Choosing and Maintaining Your Domain Name
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Choosing and Maintaining Your Domain Name
Tip written by: Infraspection Institute
“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other word would smell as sweet.” This Shakespeare quote implies that names are not that important; however, Sir William never had a website. In this Tip we discuss the importance of website domain names.
When setting up a website, choosing a domain name is one of the most important considerations. A domain name not only represents your online identity, it can seriously influence the success of marketing a company and its products and services. Prior to selecting a domain name, it is important to understand the short and long-term implications of domain name choice.
A general rule of thumb for domain names is www.yourcompanyname.com. This convention works well if your company name is recognized and/or unique. This can get tricky if your company name is long or contains characters such as hyphens. Domain names can only use letters, numbers, or dashes; spaces and symbols are not allowed.
When selecting a domain name, keep the following in mind:
- Keep it short. Although domain names can be up to 63 characters in length, shorter names are easier to remember
- Avoid trademarked names. Cybersquatting is illegal and not well tolerated by trademark owners
- Register selected domain name(s) immediately. Include all appropriate extensions: .com, .net., .org, .biz
Lastly, be certain to renew domain name registrations on time to avoid loosing your ownership. Expired domain names that are not trademarked can be purchased by a third party and used to point traffic to websites of their choice.
Designing and maintaining an effective website is one of the many topics covered in the Infraspection Institute Level III Best Practices training course. For more information on thermographer training and certification or to register for a course, visit us online at www.infraspection.com or call us at 609-239-4788.
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