Small Business Tutorials - Domain Names » Domain Names

How To Choose An Effective Domain Name (That Isn’t Taken!)

Tamara — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 14:20:45 +0000

You know the feeling; upon creating your new business or receiving a client request for a website, you eagerly search for that perfect web address you’ve cooked up, only to find out that it’s unavailable. For extra frustration points, you find that whoever took that domain off the market isn’t even using it! Unless you’re willing to fork over a ton of money or enter in a bidding war, coming up with creative alternatives is your most likely option. If you’re in this position, consider the following tips when choosing your domain name:

Should I consider an alternate Top Level Domain Name?
The Top-Level Domain (TLD) name is the last part of your web address-.org, .com, etc. One of the first options you’ll have after an initial web address comes back unavailable will be to choose a different TLD name. The most widely used (and quickest to sell) is .com, and for good reason: most people, by default, assume a website ends in .com.

That means a good percentage of your visitors may end up on the wrong website if your website ends in .info and there is another similarly-named website address with the more popular .com extension. For that reason, if you do opt for an alternate TLD, it would be wise to check out the similar dot com site and see what your future visitors might behold. You may decide that it would be better to come up with a new name with a .com extension.

Which alternate Top Level Domain is the best for me?
If you’re set on keeping your desired web address and choosing an alternate extension, you have quite a few choices in front of you. The best TLD for you depends on what type of site you are running. Businesses may choose .net (even though it was intended for network-based businesses), .info, or .biz. Nonprofit organizations often use .org, sometimes choosing it over a .com extension. The same is true for .edu (United States accredited educational institutions), and .gov (United States government institutions).

Another option is choosing a country-code TLD, such as .ca for Canada, or .de for Germany. If your target region is familiar with the extension and are likely to use it frequently, this option could work for you. On the other hand, it could also be more difficult for international visitors to find. If you’re not targeting a specific region, your site will be easiest to find with a non-country-code TLD.

What is an appropriate length for a web address?
While a domain name can technically be between two and 63 characters (not including the extension), there is much to be said for keeping things concise. Ideally, you want the address to be easy to recall, so thisreallycoolwebsitenameisntsocoolafterall.com isn’t going to be a good pick (for the record, that was still 20 characters short of the limit). Ideally, you should aim below 20 characters, and less is usually better.

That being said, I wouldn’t recommend shortening your brand name just for the sake of shortening it. Unless your organization is well known by an acronym or abbreviation (like NCAA), you’re better off including the brand name as it is spoken. That’s what people will be searching for, that’s what the search engine spiders will be looking for, so that’s usually the best option (and if your business name is longer than 63 characters, you’ve got other problems on your hands!).

How do I choose the perfect domain name?
Ideally, your domain name is your brand name, plain and simple. But, if you’re one of the unfortunate many that don’t get their first pick of domain names, there are alternatives. One option is to add a keyword – for instance, mrdealer.com could be mrdealercars.com. We all know keywords can’t hurt search engine rankings, so if you can keep it short and relevant, this is a great option. If your site depends on getting discovered through organic searches, adding keywords could help drive more search engine traffic to your site. And the hyphen? Make it a last resort, as many people forget to type it, and could end up on the wrong site.

Lin Edwards is a content and technical writer for Small Business Domain, an online resource for coupons, promo codes, editor reviews, ratings and more for e-commerce, web hosting and domain name companies. Find Yahoo domains coupons, reveiws and more!

XXX Sunrise B Period Sept 7th – Oct 28th 2011 – Brand Trademark Protection

Mike Valentine — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 16:36:46 +0000

Brands Can Protect their trademark during the ICM Registry .XXX Sunrise B, Available Sept 7th – Oct 28th 2011

Non-adult companies with trademarked brands can pay a single one-time fee of just $199.99 to block registration of the domain for ten years. Best to take the opportunity now to protect your brand and copyrights – if you delay until after General Availability, the amount to protect your trademark will become significantly more costly as you’ll be paying an on-going annual fee.

Protected XXX domains will resolve to a common page that declares that it is reserved via the ICM Registry rights-protection program.

To qualify, you must submit the following information with your application:

Date of trademark submission & registration (must have been registered prior to January 2011)
Trademark name
Trademark registration #
Country in which trademark is registered
Status of applicant (i.e. Owner, Licensee or Assignee)
Registration class

No guarantees are given for the success of Sunrise B applications. You should receive an email to confirm the submission of your application and then following the close of Sunrise B to confirm.

The $199.99 application fee for the Sunrise B period is non-refundable.

Applicants who own an adult industry trademark or adult industry domain may take priority over applicants attempting to pre-register a .XXX domain with a non-adult trademark or domain seeking to block non-adult brands in domain names.

Only registered owners, licensees or assignees of eligible trademarks will be able to apply for protection of their brand during the Sunrise B period.

All applicants must adhere to the .XXX registry’s policies located here.

* Trademark owners will pay a one time fee of $199.99 to block their associated brand from registration under .XXX domains for ten years. Reservations to block the brand domain will be subject to the Registry (ICM) terms and/or any change in the Registry Agreement (which can be reviewed at ICM Registry terms page).

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.XXX Domains & Brand Protection for Businesses (Video)

Mike Valentine — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 16:17:56 +0000

Adult XXX Domain Names Launch - Brands Protection

The Sunrise B Registration period, set aside specifically to allow business brand names to prevent the XXX domain extension from being used on their brands by adult web sites. The goal of this registration period is to give protection to businesses by providing the option of blocking registration on recognized brands to holders of copyright. The ICM Registry will honor requests from all brand holders for a one-time fee.

Transcript below

Brand Managers Prepare for .XXX Sunrise

Let’s be adult about it. The Internet is home to large volumes of adult content which is here stay. A new sponsor top level domain called Dot triple X is being launched in September, to clearly sign post adult entertainment on the Internet, the availability of the domain puts Internet users in control of the content that they want to view.

With adult triple x namespace directly indicating to consumers if a website is likely to contain adult material, they can now make an informed decision about content they wish to select or avoid. We understand that dot triple x is not for everyone, and that some businesses may not want to be associated with the domain.

That’s why we’re advising them to wake up the dot triple X sunrise. Dot triple X sunrise is a limited period which both permits domain registration for members in the adult entertainment business and also assists brand managers from other industries who want to protect their trademarks ahead of wider availability.

Dot triple X sunrise will run for fifty days from the 7th of September to the 28th of October, and has been divided into Sunrise A and B. Running concurrently, Sunrise A registers interest from the sponsored adult community, while Sunrise B has been specifically designed for companies outside the adult industry.

Sunrise B offers trademark holders an exclusive timeframe, where they can choose to opt out of the domain and exempt their brands of intellectual property permanently from dot triple-x. For a low, one opt processing fee, businesses can be secure in the knowledge that their web addresses will not be registered by others at a later date without any recurring charges.

If you or you company have trademark rights on any term of national effect, you are eligible to apply to opt in or opt out. Simply visit ICM Registry. The operator administering the Dot Triple X Domain, at www.icmregistry.com, and here you can view the list of ICANN accredited registrars. will be handling the sunrise process.

The weather side will also give you more details about the dot triple x launch, and what this means for your business. Following sunrise a land rush period will begin. This phase, which lasts for eighteen days, allows non-trademark members within the adult entertainment industry to register for dot triple x domain names ahead of the general launch.

The final phase, from the sixth of December, will see dot triple x open for general availability, protecting your trademark after the general launch could prove more difficult, expensive and time consuming. We believe it’s better to be proactive when it comes to avoiding brand conflicts. So now is the time to wake up to Sunrise.

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The press release announcing the Sunrise application period follows below:

Brands Managers Have 50 Days To Wake Up To .XXX Sunrise

July 17, 2011

ICM Registry extends Sunrise period following 900,000 expressions of interest for new TLD

17 July 2011, Palm Beach, FL – ICM Registry, the company behind .XXX, today announces it will be extending its Sunrise period due to the volume of prelaunch interest in the domain. The new sponsored top-level domain (sTLD) going live later this year, has been created to clearly signpost adult entertainment on the Internet and to meet the needs of the adult entertainment industry. ICM Registry received nearly 900,000 expressions of interest for .XXX domain names during its pre-reservation process.

The “Sunrise” period, due to commence in fifty days time, has been designed to both permit domain registration from members in the adult entertainment business, and to assist brand managers from other industries who want to protect their trademarks ahead of wider availability. The new Sunrise period will now run for 50 days commencing 7th September 2011 and finishing on 28th October 2011. The extended period will enable ICM Registry to receive and process all applications from existing domain name and trademark owners who have applied to either opt their brand in or out of the .XXX registry.

While ICM Registry holds responsibility for administering the .XXX domain name, it is working closely with individual domain registrars – the vendors handling the registration and exemption process for .XXX. The one-off fee to exempt, set by individual registrars, provides businesses with a cost-effective solution which to permanently safeguard their Intellectual Property (IP) within the .XXX registry. This service, which ensures web addresses are not registered by others at a later date, is without annual fees, and will only be available to rights owners during the restricted Sunrise period.

Stuart Lawley, CEO of ICM Registry said, “We believe the Sunrise period offers businesses a comprehensive rights protection mechanism where they can protect their brands and trademarks. We are advising businesses to either opt-in or opt-out and want to give them the best opportunity to do so at the launch of our new TLD. Given the high level of interest in the domain, we see that many businesses wish to be proactive in avoiding any brand conflicts.”

After the close of Sunrise, a Land Rush period will run for 18 days where businesses from the adult entertainment industry will have premium access to remaining .XXX web addresses, following which general availability will ensue. Sunrise applicants using registered marks to qualify will be required to own a subsisting trade or service mark registration of national effect.

Jonathan Robinson, Director, IPRota said “Although the .XXX extension is targeted at the adult entertainment industry, brand owners from any industry will need to be aware of its launch. The Sunrise period offers brand managers a unique opportunity to secure relevant trademarked terms ahead of wider availability, effectively safeguarding them.”

Lawley also added, “We wanted to take an innovative approach to the launch of .XXX and show best practice at all stages including investing in a global awareness campaign. ICM Registry believes in consumer choice, and while we believe the .XXX will satisfy the needs of the sponsored community, we recognise there is also an audience who would like to opt-out and safeguard their IP prior to the domain going live”.

The pre-reservation for .XXX is now closed, with on-going enquiries being handled by ICANN accredited registrars.

For more information, please see http://www.icmregistry.com

For media enquiries please contact:

Giles Barron
Email: giles.barron@diffusionpr.com
Tel: +44 20 7025 1504

Notes to editors

About ICM Registry

ICM Registry, headquartered in Florida, is the registry operator for the .XXX sponsored top-level domain as approved by ICANN in 2011. ICM provides the management and supporting infrastructure for this extension offered via registrars throughout the world.

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What type of domain should I get for my website?

Mike Valentine — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 15:45:45 +0000

Certified Domains

One type of domain is the certified domain. The certified domain adds
instant credibility to a website, and this is a positive thing for a new
site. Websites are always being added to the Internet, and people do not
always know which of these websites are trustworthy. Some people introduce
websites with the purpose of being in business for a short period of time.
These are not necessarily scams, but people like to purchase products from
websites they believe will be in existence in the future in the event that
they have an issue with the product and need to contact someone from the
company about it.

In order to assure customers that the website owner is in business for the
long-term, a certified domain is needed. When a domain is certified, the
website owner???s information has been verified. The information that the
website owner gave to the company where the domain was purchased such as
name, address and phone number is now known to be the truth, and the
website owners??? names then appear in the WHOIS display page, the place
where consumers can look up website owner contact information. After the
domain has been certified, website owners are entitled to place the
certified seal on their websites??? home pages.

Domain Aliases

Website owners purchase a domain name that takes the people who type it
into their browsers to their home pages. These same website owners purchase
a second domain with the purpose of sending their customers to the same
home page. This second domain name is known as a domain alias. An added
bonus is that purchasing domain aliases has the effect of making a website
look more relevant in Google’s eyes.

The other reason to purchase domain aliases is to capture several niche
markets. Each domain name can be made of a keyword that describes a
different product that the website has to sell. This brings targeted
customers to the website with each consumer having the ability to type in
the different products they are looking for into their browsers and then
coming to the same website.

What Is the Best Choice of Domain Name?

The best choice for a domain name is the keyword or keyword phrase that
describes what the website has to offer. If the website is selling
computers, then the best choice is www.computers.com. As this will,
undoubtedly, be a highly expensive domain name to purchase, it will be more
likely that a new website owner can find a domain by looking for a niche
phrase. For example, the company may sell computer accessories such as
computer desks. The website owner can search to see if the domain name
www.computerdesks.com has been taken. As this is a longer name, it has more
of a chance of being available, and the website owner can then purchase it.

Where to Purchase Domain Names

Domain names can be purchased from the same companies where people have
their web hosting. With web hosting, a website can be presented to the
Internet on the company???s web server, which is the public entity where
the website???s pages have been saved. Once these pages exist on the web
server, customers are free to enter in keywords and be taken to the
website.

A certified domain name will put the customers at ease, because they will
know that the website has been verified by a third party. Several alias
domains will let the website owner target different keywords and keyword
phrases. Domain names that have the keyword phrase in them will be seen as
more relevant by the search engines. Keep these three things in mind when
choosing a domain name and the perfect name for a website will be close at
hand.

Author’s Bio: Chloe Henderson is 23 year old media practitioner who engages herself in
the world of social networking, gadgets and reading. She is also doing some
freelance writing on several web hosting companies and is currently with webhostingsearch.com
and loves to write stuffs about anything that would interest her, sharing
it to the world wide web.

Video: Generic Top Level Domain Names Mean Dot Anything

Mike Valentine — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 02:15:14 +0000

Transcript:

The Internet is about to experience a dramatic and important change that will affect every user. Today, web addresses end with familiar extensions such as .com and .org. Soon there could be hundreds more of these dot extensions. They’re called generic top level domains, or GTLD’s. What do new GTLD’s mean for you?

This video will help you find out. In order to understand what exactly is changing and how it will affect you, let’s look behind the scenes at how domain names work. This is known as a Generic Top Level Domain. Today there are only 22 such GTLD’s. After the top level comes the second level. When you register a domain name, you’re actually creating an unique combination of a first and second level name.

Let’s say you want to register example.com. You are the registrant and you acquire the name using a registrar accredited by ICANN. The registrar checks with the registry and if the name you want is available, then you get to use it. Note that the registry is who makes your domain name function technically.

The registry puts your domain name in the right databases so the rest of the internet can find you. Until now, there have been millions of possible domain names on the second level, but fewer than two dozen generic domain possibilities at the top level, and that’ s what is about to change.

With ICANN’s new GTLD program the internet name space will expand. Soon you could create and manage a top level domain of your own choosing. Why would you want to? First, if your organization runs its own TLD, your organization sets the rules. You can make your TLD as inclusive or exclusive as you want.

For example, you can sell second level domain registrations at a price you choose, or you could decide not to sell them at all. Maybe you issue them only to your employees. You could offer specialized security services, or perhaps you want all the web addresses in your TLD work in your native alphabet.

It’s up to you. If you represent a community or cultural preservation group, a TLD might provide a rallying point where the Internet celebrates what you value. If you represent a government or municipality, a TLD could help your populace share views or find vital information. New GTLDs can be internationalized domain names which incorporate character sets, such as Chinese, Arabic, Cyrillic, or any non-western alphabet.

That one fact opens the Internet to masses of new users.

Business might also be interested in new GTLD’s. If you make your brand a TLD, customers might feel more confident that sites under your domain are really you. A dot brand TLD can mean better brand control, new investment opportunities, and a chance to show your leadership in Internet technology. Just as no one predicted the dot com boom, no one can predict all the innovative ways new GTLD’s will be used.

Who knows what the next big “dot thing” will be? I’ve talked about why you would want your own GTLD. Why wouldn’t you want one? First, to operate a TLD is to be in charge of dot somethings. You’re not merely registering a second level domain. You are an organization running a registry responsible for a piece of internet infrastructure.

Second, operating a TLD takes a substantial investment. Just to apply for a generic top level domain costs 185,000 U.S. Dollars or more. You need to be well capitalized to start and operate a TLD business.

Third, this process is not fast. Applications will go through an evaluation that takes several months. A new GTLD won’t be available for internet users until almost a year after applications are first accepted.

Finally, operating a registry requires skill in a lot of business realms, including technical, legal, financial and marketing. To investigate the opportunities new GTLD’s offer, you’d be wise to get help from experts familiar with the domain name industry. The process of applying for a new GTLD is not trivial.

Your proposed new top level domain must pass through several checkpoints, and so must your organization. You can learn all about the application requirements in a document called “The Applicant Guidebook“, available online. If you decide not to apply, you should still watch new GTLD’s develop. You might spot new ways to compete, or think of an innovative business model.

And wouldn’t you want to know if your competitors apply for a TLD? If anyone applies for your brand or your cause, you can object. So you should keep paying attention. The internet is changing. ICANN expects hundreds of applications for an incredible variety of new top level domains that will introduce competition, innovation and choice.

Running a new TLD is not for everybody. But you have to admit, the potential is amazing. The question that remains is, what will be the next big “dot” thing? And the answer might be, you name it.

New Generic Top Level Domains (gTLD) Approved by ICANN

Mike Valentine — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 16:01:08 +0000

ICANN has announced the release of new generic top level domains gTLD’s making changes in domains possible and potentially creating new registrars for the second level domains. The video below from ICANN discusses the idea of brands reserving a gTLD and potentially branding the second level domains. There’s a significant cost to buying gTLD’s – $185,000 and a long approval process – up to a year wait – so this will never be a trivial decision. It does seem to favor big brands however, due to the cost and the required infrastructure and business processes needed to manage a gTLD.

Let’s look at an example:

Apple computer reserves the gTLD .apple and now has the option of creating second level domains under multiple products:

iphone.apple
ipad.apple
macbook.apple
itunes.apple
iphoto.apple
safari.apple

But taking that further – those who purchase more generic terms could actively sell second level domains under their top level domain. Let’s say .pizza – builds a registrar around selling the second level domains. A small business could own .pizza under this structure and sell to local businesses worldwide:

marios.pizza
tasty.pizza
smalltown.pizza
cheesy.pizza
mushroom.pizza
mainstreet.pizza

But will big brands start to snap up gTLD’s to prevent competitors from locking them up? What if Domino’s is first to buy .pizza and won’t sell – either to small local restaurants or to competing brands on the second level? If competitors play nice – (how likely is that), they could agree to share a gTLD. Since the owner of a generic top level domain can decide whether or not to sell second level domains under them, it may mean some become widely available and some won’t. Seems like ICANN could be in a position to make some tough decisions.

dominos.pizza
papajohns.pizza
roundtable.pizza
tombstone.pizza
digornos.pizza

What is more likely that the above scenario is that big brands will jump in to attempt to control the generic names for their products. If they do that – there will be very few gTLD’s that are widely sold. Perhaps I’m a bit cynical, but I see some bigger battles on the horizon than we’ve seen around simple trademark disputes for second level domains.

gTLD ICANN Video Transcript

Godaddy New .Co Girl SuperBowl Commercial

Mike Valentine — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 01:43:16 +0000

GoDaddy Superbowl Commercial New .co Girl Joan Rivers is shown in this video as a hot model by using some serious CGI work to implant her head on a hot model body.

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Mike Valentine — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 01:59:39 +0000

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Save 15% on Domain Name & Hosting Order of $40 or More

Mike Valentine — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 16:15:34 +0000

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Facebook Paid $8.5 Million to Acquire Fb.com

Mike Valentine — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:50:53 +0000

FaceBook, formerly TheFaceBook.com (2005) is now the proud owner of FB.com – and I predict it’s use as a URL shortener and/or an email domain for all of those with {profile.name}@facebook.com email addresses. The social network paid 8.5 Million dollars for the domain. Here’s a Mashable post announcing the sale based on financial records of the Farm Bureau.

Facebook acquired the domain sometime last year from the American Farm Bureau Federation, which uses fb.org as its primary domain. At its annual meeting in Atlanta, the non-profit revealed that it earned $8.5 million on the sale of fb.com, according to Reuters.

The last high-profile domain purchase by Facebook was for Facebook.com, all the way back when it was known as TheFacebook.

via Facebook Paid $8.5 Million to Acquire Fb.com.