same for all of them: you can do better. I’m here to make sure that you will do better.
Can I change my web hosting company?
Yes, you can. If you’re unhappy with your current web host, know that many of the companies on this list provide
free website migrations. Contact support after signing up to your new service, and the agents will happily take care of everything for you. Some hosts, like InterServer, will even clean a hacked website as part of the process.
Which web host is best for small businesses?
Hostinger is an excellent and affordable option if you’re looking to showcase your business, but I wouldn’t recommend using it for a full-fledged e-commerce store. If your website is going to be the center of your business strategy, and
especially if you plan on selling products, IONOS or GreenGeeks are much better choices. if you want wordpress web hosting then go for rocke.net.
Which web hosts offer free SSL?
All hosts on our top 10 list currently offer free Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates. Keep in mind that vendors sometimes change plan features, so during the sign-up process, be sure to double-check that an SSL certificate is indeed included in the package.
