Thoughts on registering a Domain Name

Thoughts on registering a Domain Name.

The One Constant

You may change professions, or you may switch companies - but the one constant that helps to identify you is your personal name.

First, try to register your last name (Smith dot com); if that is taken, then your first and last name (JanieSmith dot com); and, if that is taken, then perhaps insert a dash between the first and last name (Janie-Smith dot com). Or, you might try something like AlaskaBob dot com; or CallJohn dot com; or SellKona dot com or NewYorkHomes dot com.

Be creative. If you are known by a different business name, or as a team, choose a domain that mirrors your offline marketing and branding efforts.

The only valid characters for a domain name are letters, numbers, and dashes (dashes cannot be at front or back). Other characters such as an exclamation mark are not permitted; nor are underscores or blank spaces between characters. Domain names are not case sensitive, so mixing lower and upper case often gives your domain name a better appearance for marketing purposes.

There are now over 1000 new top-level domains. Just like the real estate industry, the domain world and the Internet are also changing.

Beware of the naysayers. The Internet is full of people who are "not always right, but never in doubt." Always check credentials and credibility of that offering advice before you take that advice.