Looking at going into business on the Internet? If you are, you have probably found that the dot-com you had settled on is long gone. You’re not alone, in the past few years most people who have gone to the web hoping to get that one perfect dot-com name have found the very same thing. But don’t throw in the towel thinking you can’t win.

First of all, are you sure your domain name is out of reach? Ok, you’re not going to get it for less than ten dollars like you had hoped and expected; but if you think it’s all that important that you should have it, maybe you should try purchasing it from its present owner. Yes, it could cost several hundred or even several thousand dollars in an aftermarket purchase. In the brick and mortar world nobody is surprised when they have to pay a premium for the best address. But it’s up to you to decide if it’s worth it. Find the owner, send him an email and make him an offer.

Secondly, do you really think that the lack of that exact dot-com name that you’ve been lusting for is all that stood between you and success? Come on, you’ve been around long enough to know that hard work is still required to make it in business! Making another analogy with the brick and mortar world, you can have the best address on the busiest corner in town but you’re not going to sell anything if you haven’t the inventory, the advertising or the workers. It’s the same with a web address.

Let’s shine a little light on what are known as ‘Extensions’ at the end of a domain name. Sometimes they are known as TLD extensions with the TLD just standing for Top Level Domain. (Not sure why, but that is what the TLD stands for.)

Primarily you’ll see a domain name ending in either ‘.com’ / ‘.org’ / ‘.net’ and also ‘.biz’ and ‘.info.’ The ‘.com’ is the most widely known as it was the first and stood for ‘Commercial.’

Now you use to hear to always try for the ‘.com’ because that is what people were familiar with. But now not only are most ‘.com’ domains taken but people are used to seeing the ‘.org’ and the ‘.net.’

My understanding from talking with a few people who really focus on this is that today Google does not penalize a site for having an extension other than the traditional ‘.com.’

Looking for a domain name with ‘.org’ or ‘.net’ gives you more of a chance to get the domain name you really want. I have been told that after the ‘.com’ the next 2 best ones are the ‘.org’ and ‘.net’ but in search results you’ll still see a few ‘.biz’ and ‘.info’ ranking high as well.

Interesting thing is with the ‘.org’ people give it a little more credibility as it stands for ‘Organization’ and I believe it used to be for non-profit organizations only. Now it can be used for a commercial site and is the one I would look to first if the ‘.com’ is not available. Keep in mind when it comes to a domain name ending in ‘.com’ that some of these sites were established early and have been built up over the years with content and a lot of good links.

Have you ever wondered what the best ways are to get a high-traffic domain. It’s not quite as costly or as difficult as you may think. Here are some tips to get you started.

1. Get a GoDaddy account. The domains you can get from GoDaddy are inexpensive, yet you can get some really interesting and exciting names. I have owned the domains getzooks.me and iamthegenie.com in the past. These were for Getzooks and My Shopping Genie. Both these domains allowed me to get some reasonable traffic, but more than that – they were interesting ones that people were able to get to easily and people found them easy to remember.

2. Have you ever wondered how many people get a domain name wrong. Think about names like Tahoo or Yshoo or some other deritive of Yahoo. Or, Google could be Hoogle, Goojle or something else like that. You really need to use your imagination here, but there’s top dollar to be had from typing errors.

Then, go back to GoDaddy and attempt to enter one of these names you have found. The system will give you similar domains if the one you have is taken. So, if.com is taken, you may be able to have.net or.org.uk (if you’re British).

A good thing to do here is to think of the industry your site is in. If you are an online auction think of the domain of ebay and think how people may get that wrong. If you are a dating agency, think of how you can get a misspelt eharmony or e-harmony. If your site is a social network showing video, think of another possibility for the word YouTube – or if it’s more of a viral social networking site, try for something on the word Facebook.

With so many registrars to choose from, information overload happens all too easily and it can be tempting to take what looks like the cheapest deal at the time.

However, if you want to find the cheapest domain for your website it is worth taking a bit of time to evaluate what’s on offer from the different registrars, as well as be aware of what to look for before choosing who to register your domain with.

Why The Cheapest Is Not Always The Best….

Firstly, you need to make sure that the registrar is accredited by ICANN, or that it is an authorized reseller of an accredited registrar. You can check this at the icann.org accredited list of registrars.

Next you need to find out if there are any costs involved for transferring a domain to another domain registrar if you are not happy with the service they are providing, or if you find one with lower costs. Registrars – whether they offer the cheapest domains or the most expensive, have a reputation for holding domain names ‘hostage’, with some charging outrageous fees for transferring to another registrar, or they create long delays to avoid losing business. You may well find the cheapest name with one registrar, but if they offer poor service and make it difficult for you to change to another registrar, it may be worthwhile paying a little more for better customer service and support.

Check out the features offered by the registrar; some of the services may duplicate what you already get from your hosting service, such as email accounts, email forwarding and domain forwarding. Some companies will lower the price of domains if you select some of their add-on services, so whilst at first glance you may think they are expensive, you could well find that they offer the cheapest domains if you require their extra services.

So, you want to create your own online space but don’t know how to start blogging? With all the scripts and technology today, it’s easier than you think! Here are 7 steps to starting a blog that will get you going:

1. Decide What You Want Your Blog To Be About

The first thing you need to decide is what you will blog about. Do you want a general blog about your rants and raves? A blog about training your dog? A blog about your self-sustaining garden? Deciding on your topic is key because you will need to do some keyword research in order to find some good phrases to target as well as a good domain name.

2. To Host Or Not To Host

If you don’t have any money for starting a blog, then you can use free services like Blogger, free WordPress, Tumblr, Weebly or many of the other free platform. I don’t recommend this, however because at any time these services can remove your blog and all your hard work will be for nothing. The best route to take, especially if you plan to make money from your blog someday is to buy your own domain name and get your own hosting.

3. Get Your Domain Name

You want to choose a domain name that is relevant to your topic. Yes, I know that you’ve probably heard to get an “exact match” domain name based on a keyword phrase that you’ve decided is worthy of such, but they really aren’t as advantageous as they used to be so I wouldn’t worry about it too much. It’s much more important to find one that describes the general topic of your blog.

Beginning a new business is an exciting adventure, and choosing the company’s name is one of many decisions that the owner(s) need to be made. This is no different when beginning a business on the Internet. On the Internet, you want a name, more specifically a domain name, which represents what you have to offer to the Internet community.

As you are learning the ins and outs of Internet marketing, there are a number of different things that you will need to do such as creating your website, building your contact list,and advertising. Everything you do will need a name associated with it that is all inclusive and represents everything you have to offer. This process seems easy enough, but it is quite difficult because once you chose the name it can’t be changed.

What creates the name?

What is a domain name that has everything to do with your Internet business? It is a fabulously fantastic name that is catchy, easy to remember and relates to what is on your website. The name can be a combination of letters, numbers and symbols. The name can be one word or it can be a number of words; although the shorter the name, the easier it will be to remember.

It is also very important to keep in mind when creating your business’ name that it shouldn’t be offensive or conflict with logos, mottos or trademarks of other companies. If your name may refer to another company, the domain name registrar will not allow the name to be used. Besides, you don’t want to take something of another company without their permission; otherwise you may find yourself in court.

It’s Taken? What!?