So you’re about to set off on a grand adventure into the wild, wild web.

The first thing you’re going to need is a domain name.

Now, getting a domain name is different from getting a website built although many hosting companies will provide them to you.

You can buy a domain name from many different web companies that supply them.

Shop around – prices vary wildly for exactly the same domain name.

It doesn’t matter where you buy it as long as you are free to point it to whichever hosting service you choose.

RULE #1: ALWAYS BUY YOUR OWN DOMAIN NAME.

Never agree to build a website on someone else’s domain. Buy your own domain and make sure you have full control over it.

With your own domain name, a web company cannot hold you hostage. You can easily move to another hosting provider while keeping your domain name.

You should also avoid “free” domains and subdomains that sit on someone else’s proprietary domain. A subdomain looks like this: http://subdomainof.someone-elses-primary-domain.com

In the case of subdomains, the owner of the primary domain can make it very difficult (and/or expensive) for you to switch providers especially if the relationship turns sour.

You do not own the subdomain, they do.

If you do not have your own copy of the website files sitting within your control, you may find it’s at their discretion whether they are released to you to enable you to move.

Starting over again from scratch, especially when you have invested heavily in setting up a site and attracting traffic, really, really sucks.

Worse still, if someone on the primary domain starts spamming, your website could inadvertently be penalized by search engines for it.

RULE #2: GET YOUR COUNTRY DOMAIN NAME FIRST.

(And, no, it’s not patriotism.)

Get your country domain name first (that is, the country in which your business is located and trades).

For example, if you have a business in Australia, get the com.au version of your business or brand name. If you’re in the United Kingdom, a co.uk is for you.

Google presents local results first to local searchers. You want to be priority listed in the country you trade in, don’t you?

RULE #3: SHOP AROUND. DOMAIN NAMES VARY WILDLY IN PRICE.

Don’t get ripped off. You don’t have to buy from a more expensive provider. Domain names are cheap and commodity items. It doesn’t matter where you buy it, what matters is that you have complete control over where it is pointed.

RULE #4: TAKE OUT INSURANCE AGAINST CYBERSQUATTERS.

Buy the different variations if they are available. (I call it insurance.)

Cybersquatters are opportunists that seek to benefit from the traffic your site generates. The bigger your site, the more likely it is to attract a cybersquatter.

Cybersquatting is using a domain name with bad-faith intent to profit from the goodwill of a trademark belonging to someone else.

Typosquatting is a form of cybersquatting, based on the probability that a certain number of Internet users will mistype the name of a URL when surfing.

There is more information about cybersquatting at Wikipedia.

The best way to avoid cyber squatting is to take your domain variations off the market. So, this means variations such as:

— com.au and net.au variations (if like me you’re in Australia)
— Singular and plural variations
— International equivalents if you trade overseas
— Variations with dashes (such as www.my-company.com.au)

Expect to pay about $35.00 for a 2 year domain name registration fee for .au domains, and about $10.00 per year for .com.

(Taking domains off the market has to be the cheapest business insurance around and solves a cybersquat problem.)

RULE #5: CHOOSING BETWEEN BUSINESS OR BRAND DOMAINS AND KEYWORD GENERICS.

You should always take your business domain off the market so no-one else can buy the rights to use it.

After that, take a look around to see if the keyword and generic domains are still available. For example:

www.widgetcompany.com.au (the name of the company)
www.widgets.com.au (the category generic)

It doesn’t matter how many domains you have since they can all be redirected to a primary website. In Australia, however, you cannot buy domains that don’t apply to you or where you do not have the trademark for them. More about the rules at AuDA.

EXTRA DOMAIN NAME TIPS.

How To Track Down Domain Name Owners.

Here are a couple of sources you can use to track down domain owners:
1. The website itself
2. AusRegistry for Australian domain names
3. WhoIS for international domain names.

Premium Domain Names.

There are reports that some web companies have cookies enabled in their servers that capture information about what domains people are looking for. When the person goes back a few days later, the domain is flagged as a “premium domain” and a higher price is asked for it.

If this happens to you, visit an alternative supplier of domain names and check its availability through there.

Where To Go If There Is A Problem.

The administrator of domain names in Australia is AuDA . It handles complaints related to domain names and domain name resellers or registrars.

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Everything you need to know about web hosting.

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