When you are trying to decide on a domain/URL for your web site, you must think about this very carefully. The domain in my opinion is the single most important part of setting up a web site. Domain name selection should never be rushed, and should never be settled on just to save time. If you can't think of a good domain name, then hold of until you can. The most dominant Top-Level Domains to chose from, these include:

• .com
• .org
• .net
• .biz

there are other Top-Level Domains available, specific to individual counties, for example, .ie specifies and Irish web site, and .co.uk specifies a UK based web site.

Rules Of Domain Selection

If you follow the following list of rules, you shouldn't go to far wrong.

Rule 1

Keep your domain name reasonably short, remember - your domain name should be easy remembered, short, and simple to type. A 25 character long domain name is far to long and not easily remembered. Would you remember www.professionalwindowinstallerservices.com? No you wouldn't - this domain is hard to read let alone remember.

Rule 2

When possible, don't use hyphen's to separate words. Just join the words together. Search engines seem to have a tendency to prioritise domains without hyphens in the URL.

Rule 3

Don't use someone else's name, copyrighted product, or trademarked business name to try and "cheat the system".Quite often domains like this end in a long winded court battle resulting in the owner losing the domain and possibly paying a hefty court fine.

Rule 4

Rule 4 is possibly one of the most important rules, try and use a .com domain over anything else. Search engines and the world recognise a .com before anything else. Try and avoid using a .biz domain as they are ignored occasionally and not very well trusted as the internet community is unaware of the .biz and sometimes mistake the domain as being fraudulent. Your business should have a domain which outlines the business name, product name, organisation and be as straight forward as possible.

Rule 6 - Domain Renewal

Ensure you have your domain set to automatically renew after your subscription has expired, many providers do this automatically but some don't. When the time comes to renew the domain, you will receive many letters or emails informing you of its renewal. These letters and emails are being sent from third party companies, and on many occasions they are requesting extortionate amounts of money for a domain renewal. Ignore all emails and letters from anyone who isn't your domain provider.