Domain Naming Your Website

What will your website be called? You may have a catchy name for it, but that doesn't mean you'll be able to get that fun name as a web address. You need to do a little domain name research.

Securing the domain name you want is not always easy. Often someone has thought of it before you, so it's already in use, or there could be a squatter sitting on it. Squatters are people who buy up website names that they think would be popular at very low prices, and then offer to sell them to you at a much higher rate if you want to use it.

There is a simple way to know if a web domain is available. Go to a company like Network Solutions and type in the name you are looking for in the 'Find a Domain' box on the front page. It will let you know if that name is available in a .com, .net, .biz, or one of a number of other website suffixes.

Before registering a domain name, you need to think about whom you are registering it with. Some of these registrars seem to change with the tide. So you want to stick with an established company that is not going to be here today and gone tomorrow, with your information.

Once you register your name, if you ever want to move it to another server not all registrars are helpful. Be cautious of going through places like Yahoo or Domain Registry of America. They like to keep a hold of your domain name once you purchase it, and you'll have to jump through a lot of hoops and do a lot of work if you ever want to move it to another server. Meanwhile, If you choose a registrar like Network Solutions or GoDaddy they are much more cooperative.

With that said, lets get a domain name. I would advise doing this yourself, unless you are having someone you really trust do this. Letting someone less than trustworthy register for you could end up with your domain name registered in their name, and you lose control. So, go through the search and select the name you want and register it in your name (at a cost of 5 to 40 dollars per year).

You will receive a lot of registration information including your login and password information to access the domain. Make sure you keep this in a safe place, so when you're ready to build out the site, you don't have a roadblock that pushes you back in the process.

Done? You're one step closer to your own independent website!