Domain Names

Are you in need of a Web Hosting service?

2008-10-06T08:22:00.002-07:00

There are many reasons that people have websites, some of the main reasons are as a way of getting products or services to a bigger audience or to provide information to people about a specific subject area, also people use their websites as a way of providing entertainment to people.

What ever you want to set up a website for the one thing that you will need no matter what is web hosting so thankfully for you there are numerous companies who can offer you this service but just what is web hosting? It is the business of housing, serving, and maintaining files for one or more of your websites.

Web hosting provides you with a service that stores your website space on a server, which is a specialised computer specifically for this duty. A web hosting company also provides you with a fast connection to the Internet so using a web hosting company lets many services share the cost of a fast Internet connection for serving files as doing it yourself would be very pricey.

Web hosting is a service that provides your web site with a connection to the Internet via a web server and high speed internet connection. This means that your websites content is then of easy access to anyone around the world on any day and at any time; you are basically renting a piece of the Internet, in the same sort of way that you would be renting a room or flat. This is because you are paying a monthly fee to keep your website on the Internet but this monthly fee also covers you if any technical problems occur, so if you are having problems with your website and you need them sorted then the technical team in charge of your website will do this for you, which will save you time and money as you won’t have to get the problem fixed yourself.

The main job of a web hosting company is to allocate space for customers to showcase their websites on servers that are continually connected to the Internet. Within web hosting there are many different types available, most of which come with certain capabilities for users such as interactive functions, forms, bulletin boards, guest books, etc and when it comes to professional purposes there are hosting services that offer commercial packages that bundle business tools, like point of sales packages and credit card processing.

Web hosting is what allows people to see your website, without web hosting your website would pretty much not exist as no one would be able to see it. This emphasises the importance of web hosting and why it is of so much value to your site.

There are different levels of web hosting available, meaning the price of web hosting can vary but even if you opt for the most advanced forms of web hosting they aren’t too badly priced so you will always have a good deal when it comes to finding the perfect hosting for your website.

Discount Domains are exactly what you need when it comes to finding the perfect company for all of your Web Hosting needs.

Domain Name Do’s and Don’ts

2008-10-06T08:22:00.001-07:00

Domain names are classed as the building blocks of the internet. Having the right domain name is key to your site. It is also important to name your site the same as your domain name. The simple reason behind this is that people will remember your site by its domain name, not by its URL.

Domain names can be of any length up to 67 characters, however the shorter the domain name the easier it is for your site to be remembered and the less susceptible it will be to people making mistakes when typing it in to their internet browser.

However it is proving more difficult to get short domain names now as most have already been taken. As well as avoiding long domain names you should also avoid the use of hyphenated names. There are several reasons why hyphenated names should be avoided as domain names that are hyphenated are difficult to remember and hard to type. If someone recommends your site to another person they will only remember the words used, not the fact it is hyphenated so that person would then search for your site based on the words and end up at another site, which could possibly be your competitor.

If you are in the business of selling pens you can rest assure that the domain name pens.com has already been taken. You have to be imaginative when it comes to choosing your domain name. If you are selling pens why not try the domain name pensworld.com or worldofpens.com. You should always make sure that your key word, i.e. the item you are selling is featured in your domain name this way if someone search’s for your site via a search engine, such as Google, msn or yahoo, your site has more of a chance of showing up.

As well as featuring your keyword in your domain name it is important to remember that the more your keyword appears in the text on your site, the more of a chance your site has of being listed in search engine results. Being listed in search engine results means that your site has more of a chance of people choosing to buy off you as oppose to your competitors.

If your website is focused on providing an accident claim service then the keywords that you need to include throughout the text on your site are things such as accidents, claims, personal injury, no win no fee and compensation. By including a range of keywords throughout your site you are increasing your search engine ranking and your site will have more of a chance of appearing on several different search engine results.

Another aspect that has to be taken into consideration when deciding on your domain name is whether you are going to have a dot com or a dot co dot UK. The answer to this really lies with whether you want international business branding or just UK business branding. If you want to focus your business internationally then a dot com domain will work best for you as you can appeal to a global market. However if you want UK business branding then a dot co dot UK will work best.

If you are hoping to register a domain then hurry or your idea will be snapped up by someone else and all the good domain names will be taken.

Helen Cox is the web master of Article Alley, home of all of your Domain Name needs.

What is a Domain Reseller and why do you need one?

2008-10-06T08:21:00.000-07:00

A reseller is a company or individual that purchases goods or services with the intention of reselling them rather than consuming or using them. A good example of this is PEF inc. a business in the USA. This is usually done for profit (but could be resold at a loss). One example can be found in telecommunications, where companies buy excess amounts of transmission capacity or call time from other carriers and resell it to smaller carriers.

Another example of this occurs on the Internet where individuals or companies act as agents for ICANN accredited registrars. They either sell on commission or for profit and in most cases, but not all, the purchase from the registrar and the sale to the ultimate buyer occurs in real time. These resellers are not to be confused with speculators, who purchase many domain names with the intention of holding them and selling them at some future time at a profit. Resellers, by the very nature of their business are retailers.

Another common example on the Internet is in the web hosting area, where a reseller will purchase bulk hosting from a supplier with the intention of reselling it to a number of consumers at a profit. If you are a reseller within the web hosting/domain area then you will be able to establish your own brand name as well as being able to control the features, pricing and content of the packages that you offer. It means you also have full control of the marketing and sales strategy.

Due to the advantages of becoming a domain reseller, many people are now turning to becoming a reseller themselves, but just what are these advantages? For one becoming a domain reseller offers you the opportunity to start and maintain a business with little start up cost, sound to good to be true? Well you better start believing because being a reseller can generate additional income from your web site.

Some of the other advantages associated with becoming a domain reseller are as follows:

• Minimal Initial Investment
• You can set own prices
• Allows you to provide other services in conjunction with reselling
• Have access to hosting small, medium and large sites
• You do not need a wealth of technical knowledge
• It gives you increased flexibility
• You gain a saving on overall hosting costs
• Develop a premiere reputation if customers are satisfied; which will develop into customer loyalty

Being a domain reseller gives you many benefits and advantages when it comes to the world of the Internet and many web based companies are starting to take advantage of everything that the world of domain reselling has to offer; now it’s your turn.

Get in involved in the world of domain reselling today and make the most of this new venture straight away so you don’t miss out.

Discount Domains is one of the leading companies when it comes to domain reselling so for all of your Domain Reseller needs contact us today.

Register a Cheap Domain Name - Here's How

2006-12-01T07:27:00.001-08:00

Register a Cheap Domain Name - Here's How

Author: Eddie Atkinson
With more and more individuals and businesses surfing the internet for products, services and information, it's becoming more evident every day that in order to be taken seriously in the business world, you need to build your identity on the World Wide Web. The first step in this somewhat tedious process is to register your domain name.

Primarily, there are three major steps within this process, the first of which is finding a reputable registrar to work with. Fly-by-night operations fill the web with many empty promises, so be sure to check the credibility of your chosen registrar before ordering. The Better Business Bureau is just one means of checking into a company. Customer references are another.

There are plenty of domain name registrars out there for you to research, so don't allow one bad apple to spoil the bunch.There are many different types of domain registrars that exist on the net. You will find many that are pricey, as well as many that are very cheap. Do your homework on the company at hand, making sure that you're not buying more than you need to keep the cost down. One caveat- if the price is too cheap, customer service might not be their forte.

The best registrars have a balance of good customer service and affordable pricing.Next on the agenda is deciding on an extension for your domain name. You will have many options: .com for a global commercial site, .org for a global organization (typically non-profit), or your country's extension- .us for the United States, .ca for Canada, .uk for the United Kingdom, etc.

Most reputable registrars offer all of the common domain name extensions, but double check that your registrar offers the extension you need. The final step is the choice of other services offered by your registrar of choice, including web hosting your site, email services directed to your new domain name (yourname@yoursite.com), as well as building blocks for you to add to your site as your company grows.

A quality registrar's web site will be able to assist you with picking out the appropriate services, as well as the proper amount of these services, to best fill your company needs. While shopping for the ideal company to register your own domain name can be painstaking work, the end result of your efforts will be the representation of you and your business on the World Wide Web.Eddie Atkinson recommends Names Beyond to register a cheap domain name.
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Domain Name Registration: Steps and Tips

2006-12-01T07:24:00.000-08:00

Domain Name Registration: Steps and Tips

Author: James B
The domain name registration process is not too difficult, but it can take some time (usually 24-72 hrs) before your domain name "propagates" throughout the internet. I find that it normally takes less than 20 hrs, so keep that time in mind. "Propagation" is simply the fact that it takes a while for your site to become visible on the internet due to a process called DNS (domain name server) transfer and various databases that have to be updated.

Although the domain name registration process is fairly easy, there are a few things that you should be aware of:Steps to follow before a domain name transfer:1. Don't just register any domain name that you like or that sounds good to you, except if your company name is well known. Do a bit of keyword research and see if you can incorporate your main keyword into the domain name. 2. Get your hosting account first, since you'll need the DNS information during the domain name registration process. If you register the domain name first, the DNS information will point to your registrar's servers until you transfer it. 3. Don't just go for the cheapest registrar.

Remember, you normally get what you pay for... however, you shouldn't have to pay more than $10 a year for a domain name.Steps and tips to follow during the domain name registration process:1. Choose your favorite registrar and register with them to get yourself a username and password. Each domain name registrar will have their own policies and procedures, so make sure that you read everything carefully before you register your domain name.

You'll also learn a lot by doing that.2. Log into your account and type in your domain name to check if it's available.3. Always register the .com version of a domain name wherever possible. If the .com extension of a domain name is not available, then register a .net or .org extension. However, try your best to register a .com domain by adding words like 2u, 4u at the back or words such as first, best or anything else that will fit in front. You can also use domain name spinner software to help you choose your domain name.4. Make sure that you register your domain name for at least 5-10 years.

Wow! I'll probably get a lot of flak for this, but it helps to establish credibility with the search engines. Just don't ask me where I got this information from, since it's extremely valuable.I normally register my domain names for 5 years, but 10 is better. I know that it's a bit expensive, but if you make a great site, you'll easily recover your investment.5. Don't register domain names with dashes. There's too many of them around already and it looks silly (uhm... just my personal opinion). The main advantage however is that domain names without dashes also establishes credibility with the search engines. Avoid dashes at all costs.6.

Try and make your domain name as short as possible or at least something that can easily be remembered. After you have registered your domain name, make sure that the registrar lock function is activated otherwise someone else might be able to transfer your domain name without your permission. This is extremely important, since you don't want to loose your domain name... and your shirt when someone else steals it from you.7. Once the domain name registration process is complete, you should transfer your DNS information to your host. The sooner the better. When you sign up with your host, they'll normally send you the DNS info along with your activation email or you can go to their forums (if they have one) and have a look around. If all else fails, use their technical support. Most registrars require two DNS addresses and it looks something like this: ns1.cowboy-server.com, ns2.cowboy-server.com

While this is by no means a comprehensive guide to the domain name registration process, it's more or less what you should do and be aware of. About the author: James B. is the Webmaster and Content Writer at Web Site Domain Names 2u.com

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Your Own .Com

2006-12-01T07:06:00.001-08:00

Your Own .Com

Author: Art Luff

Before obtaining your web site you'll need to have and register a domain name for your site. Now a domain name is nothing more than the web address that potential clients and customers will use to locate your site. This is also called the URL of the website. This is what you and your customers will type into their internet browsers top window in order to go to a specific website. Your web sites theme should be built around you domain name. So taking care to chose the right domain name is very important. You'll want your domain name to say something that describes the content or theme of your site.

This can't be stressed enough. The availability of your domain may take some trial and error. Since there are so many sites coming online every day, it stands to reason that your first choice, in all probability, will not be available. It may take many variations of your domain name of choice before you find one that is available. However, there are services available in the internet that offers domain name search.

These websites will search for similar domain names and tell you if the domain name you chose is unique or if it is unavailable before you register it. When creating a website, thinking of a domain name for your website is the first thing you have to do. The next step would be finding out if your domain name is taken or if it is available. It can be very frustrating to find out that your chosen domain name is already being used and is unavailable.

This is why it is recommended that you should think of several potential domain names for your website and try them out one by one. To check for your domain name availability, there are websites that offer domain name search. These services usually come from websites that offer domain name registration. Your domain name can also be the same as other domain names, provided that the extension is different. An example of a domain name extension is the ".com". Today, there are different kinds of domain name extension. Here are some examples: ? .com? .info? .biz? .net? .usAny and All of these extensions may be used for your upcoming website.

If at all possible, try and stick with the .com extension.It is the most widely used and if you or a potential visitor forgets the extention. Your machine, will by default, resolve to the .com extension.As I said before, the process of chosing your domain name may take a bit of time since there are thousands of new domains coming online every day. All needing and looking for a domain name. You'll be amazed at just how many variations of your particular domain will come back as unavailable. Don't give up. You'll eventually get the one you want.

Once you chose an available domain name for your website, the next step would be registering it. This can be done right from the source of search. If not there are numerous domain registration websites that offer this service. Domain name registration websites usually charges a fee for their domain name registration services. These websites differ in prices for domain name registration services; it is up to you to choose what domain name registration website you want to use.

My choice would be Go-Daddy.com or Yahoo.com. Both have specials that offer your first years registration fee for cheap. Only to revert back to the regular $8.99 per year for the 2nd and 3rd years.After registering your domain name, you will now be ready to create your website. Always remember that before creating a website, you will first need a domain name in order for you to put the contents of your website on the internet.Art Luff is Webmaster/Owner of http://www.yournamecheap.com/ Visit his site to chose and register your domain for just $4.99 per year.
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Whois

2006-12-01T07:01:00.000-08:00

Whois

Author: abul kashem
AUTHOR NAME: Ameet ArurkarWhois is a TCP query tool which allows users to sort through a database to find information about the owner of a IP address or domain. These searches are done via the internet, and were originally conducted with a command line interface.

However, much of this equipment has been greatly simplified, and information can be accessed from multiple databases. Whois is used by a number of adminstrators.Originally, Whois was used by system administrators who wanted to look up information on other system adminstrators using their IP address or domain.

The use of whois lookup has evolved, and it is now used for either benevolent or corrupt purposes by people who are not system admins. The information within Whois is stored in one of two ways, and these are thick or thin. When a thick method for storing information is used, a single whois lookup server will store all the information for a operator.With a thin model, the name of the whois server for a operator that holds the full information on the report will be looked up. If the information which is pulled up is not understood, the data from a thin lookup may be used as well.

One of the problems with the whois lookup is that there is no clear distinction on how to tell the thick model from the thin. Much of the information for .com and .net domains can be found using Whois thin, while lower level domains such as .org operate on a thick model. A good website with information on whois can be found at whois-it.com.When the internet first broke away from ARPANET, DARPA was responsible for handling all the information related to domains. The use of whois became widespread during the 1980s, when it became more standardized.

Because whois was controlled by one institution, all the information resided on one server, and finding information was relatively easy. Though DARPA handled registration on Whois up until the end of the 1980s, this was eventually transferred over to third party institutions by the end of the 1990s.As of 2005, ICAAN now handles whois. Despite the popularity of whois among many web users, there are a number of problems. Privacy is an important issue among many people today, and some feel that programs like whois allow blatant violations of privacy. Because the telephone number and address of the person owning the domain is available for any one to see, this can lead to a number of problems.

Many spammers use the email addresses found in whois lookups, and can use this information to send spam to users.Another problem with whois is the global appeal it has. Because it is based in the US, few countries use it, and this may come as a blessing to those who don't want their personal information falling into the hands of even more people. The whois lookup servers do not have the ability to tell which text is being used to process requests. There is also no centralized list of whois servers, and those who choose to write whois programs will need to manually look for individual servers.ABOUT AUTHOR: Ameet Arurkar is the Founder President of Stargate Holdings Inc.

He has served as the President of Valvola Corporation and the Managing Director of Intelisys India Ltd and has an experience of over 8 years in Web Application Software and Ebusiness.
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Warning: Your Domain Name Could Infringe On Trademark Rights!

2006-12-01T06:59:00.001-08:00

Warning: Your Domain Name Could Infringe On Trademark Rights!

Author: Al Martinovic

Warning: Your Domain Name Could Infringe On TrademarkRights! By Al MartinovicIf you have or are about to purchase a domain name, YOUcould be in trouble and you don't even know it yet...See, what the domain sellers won't tell you is that thedomain name you are purchasing or have purchased canpossibly infringe on trademark rights and you can losethat domain name or even worse.Trademark and servicemark laws apply not only off-linebut on-line as well and they even apply to domainnames.

Now, a trademark generally applies to goods where as aservicemark applies to services. For the purpose ofthis article I will refer to trademarks as the samerules apply.A trademark can be a word, name, symbol, or device andit is used to distinguish and indentify the goods andservices from one person or company from that ofanother.The purpose of a trademark is to prevent confusion inthe eyes of the consumer relating to particular goodsand services.

Basically, they are in place to preventunfair competition.So with that said, just because you purchased aparticular domain name it does not necessarily mean youhave exclusive rights to it.If there is a trademark in your domain name, the markowner has a legal right to send you a "cease anddesist" letter and possibly take that domain name awayfrom you.If you don't believe a word I've said so far then Ioffer myself as proof because it happened to me. Irecently lost one of my domain names under this exactsame circumstance.For legal reasons I can't tell you the domain name as Iagreed to make no further references to it, but therewere two words in my domain name that were associatedwith a trademark.Now, I wasn't aware of this when I purchased the domainname.

And I definitely wasn't aware of trademark laws.Don't be ignorant on the subject like I was. You canavoid any potential problems by educating yourself andthereby preventing the samething from happening to you.Don't make the same mistake that I did!Do your research before you buy a domain name and makesure there is NO trademark associated with that name.There are trademark search engines where you can typein a word or a phrase and it will tell you if it is atrademark.You can visit the United States Patent And TrademarkOffice (USPTO) website to do a trademark search:http://www.uspto.gov/Now, in my case I chose not to fight the trademarkdispute and gave up my domain name voluntarily.

I feltit just wasn't worth the time, money and headaches tolaunch a fight over this.If this should ever happen to you, you do have rightsand there are proper channels to go through to settlethe dispute. Contact a lawyer who specializes in thisfield.And don't even think for one minute that this sort ofthing can't happen to you. Trust me. If you have atrademark in your domain name it is only a matter oftime before you get that letter in the mail like I did.There are numerous cases all over the internetconcerning disputes over trademark and domain names.

Don't you be one of them...If you would like more information on the subject oftrademarks and domain names then I highly recommend youvisit this website:http://www.chillingeffects.org/domainThis article and any links associated with it are forinformational purposes only and not intended as legaladvice. As always, speak to an attorney who specializesin this field in the event of a dispute.Al Martinovic is the publisher of the MilleniumMarketers Newsletter where you will find powerfulinternet marketing concepts, killer strategies, usefultips and no bull business

advice.http://www.milleniummarketers.commailto:almartinovic@...?subject=TSubscribe
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Domain Names ? The Good and The Bad

2006-12-01T06:58:00.001-08:00

Domain Names ? The Good and The Bad

Author: Mark Nenadic

Copyright 2006 Mark NenadicWorking on improving your rank within the different search engines ? especially Google ? can feel like a very complicated puzzle sometimes. This maze can be extremely time consuming; especially when you just complete one effort and then find out that they've once again changed the rules on you ? rules that you weren't even sure of to begin with!It is very well known that when you try to better the rank you've achieved with search engines, the best techniques that you can use are:? Acquiring quality inbound links ? Acquiring any links to your site at all, including reciprocal links ?

Continually adding new, relevant, and fresh information to your site ? Using a good density and placement of the right keywords ? Creating a website that is interesting and relevant enough that visitors who arrive spend time there.However, what is not so well known is a major point that is missing from this list. Domain names are beginning to become extremely important with Google. It isn't the domain name itself ? that is, the words in the domain ? nor how long it is, but how long you've had it. Google is now valuing sites that have been registered for longer, and that prove their intention to stick around for a long time.

Google is starting to give lower priority to sites that have been registered for a year or less, since they may simply be spammers who are looking for a fast dollar and then disappear.On the other hand, for sites registered for five years or more, Google considers them serious websites or businesses that intend to exist for a good long while.Therefore, one of the strategies important to gaining a strong ranking is to pay a little bit more money for your domain name registration to register for a few extra years, so that Google can tell that you intend to stick around for a long time.

This will give your site Google value and your ranking will go up.The problem that many webmasters are finding with this is that they either don't have the budget for the additional years of registration, or they don't want to register a site for a long time when they haven't proven to themselves that the venture will be successful. They don't want to pay for an additional four or more years of registration for a project that may not get off the ground.The decision that therefore needs to be made is how important Google ranking will be to your website. Will it be the primary part of your internet marketing effort?

Will you be concentrating a good deal of your time gathering reciprocal and one-way links? Will you be working hard on search engine optimizing (SEO), possibly hiring a professional, so that your site contains the right keywords the right number of times and in the right places?If you'll already be putting a lot of time, effort, and possibly money into your Google and search engine ranking, then you may find that registering your site's domain name is really a minor investment to get you started in the right direction.

It's all a matter of balance, and making sure that you do the search engine optimizing strategy completely, and not cheap out before you can even give yourself the chance to truly shine. In fact, simply shelling out a little bit more to reserve your domain name may be the easiest part of your search engine optimizing strategy.

As long as you do your homework in advance and find an affordable, or even cheap domain name registry business, then you likely won't have to pay much more than fifty dollars to get going.As you can see, if search engine optimizing is important to your website, it's vital that you don't miss the most commonly overlooked part of SEO and reserve your website for a good length of time, to prove to Google that you're serious about building a quality, successful web presence. You'll show that you indeed deserve to be among the top ranking websites out there.

With that done, you'll be ready to move to the next step of your SEO and watch the traffic start rolling in.------Mark NenadicMark is the director and face behind FifteenDegrees-North http://www.15dn.com , where you will find articles and resources to help with SEO, marketing and Web design.

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The Seven Steps to Finding a Great Domain Name

2006-12-01T06:57:00.001-08:00

The Seven Steps to Finding a Great Domain Name

Author: Sharon Hewitt

The most important step in starting your online presence is the selection of your domain name. While this task can appear difficult, you can find a great domain name as long as you take your time and follow a logical process. A great domain name is one that is short enough to be easy to remember, easy to spell correctly, and memorable.

This will be your online brand, so take your time and use our tools and you'll soon have your own great domain name. We offer a seven step process for you to follow to get the best name available for your web site.1.) Start with a list of names that immediately come to mind that you would like to have. If you already have an existing business, group or club name - put it on the list. Many of your first choices may not be available, but keep them on your list for now.

Fortunately, there are now more Top Level Domain (TLD) alternatives such as .net, .biz, .us, .org or .info. The ".Biz" extension is still new, but will become more popular in time. Another alternate is to use the extensions that were made for some of the smaller countries such as ".cc" (Cocos Islands), or ".tv" (Tuvalu).2.) Use our Advanced Smart Search Utility to gain some more ideas. This free domain name generator will help to suggest available domain names. Search for one of your top names or keywords, and if it is not available you can then click on the "Smart Search" tab.

You will then be presented with a variety of options including alternate extensions, dashes and popular prefixes and suffixes. You can also click on the "view all" to see all of the available names from that search.3.) Use Keyword rich domain names - Assemble a list of keywords that can serve as a domain name or use a combination of keywords (example: killbugsfast.com). You can also use our keyword recommendation tool in our resource center.

This resource is provided by Digital Point Solutions and can be located in the search engine optimization section of our resource center at this link: http://www.economywebdomains.com/domains-resource-center.htm4.) Prefixes - One popular approach is to add a prefix in the beginning of a more generic name, as in eToys.com or eGreetings.com. Additional common prefixes to consider are e, z, my, and Ez.5.) Suffixes - If you have an existing business, this can be very effective.

Two good extensions are Online and Direct ( ex: MerrilLynchDirect.com). The more powerful your brand is, the more effective this option can be.6.) Consider adding a Dash. Some names can be very effective with the use of a dash. If the website is primarily to be found via search engines, then the dash can be used very well. For search engine purposes, you can use a number of keywords separated by dashes. Use one of our recommended keyword resources and you can find many good phrases.

For most businesses, we recommend that you limit the use of dashes (no more than one), as you should use the address on your business cards, in your email signature and all of your advertising campaigns.7.) Creative combination words - Get creative and use action words that can be partially combined to create a new word. Brainstorm by using a combination of your sites keywords. A great example of this is a senior care provider named Evergive.

Remember this will be your brand, so take your time, make a complete list, Follow these seven steps and you should have a list of names to choose a great domain name.Sharon Hewitt is founder and President of Economy Web Domains. For more information about registering your own domain name, or getting affordable web hosting, visit the website http://www.economywebdomains.com/This article may be freely distributed if this resource box remains attached.

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How to earn money with domains

2006-12-01T06:56:00.001-08:00

How to earn money with domains

Author: Olivier Roy

First, you need to buy a domain, preferably a .com and as short as possible. We recommend using GoDaddy for the registration because their prices are incredibly low.

Tips for choosing a domain :- lenght : it must be as short as possible but it should mean something not like kjs.com- extension : preferably a .com or .net because the other extensions are worth less- traffic : it's good if it already has traffic and links to it- keyword : some keywords are worth more than the others ex : casinoThen, you can either park your domain on a parking program like Sedo or develop a website on it. If you decide to develop your domain, make sure you have a good webhost, a good design and good content.

If you have a cheap host, you may have a lot of downtime or a poor technical support. In the meantime, you can list your domain for sale on some websites. Sedo also offer that kind of service.Finally, you sell your domain or website to end-user or to another domainer. End-user will often offer more than domainer but they are harder to find.

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global domains international downline building 101 completely free

2006-12-01T06:55:00.001-08:00

global domains international downline building 101 completely free

Author: Don Virden

If you are involved in network marketing then odds are you have heard of global domains international. Now what this article is going to show you is to properly build a downline in global domains international. There are thousands of people involved with global domains international and with good reason as they are the 37th fastest growing company in America and offer a great residual income that can and will support someone for years to come.

The problem with global domains international is that many members do not how to properly build their downline with gdi. This will be an unofficial marketing plan to take your global domains international business and turn it into a 5 figure monthly income with hard work and following this very simple step by step guide.

My name is Don Virden and I have been in network marketing for about 5 years and have tried to build my downline in many different companies and have failed terribly. I found a proven technique that I inturn used to help me build my downline with global domains international and it has worked very well. If you follow this step by step guide you will be able to add another 5 to 10 people per day to your downline and of course this is completely free to do and to tell your downline members about also.Step One ?

Give me a million dollars, no seriously though first of course you need to sign up for global domains international if you are not already a member but odds are if you are reading this then you are and just need help with building your downline. So to sign up simply go here http://www.3stepsecret.com/gditeam Step Two ? What you need to do is go to this website that lays out a very simple 6 steps to getting not only free training but also free traffic.

When you are on the site simply go from step 1 to 6 and that's it. From this website there is audio training, text training, tele-training and much more. There is even a huge free marketing plan that involves myspace which will really explode your business. So go here to get started on this step http://www.gditeam.ws now the way they have this site setup is very straight forward and walks you through the whole thing which is why I liked it.Step Three ? This step is the easiest as it involves barely any work at all, simply give this information to all of your downline. What this will do is get them the proper training to build an income and in turn make you more money with global domains international.

Everything in this article is 100% free and has worked for me very well so far as it will for you.So all you need is to follow these 3 easy steps and that's it! I do this on a daily basis and it has made me realize how easy network marketing is if you have a simple guide to get you there. With global domains international we will all become very successful and if this article has helped you then please let me know so I can add your testimonial to my next article which will help many others who are trying to build a downline with global domains international also.
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What is Domaining?

2006-12-01T06:52:00.000-08:00

What is Domaining?

Author: Dr. Domaining

Domaining is the business and/or hobby of buying, selling and developing domain names. The people that partake in domaining are known as domainers. Many domainers are very wealthy. Some even make tens of millions of dollars per year with their domain names. It is a very fun and exciting business and/or hobby to be involved in. You just register domains or purchase them in the domain name aftermarket, which is thriving at the time of this writing. Domain names are selling for millions upon millions of dollars.

Anybody can do it, it doesn't matter what your background is or where you are from, domaining is something that anybody can be involved in. The only thing that you really need is an Internet connection and a tiny bit of cash to get started. Since you are reading this article you obviously have the Internet connection, so what are you waiting for? Get out there and get started domaining today. You won't regret it. I promise you that.I would recommend becoming a little bit familiar with how domaining works before getting too crazy. DomainingBlog.com is an incredible source for domainers looking for information on domaining. It is updated daily and is full of reported domain name sales, domaining news, tips and articles to help you make money domaining.

It really is a great source and even has regular interviews with all of the biggest and best domainers and domaining related companies. So much great domaining knowledge is shared in these pieces. It really is recommended that you read them before getting started domaining. You will also want to sign-up for the free domaining newsletter at DomainingNewsletter.com. It will put you on the fast track to domaining success.Another thing that you will probably want to do is go ahead and get yourself the best domaining software available to the public at the time of this writing. One thing that you will realize once you have success domaining is that it is more of a science than a lottery, like some people think.

The software is available at DomainingSoftware.com and is simply amazing. It is truly an unbelievable piece of software that does everything you will need to get started making good money domaining. It can perform scans for you that are absolute necessary if you are going to be a successful domainer that would take you a month to do by hand and it does them in minutes. Not to mention, that it also manages all of your domains for you regardless of what registrar they are at. You don't want to lose track of them. I can tell you that much and I haven't even gotten to the tip of the iceberg. You will really have to go to DomainingSoftware.com and read all of the details for yourself. They will really boggle your mind.

The creator is a domaining and software genius by the name of Luc Lezon and he has been interviewed at DomainingBlog.com. He is a really great guy that knows software and domaining extremely well.Well, now that you know what domaining is, you can get started today. Who knows, maybe you will be the next domainer that sells their domain name for over ten million dollars. What would you do with ten million dollars? Put it back into domaining? Buy a deserted island and retire? In the end that is up to you.Good luck and happy domaining!
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Domain Name Registration: Are You Sure You Know What To Do?

2006-12-01T06:50:00.000-08:00

Domain Name Registration: Are You Sure You Know What To Do?

Author: James B
The domain name registration process is not too difficult, but it can take some time (usually 24-72 hrs) before your domain name propagates throughout the internet. I find that it normally takes less than 20 hrs, so keep that time in mind.

Propagation is simply the fact that it takes a while for your site to become visible on the internet due to a process called DNS (domain name server) transfer and various databases that have to be updated.Although the domain name registration process is fairly easy, there are a few things that you should be aware of:Steps to follow before a domain name transfer:1. Do not just register any domain name that you like or that sounds good to you, except if your company name is well known.

Do a bit of keyword research and see if you can incorporate your main keyword into the domain name. 2. Get your hosting account first, since you will need the DNS information during the domain name registration process. If you register the domain name first, the DNS information will point to the servers of your registrar until you transfer it. 3. Do not just go for the cheapest registrar. Remember, you normally get what you pay for... however, you should not have to pay more than $10 a year for a domain name.Steps and tips to follow during the domain name registration process:1. Choose your favorite registrar and register with them to get yourself a username and password.

Each domain name registrar will have their own policies and procedures, so make sure that you read everything carefully before you register your domain name. You will also learn a lot by doing that.2. Log into your account and type in your domain name to check if it is available.3. Always register the .com version of a domain name wherever possible. If the .com extension of a domain name is not available, then register a .net or .org extension. However, try your best to register a .com domain by adding words like 2u, 4u at the back or words such as first, best or anything else that will fit in front.

You can also use domain name spinner software to help you choose your domain name.4. Make sure that you register your domain name for at least 5-10 years. Wow! I will probably get a lot of flak for this, but it helps to establish credibility with the search engines. Just do not ask me where I got this information from, since it is extremely valuable.I normally register my domain names for 5 years, but 10 is better. I know that it is a bit expensive, but if you make a great site, you will easily recover your investment.5. Do not register domain names with dashes. There are too many of them around already and it looks silly (uhm... just my personal opinion).

The main advantage however is that domain names without dashes also establishes credibility with the search engines. Avoid dashes at all costs.6. Try and make your domain name as short as possible or at least something that can easily be remembered. After you have registered your domain name, make sure that the registrar lock function is activated otherwise someone else might be able to transfer your domain name without your permission.

This is extremely important, since you do not want to loose your domain name... and your shirt when someone else steals it from you.7. Once the domain name registration process is complete, you should transfer your DNS information to your host. The sooner the better. When you sign up with your host, they will normally send you the DNS info along with your activation email or you can go to their forums (if they have one) and have a look around. If all else fails, use their technical support.

Most registrars require two DNS addresses and it looks something like this: ns1.cowboy-server.com, ns2.cowboy-server.comWhile this is by no means a comprehensive guide to the domain name registration process, it is more or less what you should do and be aware of. About the author: James B. is the Webmaster and Content Writer at Web Site Domain Names 2u.com

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Importance of having your own domain name

2006-12-01T06:45:00.000-08:00

Importance of having your own domain name

By Sumantra Roy

A question that I frequently hear is "Do I really need to have my own domain name?" The one word answer is "YES.". If you put up your site with some of the free web hosting services, the only company who benefits is the web hosting company. The last person who benefits is you. There are a number of reasons why having your own domain name is a must:

1) When you have your own domain name, the address of your web site will be of the form http://www.yoursite.com. On the other hand, if you put up your site on one of the free servers, the address of your web site will be something like http://www.somefreewebsite.com/yoursite/. Which of these two sounds more professional? Which of these two is smaller and is hence easier to remember? I leave you to make the judgement.2) The only way to make money online is to build up credibility among your customers. Having your own domain name is the first step in doing that.

Your customers will feel more comfortable buying whatever it is that you are selling if you have your own domain name. It makes your customers feel that they are dealing with a large, established company, rather than with some fly by night operator.3) When you have your domain name, you can have multiple email aliases of the form alias@yoursite.com. This allows you to assign different email aliases to different functions, all of them pointing to your actual email address. Hence, for example, for questions related to the products and services that you sell, you can have an email address like sales@yoursite.com. For questions related to the newsletter that you publish, you can have an email address like editor@yoursite.com.

For comments/suggestions about your web site, you can direct your customers to feedback@yoursite.com or webmaster@yoursite.com. Having different email addresses for different functions not only makes it easier for you to filter your email using your email client program (Eudora Pro, Pegasus Mail, Outlook Express etc.), but also gives your customers the impression that yours is a large, established company with whom it is safe to do business.4) Many search engines give a lot of emphasis to the home page of a particular domain, i.e. other things remaining the same, a home page of a domain will often rank higher for a particular keyword than any other page. When you use some of the free hosting services, your index.html page is the home page of your site, but not of that domain. Hence in these search engines, your site will find it very difficult to make it to the top 20 or top 30, let alone the top 10 for some of the really competitive keywords. Just think of the amount of traffic that you will lose if this happens.5) Some search engines are now refusing to spider the web sites which are hosted by the free web hosts.

For instance, if you have a site hosted by the free web hosts, you would, until recently, have got the infamous error message saying that too many pages have been submitted from your site if you tried to submit your site to AltaVista. While AltaVista now says that "your URL has been submitted for processing" if you try to submit your site, rest assured that it will not spider any site belonging to many of the free web hosts even though it says that your site has been accepted. Can you afford that?6) When your site is hosted by some of the free web hosts, you will find it very difficult to get it listed in a major directory like Yahoo!.

Although Yahoo! will never admit that it won't add a commercial site which is being hosted in one of the free web hosts, in practice, it will be a miracle if you can get your site listed by Yahoo!!. Listing your site with Yahoo! is difficult enough even when you have your own domain. Don't make your task more difficult than what it needs to be.If you do not currently have a domain name, are you convinced that you need one right now? The small fee that you pay per year for your own domain name is peanuts compared to the benefits that you get. You can check out the availability of domain names and register new domains here.

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Occupation: Search Engine Positioning Specialists

Article by Sumantra Roy. Sumantra is one of the most respected and recognized search engine positioning specialists on the Internet. For more articles on search engine placement, subscribe to his 1st Search Ranking Newsletter by sending a blank email to mailto:1stSearchRanking.999.99@optinpro.com or by going to

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Which top-level domain (TLD) to choose?

2006-12-01T06:39:00.000-08:00

Which top-level domain (TLD) to choose?

By Clare Lawrence 10th March 2003

Clare is the CEO of Discount Domains Ltd a leading UK Domain name registration service.I am often asked this question.

Is it possible that search engines such as google give preference to the .com TLD? Or are TLD's all treated equally?As a test I picked a random phrase "Technical services" and did a search on Google.com.The results:1. .org 2. .com3. .com4. .net5. .co.ukTrying the phrase again using Google.co.uk (I am UK based)The results.1 .net2 .co.uk3 .com4 .co.uk5 .orgHopefully these results show that there is no preference given by search engines.However there are far more .com domains out there than other TLD ? users will be more likely to key in your domain name and add the .com extension themselves out of habit.

If your market place is local then your regional TLD can be helpful, this is because a lot of Search engines and Directories such as Google and Yahoo ? offer the user a choice of "Search the web" or "Search locally e.g. UK"Having a local TLD can therefore be a benefit.Directories Some directories will use your TLD to categorise the geographic content of your site, and therefore exclude a site from inclusion solely because it does not match their local market.

The Open Directory (Dmoz) lists sites by both regional and market segments as Google uses the Open Directory in part for its indexing ? your choice of TLD will have a bearing on whether your site is selected in a local search e.g. Searching Google.co.uk for UK domain name registrars will bring up our site www.discountdomainsuk.com because it is UK based.

The TLD can therefore have some bearing on how a site will be indexed.Keywords in your domain nameSearch engines such as Google do give some preference to keywords within a domain name, and the first keyword in the description and Title tags, so if your site's domain name is www.searchenginedirectory.biz, your site will most likely fair better in searches for search engines than ones without keywords in the name.If you do use keywords in your domain name ? remember to be careful of trademark issues.A good source of recent discussions on this topic is Webmasterworld:-

www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/16719.htmYou might also want to keep an eye on Google Answers http://answers.google.com , this is a paid service where researchers answers questions on a range of topics including search engines.

If your preferred TLD domain name has been taken by a rival then it is clearly still worth using a different TLD particularly your own regional one.Duplicate domainsBe careful of having duplicate content on different domain names, as this is seen as "spamming" by Google and can lead you to being penalised or even banned on Google. Google's quality guidelines specifically state ? Don't create multiple pages, sub-domains, or domains with substantially duplicate content.You can however register multiple domain names and use a 301 redirect. Such redirects are recognised as being completely valid.

Protecting your BrandIf you are building a brand it is often good practice to purchase all the TLD's for your name, once a domain name is registered it can't be transferred without your permission. If you add web-forwarding to each one of the domain names other than your main site then what ever your customers enters as a TLD they will still find you.This will also help to protect you against unscrupulous rivals who may register a domain name with the intention of capturing traffic from your site.Looking for more advice?We have built up an article bank on our site ? many from the leading specialists in each field, please feel free to browse them www.discountdomainsuk.com/glossary.php.

The articles cover domain names, web hosting, SEO (Search engine optimisation), e-marketing and much more.ConclusionThere is no evidence that any preference is given to TLD by search engines, though your choice of TLD name may be influenced by your plans for it.

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Occupation: CEO of Discount Domains Ltd, a leading UK Domain Name registration and web hosting company

Clare Lawrence is CEO of Discount Domains Ltd
http://www.discountdomainsuk.com

Web Site Basics

2006-12-01T06:37:00.000-08:00

Web Site Basics

By Clare Lawrence 8th June 2004

The web or internet is an exciting place, but can seem very daunting to the novice web designer. You want to get a web site up and live, how is it done, and how can it be done cheaply?Domain NamesThe first step is to select a domain name, try and choose a name that is easy to remember, short, and if possible one that describes your website.Nearly all the obvious domain name have gone, so you may need to use your imagination!There are many domain name registration services such as my own site www.discountdomainsuk.com on the web.

All domain names are created by the Top Level Domain providers such as Nominet in the UK so there is no great advantage in paying over the top for your domain name. Look for a company that offers telephone support, e-mail only can be frustrating.Web HostingNext you will need some space on the web to publish or host your website. If you have a broadband or ADSL connection, you can use this to host your own site. It does of course mean that you can't switch off your machine.

To point a domain name at a site hosted in this way you need to have a static IP address and look for an IP pointing option in your domain name registrars control panel. This is usually called the domains Zone Records.Mostly everyone uses a third party hosting company; once again there are loads to choose from including my own service at www.discountdomainsuk.comSelect the hosting package that best matches your requirements and budget.

It's usually best to start with a basic package than upgrade, hosting companies make most of their money by selling you space which you then don't use.Your hosting company will provide you with a username and password to allow you to FTP, File Transfer Protocol your site to the hosting space.If you're using a hosting company other than your domain name registrar, you will need their Primary and Secondary DNS or Domain Name Settings, which take the form of domain names e.g.Ns1@asdasdasd.co.ukNs0@asdadadsa.co.ukWeb Design

A great package to start out web designing is MS FrontPage; it follows the format of the rest of the Microsoft office suite and is very reasonably priced and easy to pick up.Once you've progressed with FrontPage then a more professional and sophisticated package to try is Macromedia Dreamweaver.Once you have designed a site then simply select the publishing option, enter the domain name, your user name and password, and your site will FTP to your web-server.SummaryThat's all there is too it. Getting a website up and live can be done in a matter of minutes, its worth mentioning that a new domain name and DNS changes can take up to 48 hours to get picked up by the worldwide DNS system.

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Occupation: CEO of Discount Domains Ltd, a leading UK Domain Name registration and web hosting company

Clare Lawrence is CEO of Discount Domains Ltd
http://www.discountdomainsuk.com

Choosing A DomainIntroduction To Domain Names

2006-11-30T01:47:00.000-08:00

Choosing A DomainIntroduction To Domain Names

By Clare Lawrence 29th September 2003

Clare is the CEO of Discount Domains Ltd a leading UK Domain name registration service.Every domain name comprises two components;the domain name type or Top Level Domain such as .com or .co.uk and the domain name itself.A domain name must be no more than 63 characters and certain symbols such as ? or ! are not allowed.

Choosing the best domain name.Getting your domain name right is important to the success of a website. Most visitors will remember a site by its domain name.Some considerationsBrandingDeveloping a brand can be very successful as the likes of Google and Yahoo demonstrate. Building a brand takes time and is often costly.KeywordsA keyword domain is a domain name chosen to contain useful keywords that match a keyword search important to the theme of the site.

This used to be a valuable technique to boost search engine rankings, but plays a far smaller part Some tips1) Shorter domain names are better than longer ones.2) Ask in web forums for suggestions for domain names.3) Don't over pay for your domain names, services such as Discount Domains UK offer good service for reasonable prices.4) Don't just buy one domain name type, by all the leading types to protect your brand. e.g .com, .biz and .co.uk5) Avoid domain names that will give you trademark of copyright issues.If you need any assistance why not ask your domain name registrar for assistance?
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Occupation: CEO of Discount Domains Ltd, a leading UK Domain Name registration and web hosting company

Clare Lawrence is CEO of Discount Domains Ltd
http://www.discountdomainsuk.com

Tips For Choosing A Good Domain Name

2006-11-30T01:43:00.000-08:00

Tips For Choosing A Good Domain Name

By Clare Lawrence

29th September 2003 Clare is the CEO of Discount Domains Ltd a leading UK Domain name registration service.

Selecting the right domain name for your website is one of more important steps to success.

A good domain name will allow your visitors to recognise your business and very quickly understand the purpose of your site.The following are good points to consider:-1) Memorable - unless you have a large budget for advertising its better to stick with a name that visitors will remember and associate with your product or service.2) Relates to your business. This prepares your customer for your site. 3) Easy to say over the telephone.4) A name early in the alphabet, this helps for directory listing.5) Short names are easier to enter and less likely to get mistyped.
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Occupation: CEO of Discount Domains Ltd, a leading UK Domain Name registration and web hosting company

Clare Lawrence is CEO of Discount Domains Ltd
http://www.discountdomainsuk.com

Tips on Domain Name Choice

2006-11-30T01:42:00.000-08:00

Tips on Domain Name Choice

By Clare Lawrence 3rd November 2003

Clare is the CEO of Discount Domains Ltd a leading UK Domain name registration service.

Before buying your domain name, give some thought to the following:-1) If possible use your sites name as the basis of your domain name e.g www.discountdomainsuk.com for Discount Domains UK. This might seem common sense but not every site follows the convention. If you use your name in your URL it will be much easier for your customers to find you.2) Generic names ? if you can register a generic domain such as toys.com that's great, but most of these have already gone. Also getting ranked in the search engines is likely to be harder. Selected a domain closer to your market segment will cut down the competition. E.g toyplanes.com3) Hyphenated Names ? Its easy to forget the hyphen! Which is the problem, particularly if your customer remembers your name but not your URL.

Though on a positive note hyphenated names are less likely to be registered already.4) If the .com or .co.uk extension is not available then consider the alternative TLD ( Top level domain types) such as .net or .biz.

If your domain name has already been registered then approach the owner and ask if they'll sell. They may accept a ?100. If you ask, they can only say no.5) Plurals. Very often a domain name will be free in the plural but not in the singular form. It's a personal choice, but if your prefered choice of domain name is not available you might be stuck.6) Short or Long domains ? A short domain name is more memorable, but less likely to be available. A longer domain is harder to remember, but can contain more keywords which is important as some of the search engines, use keywords in a domain name as part of the search algorithm.7) Which Top Level Domain Type - .com, .co.uk , .net etc This is a question I am often asked.

There is no evidence that any domain name type is given preference by the search engines. However some search engines such as Google, have local searches e.g www.google.co.uk which do select local content. Customer often get re-assurance from seeing a local TLD as they know they are dealing with a local company etc. You can, of course, register all of them!8) Variations ? If your prefered domain name is not available then its always worth trying a prefix my e.g mydomains.com or suffix e.g domains4U.com etc
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Occupation: CEO of Discount Domains Ltd, a leading UK Domain Name registration and web hosting company

Clare Lawrence is CEO of Discount Domains Ltd
http://www.discountdomainsuk.com

Domain and website tools

2006-11-30T01:40:00.000-08:00

Domain and website tools

By Clare Lawrence 29th October 2003

Clare is the CEO of Discount Domains Ltd a leading UK Domain name registration service.I use several tools to monitor the performance of my own websites, by regularly reviewing their progress I can see what works and what does not.Ranking tools

Where is my listing?

Want a tool that can tell you which page your site appears on by keyword? www.top25web.com/cgi-bin/report.cgi Top25web searches domain names by keyword for the following search engines:- Google, Alta vista and inktomi, drilling down for the first 500 entries on each search engine.How many of my websites pages are indexed?Do you have a large site? ? it can be a pain using the site: command in google, the following tells you how many of your pages are indexed in Fast, Google, Alta Vista and MSNwww.neutralize.com creates a pie chart of the % of your pages indexed in each of the engines.Meta ? Tag analysersMeta tags are much less important than they used to be, though the Title tag is still very powerful.

The following are my favourites:-http://www.sitesolutions.com/analysis.asp - select the website analysis option from the left hand, this is particularly good at telling if you've got the right combination of keywords in your tags and which keyword should be where.http://www.sitescreamer.com/from22.html - this analyses your tags, and gives a narrative opinion ? excellent being the best rating.Traffic statisticsGood traffic statistics are essential for your own site, but how to get information on rivals traffic?, Alexa makes use of its own database of user and converts these to a traffic ranking.The Alexa site can be found at www.alexa.comGood HTML Google and other search engines have problems with poor html ? so cleaning up the glitches in your scrip can be helpful. The following is a good free html validator :- www.htmlhelp.com/tools/validatorKeyword densityWriting keyword rich copy isn't the easiest task in the world, but to get a good ranking, your keyword density has to be right, not too low, not too high ( between 3% and 7%).

The following is a good article on the subject and contains a link to a good density tool.The article http://www.in-vancouver.com/members/news_item.php?record_num=48The tool: www.keyworddensity.comSelecting keywordsNot sure which keywords will bring what traffic?Wordtracker has a great site ? try their free report first, if it works for you, the sell a days usage from ?4.00 ($6.00).www.wordtracker.com I hope you find these tools helpful, I use them on a daily basis and find them very helpful.Every thought of a question you wanted to ask Google?Google answers works by you posting a price for each question - the higher the price the more likely it will be answered. Higher bids also get more thorough explanations.

Payment is by credit card and prices start from $2.00 This is a good place to get started with web site optimisation. Typically an experienced researcher will spend an hour or so looking at your site for ?40-50. This compares very favourable to the ?100's you can pay elsewhere.A good tip is to read the last few weeks of questions - most likely there will be questions very similar to yours.The answers given often are full of links to sites which are both reputable and amongst the leaders in their field. The site is also full of helpful questions and answers on domain names and web toolsI hope you found this ariticle helpful, my site now has a glossary full of similiar ones.
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Occupation: CEO of Discount Domains Ltd, a leading UK Domain Name registration and web hosting company

Clare Lawrence is CEO of Discount Domains Ltd
http://www.discountdomainsuk.com

How to Drive Traffic With Domain Names

2006-11-30T01:39:00.000-08:00

How to Drive Traffic With Domain Names

In my consulting practice, I teach my clients about the tremendous importance of communicating credibility. In an overcommunicated, overmarketed society, credibility has become increasingly vital.

To a prospect that is receiving your marketing materials for the first time, your company may have little or no believability because you may well be totally unknown to your prospect. Along with the growth of online scams, the hypercompetitive nature of the Internet will make credibility an even more important issue.One of John Naisbitt's "Megatrends" in his book of the same name is the fact that our society is edging towards what he calls the "high-tech/high-touch." In other words, the fact that we are advancing technologically and the business process is fast becoming almost entirely automated will parallel the need for a more human approach in the business process.Today, we see that need being filled more and more through niche marketing, personalized services, customer relationship management (or "CRM") and specialization.

And due to the lack of human interaction on the Internet, building relationships with your prospects will, as time goes on, become an element of greater importance in the success of any online business.Brand Your DomainThere are numerous ways to build credibility, namely through the use of testimonials, guarantees and other techniques. These may be the final steps in convincing your prospects that you are credible. But the very first step is sometimes the most obvious -- and that's the image you project, for it is the first thing that is perceived by your prospects and the first step in building relationships with them. Although your goal may be to automate your business, you must remember that you are dealing with real people.

There are many fly-by-night businesses and get-rich-quick schemes on the Internet, so anything new will likely be questionable in the very least.Therefore, your marketing strategy must also include branding your website, which is just as important as branding your company or product. When I started online three years ago, I began with a free host and email account. I didn't see the need to invest in my own domain, having an already profitable offline business at the time. But little did I know however that the lack of credibility they projected was to a great extent the reason for many lost sales.The reason for this is manifold. In today's world, we are constantly inundated with marketing messages.

In his new book "The New Positioning," Jack Trout states that a child in the UK will have seen over 140,000 television commercials by the time he or she reaches 18 years of age -- and according to Trout, the US is "just warming up." The Internet is surely no different. It's literally filled with sites that range from sheer ads to others that are sponsored by them (leading to a phenomena called "Banner Blindness"). Everywhere we turn it seems we are faced with some form of online promotional propaganda.Our job as consumers has therefore become so immensely challenging that choosing a business from which to buy has become a dizzying process.

For a web business to survive and thrive in today's hypercompetitive marketplace, it takes more than mere advertising (the kind that says "I'm open for business") to make a web site successful. As marketing guru Dan Kennedy once said, "Institutional marketing is high-risk marketing," for the message needs to be continuously repeatedly advertised in order to work -- if it ever does.Become a Traffic MagnetAlthough advertising is the lifeblood of any business, today's message must therefore stand out among the commercial quagmire. And it must also do so in such a way that it creates not only traffic but also a need for what it offers. In other words, a company's advertising message must go from being "in" business to being "the" business of choice.

Where people used to ask "why should I buy" or "why should I buy this product or service," today that question has changed to "why should I buy this product or service from your site?"Simply put, today's consumer will choose one company over another because the perceived value in their choice is greater. People are given an increasing multitude of choices on the Internet. Moreover, they no longer have the time to sift through all that is thrown at them -- let alone the time to shop around for the best product from the best company at the best price. So how can a site communicate that its site is "the" site of choice? How can it heighten the perceived value in what they have to offer and stand above the competition?Ellis Verdi, the once president of the National Retail Advertisers Council, coined the term "top of mind awareness" as the most effectively provocative form of marketing available.

The idea is to create, within the subconscious mind, a psychological anchor that causes people to choose when a need presents itself a company over another instantaneously. The goal is to market one's site in specific ways so that it stays active in the minds of visitors.In other words, since people no longer have the time or energy to shop around, when they do have a certain need they will go to or search for the site that happens to be at the top of their minds at that very moment. They will inevitably choose the site that sticks out the most, especially from all the marketing messages that are so desperately fighting for their attention.Consequently, effectively creating top-of-mind awareness on the web begins with branding the most important element of a website:

The domain name.Elements of a Good Domain NameFirst, top-level domain names have the ability to stick in the mind more effectively. The mind hates confusion. Simplicity is of colossal importance since long or obscure URLs can be easily forgotten. Rather than a name such as http://www.domain.com/subdomain/yourname/~subfolder or http://www.just-too-many-hyphens.com, you should get a simple yourname.com. In fact, more and more companies are dropping the "www."In essence, the simpler it is the better.The importance of having your own domain name goes without explanation -- it is the same as branding your business or product.

But also realize that a good domain name that effectively sticks in the mind requires more than simply using a fictitious vanity name. There are three key elements that go into an good domain name: Mnemonics, credibility, and positioning.Instead of going through the inconvenience of numerous search engine results, most people will attempt to skip the process and go to your site directly. They usually do so by guessing your domain name and typing a plausible URL in their browsers. How many times have you done that? Mnemonics are words (or a combination of words) that are easy to remember.

A repeatedly visited web site is one whose URL, for example, sticks in the mind. Even if the URL is bookmarked, the site can be easily retrieved and will be visited often. "Yahoo!" (yahoo.com), "HotBot" (hotbot.com) and "Time Magazine" (time.com) are perfect examples of mnemonics.People often associate long URLs with free sites or those of lesser quality. People have a natural tendency to make what I call UPAs (unconscious paralleled assumptions) where, if people notice that your site is hosted by a free or cheap provider, they will unconsciously assume that a parallel exists (i.e., that your product or service is just as cheap).

Your domain name is like the cover of a book and people will likely judge your book by its cover.Always remember that perceived truth is more powerful than truth itself. A top-level vanity name, especially if it's short and simple, will heighten the perception of the web site's value. As such, the UPA visitors will often make with a short domain name will often be one in which they conclude that the quality of the web site will be as good as the name implies.Finally, the third element is the actual positioning process. If your domain name reflects your site's nature, result, or core benefit, and if it instantly communicates how different you are from others, your URL will be positioned above the competition in the minds of your market.

Since this element is the most important of the three, let's deal with it a little further.Benefit-Based Domain NamesPeople usually make a buying decision based on the kind of information that instantly communicates a specific benefit -- one in which there is an implicit added value in making the purchase. So does your domain name intrinsically reflect the benefit or at least the nature of that which you provide and does so in an instant? It should. I am astounded to see many domain names that are still called by ordinary or blatantly unappealing names, such as with hard-to-spell words, numbers, abbreviations or acronyms like "mgf.com."Let's take the example of two different web sites that promote similar products: Investments. One's address is "wealthwise.com" while the other is "smith-brokerage.com." Now, with all things being equal and when placed side-by-side, which site will be the one more likely to be chosen first?

Your domain name must be able to drive traffic to your site on its very own. It must communicate how different and unique your site is, even before it is visited.Nevertheless, if people do have to resort to an engine, their search will be greatly simplified and vastly more efficient if your domain name intrinsically reflects the core benefit if not the nature of your site. Remember that most searches are conducted by topics or themes and not by names. Therefore, if your site's most popular keyword or benefit is within the domain name itself, that URL has greater chances of being in the top search engine results.Play a word association game with your web site.

Look for the word or group of words that would instantly pop up in the minds of people when a need presents itself, a need that your site likely fills. For example, stock-tips.com, art.com, free-stuff.com, allergy-relief.com, morebusiness.com and fastcar.com are great benefit-based domain names that effectively create more top-of-mind awareness (and consequently more traffic).Domain Names That Drive TrafficIf the name you want is taken, then you can use the name of your product or service, or your company or product's tagline (or part of it) as a domain name. A tagline is that small sentence that follows your business name, such as "You deserve a break today," "Roaches check in but they don't check out," and "It takes a licking but keeps on ticking." Great examples include:alwayscoke.com (Coca-Cola), cavities.com (Crest toothpaste)

And, of course, start.com (Microsoft). Ultimately, choose a name that people can remember quickly and effectively so that, when you advertise among a thousand of your competitors, your URL stands out and sticks in the mind. It is also good practice to register variations of your name, including different spellings. One of the reasons is to ensure that these unused domain names don't end up falling in the hands of your competitors. But more important, when people enter a variation of your domain name, they will still end up with your site as a result.It all boils down to the fact that your domain name is a fundamental marketing system in itself. Be short, simple and memorable, and you'll see traffic soar.
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Occupation: Direct response copywriter
About the Author Michel Fortin is a direct response copywriter and consultant dedicated to turning sales messages into powerful magnets. Get a free copy of his book, "The 10 Commandments of Power Positioning," when you subscribe to his free monthly ezine, "The Profit Pill." See http://SuccessDoctor.com/ now
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Longest domain name in the UK!

2006-11-30T01:38:00.000-08:00

Longest domain name in the UK!

By Clare Lawrence of Discount Domains Ltd

A village in Wales with the longest name in Britain has registered the longest domain name in the world. The new domain, www.llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch.com owes its existence to 63 character limit on domain names.

The orginal limit was 26 but is now 63 characters.Most domain name registrations are not that long! In fact the most common length is seven characters. Shorter domain names are easier to remember and less likely to get entered incorrectly. The disadvantage being that all the good ones have almost gone!If you have a domain name your thinking of registering, why not try our WHOIS service, this will tell you if the name is free.If your ready to purchase your own domain then click the following link to go straight to our on-line domain name registration service.

Our website now contains a large bank of domain name articles such as this one. We are also well known for our friendly helpful service.
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Clare Lawrence is CEO of Discount Domains Ltd
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An Alternative to the .COM Domain?

2006-11-30T01:37:00.000-08:00

An Alternative to the .COM Domain?

By Clare Lawrence CEO Discount Domains Ltd, March 2003Small countries such as Tonga, Turkmenistan and Niue are offering an alternative to customers that have been squeezed out of the Internet as .com domain names have been registered. It is sometimes the unhappy task of a Domain registrar company, such as Discount Domains to tell clients that their preferred names in the .com domain are already registered or must be purchased from a cyber-squatter for a large amount of money. With the anticipated opening of new domains, such as .eu, the solution is often a longer, harder to remember name and less search engine friendly domain name.

The above countries allow users to register in their domain space. Web hosting companies can suggest that their clients register their sites in the .to (Tonga), .tm (Turkmenistan) or .nu (Niue) domains, enabling them to get the shorter, catchier name that was taken in the .com domain. The obvious drawback is many companies prefer the more familiar .com designation. A possible further consideration is the political stabilty of smaller countries, only recently part of the Soviet Union.Niue meanwhile has been the most successful of the countries.

The tiny island nation is registering Internet Web sites under the .nu address for US 25By January 2001, after only 18 months as an active TLD, .nu domain usage has swelled, making .nu the sixteenth most popular domain name in the world. The company that maintains the registry, .NU Domain Ltd [http://www.nunames.nu], has registered 30,000 .nu domain names, as of January 2001 on the Internet, with registrations of .nu domain names more than doubling since then.As .nu gains recognition, domain name registrars will have an effective way to provide clients the personal, distinct domain names they desire. And what are the benefits for Niue?

The island nation is getting 25 per cent of the gross after payment of commissions. The money is being used by the Niue Internet Users' Society to provide residents and the government with free Internet connections.
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Occupation: CEO of Discount Domains Ltd, a leading UK Domain Name registration and web hosting company

Clare Lawrence is CEO of Discount Domains Ltd
http://www.discountdomainsuk.com

Domain Name Organisations

2006-11-30T01:36:00.000-08:00

Domain Name Organisations

By Clare Lawrence 29th September 2003

Clare is the CEO of Discount Domains Ltd a leading UK Domain name registration serviceThe following are some of the important organisations in the domain name industry.

ARINAmerican Registry for Internet Numbers is a a not for profit organisation established to handle th administration and registration of Internet Protocol (IP) addresses in North America, some of the Caribbean, and sub-Saharan Africa.COREInternet Council of Registrars is a not for profit organisation set up under Swiss law. Core is made up of domain name registrars handling domain name registration on behalf of customers.

IANAInternet Assigned Numbers Authority is the authority given the initial responsiblity for the oversight of IP address allocation, the coordination of the assignment of protocol parameters provided for in Internet technical standards, and the management of the DNS.

ICAANInternet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers is an internationally organized, non-profit corporation that has responsibility for Internet Protocol (IP) address space allocation, protocol identifier assignment, generic (gTLD) and country code (ccTLD) Top-Level Domain name system management, and root server system management functions.

IETFInternet Engineering Task Force is an open international community of network designers, operators, resellers, and researchers concerned with the evolution of the Internet architecture and the operation of the Internet. Membership is open to any interested individual or corporation.NominetNominet is the UK TLD registrar responsible for the management and development of the .uk domain range.

W3CWorld Wide Web Consortium is an international industry consortium set up to develop common protocols to promote the evolution of the World Wide Web and ensure its smooth operation. Services include; a repository of information about the World Wide Web for developers and users; reference code implementations to promote standards; and various prototype and sample applications to demonstrate use of new technology.

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----------------------------------------------------------------------- Clare Lawrence is CEO of Discount Domains Ltd
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