How to register your domain with Namecheap

Namecheap

Buying your domain is a crucial point in your money making journey. The name of your site will be forever yours and reflect the content within. If your one of the lucky people who already has your business name lined up then congratulations! Hopefully your name is available, not liable for copyright infringement and easy to remember for your customers. Sorry if a little joy has just left you. We only say this because so many times, people have gone over to namecheap and typed in their domain name only to find that most extension endings they desire are taken. As well as writing most pages on their site, only to have to go through them and edit them with a new business name

The first stage should be to look at the content of your blog / website. What are you selling or talking about? What is the nature of your site? The title is very important in the world of SEO. If you've not come across SEO just yet, read our post as this is very important when trying to gain your customers for conversions into sales! SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) involves the use of tags / keywords. These are imperative for your site to be ranked high in search engines for people to find you. If you can incorporate one of your main key words into your domain name then that's great! If not, its not a problem we just need to make it relevant. E.g. Let's say your writing a 'how to make money' blog. Having this as the title would be ideal, as your keyword is not only in the content, title and domain of your blog but it's easy to remember if a customer is searching for ways to make money through search engines. Head over to namecheap and start looking at different domain names that have either your keyword or a name your have chosen. It's wise to do this before making and working on your site as you can reference your domain name throughout your site as this will now become a keyword for people to search for - "Your money site"! There are many different domains to choose from, all of which are perfect for your business in different ways. Our advice is to think of the spelling and manageability of your site:

• If it is a long domain name will people remember it?

• Is it easy to spell?

• Is it relevant to your site?

• Is it memorable?

• Can you turn it into a brand if your business grows?

• Will it look good on a business card, posters or logos?

• Is it already taken?

The worst part about picking your ideal domain name is heading over to namecheap and finding out that it's already been taken! There are many alternative endings for your domain name. Let's say your in the UK and want the name yourmoneysite.co.uk. Unfortunately when you check in namecheap it's been taken but they have given you different ending options such as .club, .blog, .net etc

There used to be a known 'no no' when thinking of taking anything other than .com, .co.uk and .org but with so many domains being uploaded over the last 10 years it really doesn't matter what ending you choose. There are plenty of options and only you, the owner, can decided which is beneficial for you and your business. On the checkout page you have the option to choose from 1 - 10 years, with the option to auto renew (which we advise to do!). You are offered extras with your domain which includes:

• Hosting

• Positive SSL

• Premium DNS

• 2 months free private email hosted by namecheap and chargeable after your free trial.

• Gmail email address for your business (highly recommended - you can choose your desired email such as info@yoursite.co.uk, admin@, contactus@ etc.

When registering your domain, if for a business or blog, please bear in mind that your name, address, email address and telephone number will be public domain if anyone wants to find out who the owner of a particular site is, by searching a public database online called WHOIS. It may be worthwhile registering a business address and or telephone number if you do not want your private information shared online. Alternatively, you can signup to WHOIS Privacy when registering your domain, usually priced £4.99 + 20% VAT.

This is available for all extensions exempt .co.uk. If you've purchased a .co.uk domain then you can choose to opt out of the online database by registering with nominet. However Nominet will not remove everything from the database.

Things to look out for -

• Don't think that by going to another domain provider, your ideal name will be available. All domains, when purchased, are registered by your registar (the company you have used to purchase your domain). This is updated throughout the web, so when it's gone it's gone! There are some people or sites that purchase domains in the hope that someone will want to purchase it from them so they can sell it for a higher price. You can contact them via the contact info located within the Whois info.

• Think twice about registering your domain with the same company you host with. You may decided to switch hosting companies at a later date and it becomes s little complicated if you have purchased the domain through the same hosting company. It may seem like an easy option and in some ways it is, but you will need to pay for both hosting and domain at the same time. If one goes down due to technical problems so does the other! If you want to change your domain name but keep your site then it may be complicated to disconnect if they are all under one umbrella. On the other hand connecting your domain to your hosting account is quite tricky if you do not have the right step by step instructions. (We are soon bringing step by step videos showing exactly how to register and set up a domain and how to connect it to your hosting account, FREE to all our subscribers. Sign up below to be the first to know when this is available).

• Try not to spend too much on your domain name! You may have your heart set on a particular name but if it cost more than $10 it's not worth forking out too much money for it unless you have already trademarked and copyrighted your name.

• Check the box that says auto renew. If you're prone to not checking your emails daily it's very likely that you may miss your renewal date (one year from purchase). If this happens you will find your site disconnected if not renewed quickly, your site may be returned back to the available list for someone to snap up!

Buying your domain is an exciting part of your journey. Don't rush it! Enjoy the experience and make the right decision for your business, after all, you and your domain will be together for a while.

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