"Why
should I register a domain name?"
If
you use the Internet, you will eventually want your own presence on
the world wide web. The net is experiencing a phenomenal
explosion as a primary tool of global communications and information.
Already 40% of the American public is on line, and the rest of the
world is gaining rapidly. Soon it will be inconceivable for a business
not to have at least its calling card available on line. It's
the cheapest and most far-reaching form of advertising that has ever
been devised.
The
number of personal web site domains is also growing at at an amazing
rate. And it's a small wonder when you consider what you can do
with your own domain. Post your interests and hobbies on the
web. Soon you will begin receiving emails from others around the
world who share your interests. Families researching their
genealogy post their web sites and are found by relatives they didn't
even know they had. People are making new friends from the four
corners of the world simply because of the ease of communications, and
the ability of this tool to virtually eliminate distance.
Of
course, you can post a web site on third-party domains such as AOL or
Geocities. However, the web site address might look something
like this:
http://members.webservername.net/hearthland/minnows/~yourname022346/
Face
it, no one but you will remember that. And because of search
engine limitations, these megadomain sites don't always get indexed
very effectively, making it hard for people to find you via a search
engine. (Most search engines only index a finite number of pages per
domain.) Now, think how much easier and efficient it would
be to find your website if your address were simply:
http://www.yourname.com
Registering
your own domain name gives you presence on the web that is easy to
remember, descriptive, and an enhancement to your professional image.
And, if you ever need to switch Internet service providers, you can
take your domain name with you, whether across the street or to the
other side of the world. You'll never need to reprint your business
materials, change your email address, or send notifications to your
clients.
And
you'll never have someone else's ads pop up to annoy your site
visitors, unless of course you're getting handsomely paid for it.
Even
if you don't have a web site ready to go, you should go ahead
and register your domain name while it is still available.
Domain names are registered on a first come - first served
basis, and about 6000 new names are registered every day.
Registering your domain name now will ensure its availability when you
are ready to post your website, and it will prevent someone else
from using that name for their domain..
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