by Alex Shah

If you are considering building an online business then you need a domain name. For search engine marketing the domain should consist of the main keyword related to your business. It should be short and without numbers or hyphens. These are the basic rules for domains ideally suited for high search engine ranking.

Let’s say you have an idea but no web site. What is your first step? Well, you need to register the domain first.

The .com ending is the prefered domain for search engine optimization, however, if you are trading in the UK then the ‘.co.uk’ domain ending is the natural choice. In this case, I recommend you register both.

When you register a domain it is a good idea to use a registrar that can provide email facilities for your domain. If you are not ready to upload a web site then you can still use your domain name for your email to your new domain. Many domain registrar’s provide cheap domain registration.
Many companies provide free email and web forwarding with domain registration. This means that you are able to register the domain and ‘point’ it to any website address and forward any email sent to your domain to any existing email address.

However, what you really need is a ‘full’ email service for your domain when you register it.

If you just use email forwarding, then you are limited to only RECEIVING email to your domain which is forwarded to your main email address. You are still unable to SEND from your new domain. So if you are marketing your new site prior to launch, you really do need a full email address that allows both sending and receiving email to and from your domain name.

A full email service is one that includes POP3 mailboxes so you can both receive email sent to your domain address and send email from your domain name. This provides a much more professional look to your email marketing as the receiver of the email will see that the message is originating from a domain name related to the kind of service you are marketing and may avoid unnecessary spam complaints.

Some companies will offer Spam filtering with the domain service. Considering that 90% of email that is sent is Spam this service is extremely useful in keeping a tidy ‘inbox’

Another feature to consider when registering the domain is autoresponders. An autoresponder can be set-up to provide automatic email responses. Autoresponders reply to incoming email instantly and automatically. You can set and change the text of the reply and the trigger address whenever you like. Autoresponders are ideal for customer service or informing people when you are away.

Most companies that register your domain will offer a ‘full email service’ as an extra and is usually a monthly fee similar to a hosting fee.

When you are ready to upload a web site to your domain then you will need a web hosting plan. The company that registered your domain may provide web hosting facilities and it should be a simple upgrade of service from ‘forwarding’ to ‘web hosting’.

About the Author
Alex Shah is a freelance writer for NxtDomains.com Software and Services which provides cheap domain registration and cheap web hosting .

Web Hosting: Not Just Domain Registration – Buy a Domain Package

By Blake C. Hendrickson

When you are looking for website hosting, you often consider domain names last. Your website domain name is perhaps on of the most important aspects of your entire website. You could have the flashiest, most professional design on the entire internet, however, without the right domain name all of that will be pointless.

Your domain name is your website’s calling card. It is the first thing seen when a person visits your site, it can even be a deciding factor as to rather or not the person will even visit. That is right; a person will decide rather to visit your website or not, based on the website address (domain name).

When you go to obtain website hosting, you will need to choose a domain name for your website. This can be done through your host, which is likely to offer you a discount on the domain, such as a percentage off of the price or even a free domain when you choose them for your website hosting needs. The most ideal domain would be your business name. However, for many reasons that might not be a possibility.

One reason might be that the domain is already taken, you might choices with different extensions such as .net, .us, .org, or other such extensions, but you need to remember that people usually remember .com, so you should strive for that. Another reason might be the length of your business name, such as Joe’s Bar, Grill, and Dance club. Now, you can have a lengthy domain if you really want it like “joesbargrilldanceclub”, but look at that, would you remember it?

The key point in a domain is to make it easy to remember and catchy. Think about your business, consider the business name and what you offer. You want the name of your website to stay in their thoughts and easy to remember. With the Joe’s Bar, Grill, and Dance Club, you might consider “joes”, “jbgd”, or something to that effect.

When you do choose a few names, look at each one and determine rather you, yourself, would be able to remember it. Would that name stick in your mind? Would it tell you exactly what the business has to offer?

The author Blake Hendrickson is owner & operator of several websites specializing in cheap website hosting with reliable servers.
For your website hosting needs visit us today: http://www.myreliablehosting.net

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Blake_C._Hendrickson