Deciding on a Domain Name
by Colleen Wilkinson

Birth of a Domain Name
You probably don't remember when you were born, but your parents do! One of the most important decisions they had to make at that time was giving you a name. This would belong to you - you would have to live with it for the rest of your life. The world would come to know you by this allocated name.

So it is with a domain name. Except that now YOU get to decide on YOUR OWN domain name. It is vital that you carefully consider what your domain name is going to be. And, unlike your name, no-one else in the world can share your domain name. There are many Michaels, Johns, Justins, Penelopes, and Marys, but once a domain name has been allocated to someone, no-one else can have it! This is a bit of an exaggeration, but we'll get to that later.

Be Considerate with Your Domain Name
In basic English, a domain name is the name you give to your web site. This domain name will be your online identity to the world. Think carefully about how you would like your domain name to fit in with your own identity.

Also, consider how your visitors are likely to look you up if they don't know your domain name: an abbreviated domain name that is quick to add to their address bar, or a comprehensive domain name that identifies with who you are. In other words, be specific; be original; and be considerate to those who will use your domain name.

Dot What?
Now as I mentioned above, there is a 'gap' where a domain name could become confusing. Getting back to your own name analogy, you have a first name and a surname. Well, so too with a domain name. Each domain name has two parts - the actual domain name, followed by a dot, followed by an extension. Domain name extensions indicate the nature of the website and indirectly your type of business (global, local, commercial, govt, etc). The most popular business extension is a dot com (.com).

Dot com domain names are snapped up very quickly, so if you want a domain name with a dot com, it is vital to grab immediately. Unlike the possibility of many First name-Surnames duplicates in the world (as it is I know of another Colleen Wilkinson just in our town...), there will NEVER be a duplicate of a full domain name.

What If Your Domain Name is Taken?
When your parents registered your name, the registrar didn't search the world to see whether anyone else already had that name. However, this is what will happen when you want to register your domain name. The domain name registrars will search the globe - and if the domain name has already been registered, sorry for you - Can't use that - Choose another!

Domain name registrars will look for the FULL domain name availability, i.e. yourname.extension. If this domain name is taken, you should consider three options for selecting another domain name: (1) Change the name and keep the extension - (newname.extension); (2) Keep the name and change the extension - (yourname.newextension); or (3) change the name and extension (newname.newextension). Your new domain name choice will depend largely on your objective for having a domain name.

Most important when deciding on another domain name is to select one that will still maintain your identity and not create confusion for your visitors.