What's In A Name - A Domain Name That Is?

You are getting ready to start a new business or expanding your current one to include an online presence, what is your first step? These days you might want to check what domain name is available for your potential business before you purchase your business cards. According to Domain Tools, there are 70,239,946 ACTIVE domain names, of which 52,143,813 are .com names. Over 176,792,761 names were active, but have since been deleted.

Before you go to purchase your domain name, I recommend brainstorming a bit and start with 5-10 potential names. Once you have this list, you need to go to Network Solutions or my personal choice GoDaddy.com to purchase your domain names. Network Solutions has long been the standard, trusted source for purchasing domains, but GoDaddy has proven itself as a leader in the industry and has the best prices for domains going.

Dot com is still king and if you can get a .com name, you really should. You may need to be a bit creative with your domain name - using a phrase or dashes between words, but there are plenty of names left and GoDaddy will actually suggest alternatives if your first choice is taken.

Purchase your domain name or pick up a few. You can always "park" them... but that is an entry for another day!