Domain Name: Why Do You Need One Anyway?

By: Joe Duchesne
Submitted: 2007-01-17 13:09:23
Print this article | Tell a friend | For publisher | Social Bookmarking
Rating:
 

I come across sites all the time that are obviously hosted for free. Why obviously? Because they have no domain. Having no domain can cost you big time.

You have taken the time to put together a great website. You have collected pictures, designed or bought a nifty template, and filled it with great text. Your website is ready to go. Everything looks great – until you decide to host your site on a free hosting account provided by your ISP. Big mistake.

Having no domain name is no big deal if all that you will ever do with the website is post family pictures. A domain name is mandatory though, if you plan to do business online. If you don't take your business seriously, why should anyone else?

Domain names build trust in your website visitors

One of the biggest barriers to doing business online is the lack of face to face communication. When people can't look into your eyes and size you up in person, they are slower to trust you. In the absence of being able to talk face to face, your website and everything about it, communicates trust, or the lack thereof.

Registering a domain name is an important first step to building the trust your visitor has in you and your company. Always keep in mind that trust is much easier to lose than it is to build in the first place. It takes a long time to build trust but it takes no time at all to destroy it.

Domain names are portable

When you go with a generic website address from your ISP, the few dollars you save per year are far less costly than the lack of mobility to you get with a free website address. You may have hopes that your part time web project will one day lead to a full time income. When you have a free website address, you are stuck to that ISP. In contrast, when you own a domain name, you can take your domain name to any web hosting company you choose.

As the traffic to your website builds and your website climbs in the search listings, changing its name later is impossible without taking a big traffic hit. When you have a domain name however, changing hosts will have very little effect on your traffic. This is even more important if your website is suddenly hit with a major increase in traffic. You may need to change web hosts but if you don't have a domain name, that traffic may disappear. On top of that, if you start using too much bandwidth on your free hosting account, your provider will most likely pull the plug.

Domain names make it easier for your prospects to email you

When you have a domain name, it looks more professional. Having an email like jack@yourdomain.com looks far better and is easier to remember than jack.lastname@yourisp.com. Easier for your prospect translates into more money earned for you.

Domain name registration is a no brainer and something you should do right away.

Joe Duchesne is president of Yowling. Business web hosting and domain registration are two of the services they offer. Reprint freely as long as you keep both clickable links found in this resource box.

Article source: Expert Articles

Most Recent Articles in Domain Names category

  • How To Make Money Online With Domain Parking - By: Melvin Richardson
    If you want to make money online parking domain names is a great way to get started. You purchase your domain name and park it on one of the relevant sites and the advertisements will bring in the cash for you.
  • Cheap Domain Names, Hosting & Registration are Easy To Find Nowadays - By: Joel Mclaughlin
    So you have a dream for a web site, an exciting idea or something you want to accomplish on the web. Well in order to get started on the exciting Internet you must first find a domain name and hosting provider. But not just any provider, we recommend that you find a cheap domain name and cheap domain hosting provider. Your web domain name is an address that points to your web site. Telling the world where to go to find your site. These domain names come in the form of dot com's, dot net's and so on.
  • 1 Year on From Sunrise for the .asia Domain Launch - By: James Betchley
    Nearly a year has passed since Early Bird Sunrise registration began for the coveted new .asia domain extension, the Early Bird Sunrise period (SR2a) was the first opportunity for commercial entities to register a .asia extension. Prior to this, registration was limited to Asian governments wishing to submit their public bodies and culturally or economically important domains during the pre-Sunrise period.
  • What Everybody Ought To Know About Domain Reselling Business - By: Sandra Mathew
    Domain Reselling Business Ethics - Learn how Domain Resellers jumpstart their business in the Domain and Hosting Industry.
  • It's good form to credit your source even when it comes from the public domain - By: Narinderjit Singh
    "Okay, well what will your site be on?" He encouraged me to think about the things in which I was an expert. That wasn't too tough. I've spent five years helping people in crisis find drug addiction treatment. "How about if I help people understand drug addiction treatment." Now he was sure I had taken too many falls, and that they had all been while riding without a helmet. More out of pity than duty, he showed me how to use Overture's bid tool.
  • Domain selection - 5 Tips for choosing a domain name - By: George Pallan
    Domain selection - 5 Tips for choosing a domain name The domain name is a very important part of your website. The careful selection and key wording of your domain name is one of the most crucial part of the initial steps in setting up any website. Here are the 5 tips for choosing a domain name.
  • The Quest for the Perfect Domain Name - By: Christie Cadogan
    The details one has to consider when searching for that perfect domain name. Domain name choices.
  • Choosing a Domain Name for your Success Coaching Business - By: Mikel Bruce
    Your domain name is one of the most important decisions that you can make when you start your business and/or when you decide to invest in a website for your Coaching Practice. Even if you have an established website and domain name, if it does not fit certain standards you may want to consider changing it so that it is a more effective tool for helping you grow your business
  • Benefits of Choosing Reseller Hosting - By: Richa Sinha
    Reseller hosting is a form of web hosting wherein the account owner may split up their allotted hard drive space and bandwidth and resell web hosting. Hence, it acts as a middleman between parent web hosting company and the end customer.
  • Domain name – An Introduction! - By: Richa Sinha
    A domain name is a name that identifies one or more IP address. These are mainly used in URLs to identify particular web page. This article elaborates more about types of domain names.