Steps to getting your website:
Getting your domain name
Choosing
Thankfully, getting a domain name is probably the easiest part of the process, but it is definitely worth getting this right.
Ideally, your domain name should either:
- Be your business / company name or an abbreviation - eg. www.fredsmotors.com
- Describe what you're selling - eg. www.usedcars.com
- Contain a keyword which is relatively unique, or specific to your product - often, the company name is unique enough
- Be a combination of the above
- or, be like none of the above and go for something really off track: for example, http://0x000000.com/ is a hacker webzine which makes a reference only "geeks" will understand.
After you've decided what the main part will be, you need to consider the extension:
| .com | (stands for 'commercial') |
| .net | (stands for 'network') |
| .org | (stands for 'organisation') |
The above are the primary, more "global" domains; '.com' being probably the most desirable. Alternatively, you may prefer a UK-specific domain:
| .co.uk | (stands for 'company in the UK') |
| .org.uk | (stands for 'network in the UK') |
| .net.uk | (stands for 'organisation in the UK') |
These domains may better represent a UK company or organisation, and are also a lot cheaper.
The costs for domains is really very low, so you may want to consider multiple domains which point to the same website. However, you should also decide on one to be the "primary" address, so when you start to advertise, you have some consistency between your printed media and your online presence.
Importantly, the company which registers your domain name doesn't have to be the same company which provides your web hosting. It can make life easier (especially when it comes to billing), but it's not the end of the world if your domain name registrars are somewhere else. When paying for a domain name, make sure that a) one doesn't come free with your hosting, and b) that you're not paying for ancillary services which are either unnecessary or duplicates of what you'll get with your hosting account. There's no point in paying £50 per annum for a domain which includes email forwarding when your hosting account may include a complete email service.
Costs
On average, you should be paying about £10 + VAT per two years for a co.uk/org.uk domain, and about £20 - 25 + VAT for a .com/.net/.org. If it's any more or less, ask why.
Potential problems
Occasionally, problems can arise when a domain name registrar charges for a "release" - that is, releasing the domain name to another company. Check the small print first, or your important business domain may be stuck with a company you no longer want unless you pay a hefty fee.
Most domain name registrars will normally be quite flexible and happy to perform services such as re-pointing the DNS (Domain Name Service) entry to your hosting provider. Some will even let you change them yourselves via a web interface. If they don't, then find a better company.