Your domain name is the essence of your Internet identity. Certain things should be taken into account when considering the name that will represent your face on the Web? While there are no hard and fast rules, The Web Profit offers these guidelines to help you make the best choice possible.

KISS - Keep It Simple Stupid

Some services will allow you to register a name of up to 63 characters, you should keep in mind that people need to be able to remember it, and easily enter it into their browser. Try to register the shortest name that your customers and visitors will associate with your Website. The general rule of thumb is to keep it to ten characters or less if possible.

Dot Com, Org, Biz or What?

There are many different extensions available right now. We recommend a .com suffix at this pointas it is the first extension that most people try when they are searching for a Website. Also, since it is one of the oldest extensions, .com shows that your business has been around for a while and that you have a well-established presence on the Web. This is slowly changing though and different extensions are becoming more and more accepted and recognized. As the Internet fills up this is only a natural process. Many groups and associations use the org extension and new businesses my consider the .biz.

No Trademarks or Trademark Names

There are a couple of really good reasons for this guideline. First of all, it’s not very nice. We have all heard the stories about the guy who bought "multi-million-dollar-company.com" and sold it back to the company for a mint. Those days are long gone. Any new company now-a-days gets its URL at statrt-up. They may even base their name on website availibility. Also, companies are no longer opening their pocketbooks to get their names back. They are calling their lawyers. Piggybacking on someone else's name and success is not a profitable long term strategy.

Register Your Domain ASAP

Domain names are being snatched up at a lightning fast rate. You must register as soon as you come up with exactly what you want unless you want to be stuck with "a-domain-name-that-nobody-wanted.com". You do not have to have anything in place to register domain, just the name itself. Just get out there and register before you loose the opportunity to get the name you really want.

One May Not Be Enough

Sometimes, it isn’t a bad idea to register several similar domain names. If you have "yoursite.com", register "yoursite.net" so no one else takes it. You can register your full company name and a shorter, easier to remember version or initials. Some webmasters even register common mispellings of their company’s name. Certain misspellings can lead to a lot of traffic and searches can be done to determine the most popular mispellings. (You will not need a separate Web page for each as several domains can point to one Website.)

Character Types

Just a reminder. Domain names may only comtain letters, numbers, and dashes. Spaces and symbols are not allowed. Domain names are not case sensitive thus.

www.THEWEBPROFIT.com = www.thewebprofit.com

Ask Around - Friends & Family

When you have settled on several available name choices, see what your friends and clients have to say. A name that may make perfect sense to you may be too hard for other people to remember. You want your domain to be easy for others. Easy to say, easy to spell, and self explaining. So be sure to get feedback in these areas

Don’t Pay Big Bucks

At one time, companies were able to get away with charging reservation fees plus a "mandatory" $70 InterNIC fee. Recently, it was decided that other companies should be able to compete to sell domain names. This has lowered prices dramatically.

And remember, if you think that you have found the right domain name, but you're not quite sure, register it anyway. You can always sell it later to the highest bidder.