Domains 101: Buying Domains, Where to Find Expired Names, and How to Manage it All; Part 2 of 3
In Part 1, we discussed how to come up with your new
domain name. In this article, we will look at
inexpensive places to register your newfound beauties.
You'll find, as with Lay's potato chips, "no one can eat
just one." Once you make your first purchase, you'll most
likely find yourself registering other names as well;
maybe to use as redirects to your
existing site, or possible new business ideas for all
those new sites you'd like to launch. Due to the temptation to "load up," you'll want to find
a cheap but reliable domain registrar to park them
with. If you don't, you'll find your new "habit"
leaving a big hole in your wallet. As with most things in life, prices vary --
from as little as $8.00 up to $35.00 per year. My suggestion
to you is to never spend more than about $10.00
per domain annually. My favorite place to register names charges
less than that. When researching a registrar, do make note
of what services they offer and their support policies. Let's cover your options: 1) NameBargain.com: My favorite, where I register all
of my domains: $8.88 per year. Sign up for .com,
.net, .org, .biz, .Info, and .Us. Transfer names for
only $7.95. You can handle all of
your domains from one easy interface and
see all of your listings at a glance. 2) GoDaddy.com: At $8.95 a year, GoDaddy is #1 with
many Web entrepreneurs. From what I've seen and
read online, they're very reliable and have great
prices. Includes free domain forwarding and free
parked page with every domain registered. 3) DomainOfMyOwn.com: $12.99 per year for new name
registrations and only $11.98 for transferred names.
Once a member, you can manage your domains with
their user-friendly interface. 4) DotEasy.com: If you want to register a domain
name and get free hosting to boot, you can't beat
this package deal. For only $35.00, a year you
can buy and host your newfound name. This is
a nice service if you want to put up some
mini-sites inexpensively. There's also a big market for expired
and deleted domains. You would not believe how many people
forget to renew their domains and let
some really super ones fall through the cracks.
Many of them already have a high ranking in the
search engines and increased link popularity. The trick to expired domains is knowing where to
find them so you can cash in on them before someone
else does. Many sites will charge for this privilege,
but there are some freebies (if you know where to
look): http://www.DeletedDomains.com: I love this site
and the best part is it's totally free. Just
type one or two keywords into the search box
and it will come back with all kinds of little
gems for you. You will find so many good names
to register that if you're a "Domain Junkie" (like
me), you could find yourself in real financial
danger here. Remember, I warned you. http://www.Recycled-Traffic.com: Pick up on
"recycled traffic" by snapping up domain
names that have expired and benefiting from
their already established traffic. Search
through this index according to keyword and
search engine ranking. http://www.DroppedDomains.com : Do free searches
by keyword. Look for deleted domains available
soon or ones available to register right away.
You can exclude domains that contain dashes or numbers
if that's not your cup of tea. So now that you know where to purchase domains
you need to know how to manage them. It's not
unusual for one person to own 20 or more names, and
keeping track of them and knowing when to renew
them can quickly become a full time job. I
should know; I own over 30 myself. My recommendation
to you is to register all of them at the same
place. Preferably, a registrar that will allow you
to modify your own DNS and make any other changes
at will. In the beginning I had many sites registered at
many different places and it was tough trying to
remember which domain was where. Don't make the
same mistake I did. Find a registrar you feel
comfortable with and stick with it. There are
also some excellent tools that can help make
managing your domains a breeze: 1) WatchMyDomains Pro: http://WatchMyDomains.com Software that will automatically monitor all of
your domains, regardless of where they are registered.
Highlights names that will expire soon and much
more in a nice list format. Download a 21-day
free trial. 2) Easy DNS: http://EasyDns.com/dnsmanager.php3 Manage all of your domains from one easy
web interface. 3) Domain Manager Pro: http://DomainMgrPro.com Software that will help you track multiple domains
and register data and also the websites (if any)
connected with them. Download a trial version
at the site. The longer you're active online, the more you'll be struck with great
ideas; resulting in domain names you'll want to register.
Remember, don't pay more then you have to, keep
your eyes peeled for expired bargains, and make
sure you have some form of management tool in
place. Domains are indeed like chips; you really can't register
just one. In Part 3 of this article we'll look
at some fun and useful things you can do with
your newfound gems.
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