Often we are asked if one should try to register
a domain that has relevant keywords within its name. In fact keywords in domain
names have little importance in search engine rankings and that has been so for
quite some time now. In this area, link text containing keywords is of much
greater help in domain rankings rather than the appearance within the domain
name itself of the keyword.
Of much greater value in achieving high rankings
are good quality inward linkages and unique site content, also of good quality and
which is regularly refreshed and updated. These are of much greater value to
(say) a motor vehicle site than having the keyword 'motor' in its domain name.
Just consider two ubiquitous domain names - amazon.com and ebay.com.
So, rather
than pay an exorbitant price for a name containing keywords, your money would be
better spent on marketing and publicity which, in the longer term will deliver
relevant traffic to your site.
Secure Domain Names
At Hawke Internet we have identified, registered
and we continue to maintain hundreds of domain names on behalf of our clients.
We can source a highly suitable domain name for your business or organisation;
we can register it, maintain it and we can keep it secure on your behalf.
Entrusting your domain name to our secure clients
holding account relieves you of any worry that your name might expire without
your knowledge. We will ensure that it is legally registered in your own name or
in that of your business - whichever you prefer. Furthermore, if you require
anonymity, we can arrange for domain names with some of the extensions to be
'privately' registered (still in your name) so that your name and contact
details are hidden from view on the internet. Unfortunately this facility is not
currently available to .nz extensions.
If you need help in identifying the name best suited to your needs, or if you
have any questions about domain name registration, please don't hesitate to call
us at any time. We want what is best for you.
Your domain name is in effect the address of your
site, in other words, where it may be found on the internet. A good domain
name is easy to remember but does not necessarily have to incorporate your
company or business name, nor is there any need for your domain name to
incorporate key words relevant to your business.
Look at names such as amazon.com, ebay.com, google.com which are now
household names, world-wide. These names alone give no hint of the business
behind them yet they are major success stories in their own right. It is of much
greater importance to fully optimise and market your web presence, some of which
you can do yourself and some of which we can do for
you.
There are still millions of great names out there for the taking and
the cost of making
one of them yours alone can be as little as $24 per
year!
Hawke Internet can help in your search for the domain that is right for you!
When deciding upon a domain name, the following should be
considered:
1. Keep it snappy A great domain name is easy to remember and easy
to type. If your name is Paul (or you use the name Paul) and you have a
pool-related business, you might like your domain name to be paulthepool.com.
(this domain name is in fact owned by ourselves and is available for
resale). Avoid lengthy domain names and names in which digits are substituted
for words, such as (say) homes4sale.
2. Pick the right extension A domain extension is the name for the
letters that follow the dot at the end of main domain name - such as .co.nz,
.com, .net. At the end of this article we have included a table that explains the purpose
of some of the main domain name extensions.
We are often asked by clients how they can prevent
a competitor trading under a similar domain name. Although legal and
trademarking measures can be taken, probably the easiest and cheapest way is to
buy multiple domains so that nobody else can use them. For example, we own all
of the major extensions to hawkeinternet. Of course one would not want to buy
every possible extension (there are hundreds of them) but the top nine or ten
extensions are sufficient.
3. Check the variations If you want to buy (say) fionasflowers.com
make sure that fionas-flowers.com is not already used by a rival company. Many
businesses (including Hawke Internet) own the hyphenated versions of their
domain names for additional security. At the present amazingly low cost of
domain name ownership, it makes very good business sense to protect your name
within reasonable limits.
Hawke Internet manages hundreds of domain names on
behalf of its clients. We are experts in choosing and setting up the right
domain. If you are uncertain, 'phone us today and let us take the hassle out of
getting the best domain for your business!
The meaning of some of the more popular extensions.
.com
This is by far the most popular domain extension. The .com extension was
originally set up to denote any commercial website in the United States although
its usage has since spread around the world and .com is now used (often
incorrectly) for almost every type of site.
.net
This extension was originally intended to be used by any internet-related site
such as internet service providers. These days however, it is not uncommon to
see the .net extension used in connection with totally unrelated businesses.
Many businesses will register both the .com and the .net domain names for their
site.
.org
This extension was established for non-profit making bodies, such as charities
and community groups but again, as with .net, we are now beginning to see the
.org extension used by profit-making businesses. Anyone can buy one, but if you
are not running a non-profit organisation, you really should not register a .org
domain name.
.co.nz
Double extensions including a country abbreviation are intended for use by any
business trading, or predominantly trading in the country specified.
.biz
A relatively new extension, this has been around since 2001 and was introduced
to ease the pressure on .com extensions. It has been slow to 'take off' but is
gradually gaining popularity as availability of the .com's lessens.
.eu
This extension is used for any site distinctively and solely to do with Europe
and can be bought only by businesses or persons resident, or doing business in
Europe.
.info
This is another extension that was introduced as recently as 2001. It is
intended for use by sites created to provide information. For example, we use
hawkeinternet.info for our Server Status and Information Centre.
.jobs
Created in 2001 for use, as the name suggests, by employment-related sites
etc.
Sub-domains
Once you have bought your main domain name, you can set up as many sub-domains as
you wish beneath that domain name. The sub-domain takes the place of the “www” in
an address — for example, as in: 'results.grand-draw.com' or even
'july.results.grand-draw.com'. The use of sub-domains can help to keep a site
better organised. If necessary, a sub-domain can sit on a different server to
that of the main domain so that the main server is not overwhelmed by heavy
traffic.
PS: Many women struggle to admit their age! Many men struggle to act theirs!
