After deciding on a domain name for your website, what comes next? After making sure it’s not already taken, you need to register it. For help in choosing a registrar for your website follow these steps.
There are many registrar services out there. When choosing a registrar do your research. Go online and search for “best registrars 2016” for example. Be aware that some of these websites do get a fee from some of the registrar companies. This should be disclosed on the site. If you’re not sure if the website is receiving some form of compensation, cross-reference with a couple of sites. You should see some of the same names come up.
Whichever company you choose save all your account info in a safe place. Make a note of when your domain name expires. That’s right, domain expire. Once you lose your domain name you may not be able to get it back. If the company offers an auto-renewal service, take it. It’s one less thing to worry about Domains are registered for a minimum for one year and up to 3, 5, or more years. Usually there is a savings the longer your contract is for.
Do I need additional domain extensions
Many times, a registrar might try to convince you it’s necessary to buy other domain extensions besides .com. .Com is referred to as a “top-level domain,” which means it’s the highest level in the hierarchical Domain Name System of the Internet. What does that mean? Simply that .com domain names (along with .edu and .org) are the most sought after.
In my opinion, spending extra money buying the .info, .net, .org, or any other extension of your domain name is unnecessary.
What else do you need after choosing a registrar?
Nothing. Even if you are ready to start building your site, don’t start getting any additional services until you speak with a design professional. Don’t start spending money on email accounts, storage, email marketing, calendar and other services until you are certain that you need them. While the services are useful, not every website needs them.
Finally, feel free to ask any questions in the comments section below. Choosing a registrar for your website is one of the first steps to getting your business online.