Tag Archives: webmaster

Yahoo Domain Names

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Businesses are fooling themselves if they think they can continue to conduct business without a website. This is because in today’s age, having a website makes many think a company is ‘official.’ But a website by itself doesn’t mean anything without a decent domain name. Granted, a company can try to cut costs by using a free domain name or a third level domain name offered by free web hosting companies, but visitors won’t view their site as being genuine.

Long, complicated domain names are associated with affiliate marketing or even scammers, so businesses need to try and stay away from them as much as possible. The best solution involves getting a normal domain name from a reputable domain name company. One of the best domain name companies around is Yahoo Domain Names.

Yahoo Domain Names is a great alternative for individuals who do not know much about domain names or website hosting. In fact, with Yahoo Domain Names, a person can get a domain name free should they decide to buy one of their hosting packages. The cheapest hosting package available is $11.95 a month plus a startup fee of $25. With this along with any other Yahoo Domain Name hosting package, webmasters get an online website builder. Basically, all they have to do is enter in their information and the site is created for them instantly.

Another reason one should choose Yahoo Domain Names is because of their domain name locking system. This helps prevent hijackers from stealing the domain name. With Yahoo Domain Names, the process of domain name locking is as simple as clicking a button. Webmasters can check to make sure their domain name has been locked by looking up their Whois information. If it says Status: Registrar-Lock, (which it will since Yahoo Domain Names was used), then they can feel assured that their domain name is safe from unauthorized individuals.

Thirdly, Yahoo Domain Names offers private domain name registration. Without private domain name registration anyone can find a webmaster’s basic contact information. This is because ICANN has designated that webmasters have their contact info posted in a database that is accessible online. With Yahoo Domain Names, a person can use Melbourne IT’s contact information as their own. Any inquires made to the ICANN for a webmaster’s personal information will simply point to Melbourne IT. This feature is essential in making sure a webmaster is protected from spam email and even worse, identity theft.

Lastly, Yahoo Domain Names offers 24/7 technical support. Many webmasters overlook the importance of tech support when managing their domain names, but it is still important, especially if one is a newbie. This is because domain names sometimes point to 404 error pages if something goes wrong. With 24/7 tech support, Yahoo Domain Name users can pinpoint what is exactly causing the problem and get it fixed immediately.

In conclusion, if a company is having trouble deciding both where they should get their web hosting and their domain name, they should consider Yahoo Domain Names. Yahoo Domain Names is affordable, offers great features and most importantly is trustworthy. Many other domain name companies may not even deliver a domain name, but Yahoo Domain Names has too much of a reputation to even think about doing such things.

Transferring Domain Names

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In the olden days of the Internet, domain name registration was handled by Network Solutions. However, after a while, the government decided that it wasn’t fair for one company to have sole control over the domain name market. Therefore, it opened up the business to other companies. Since then hundreds of domain name companies, ranging from sole proprietorships to corporate enterprises have capitalized on a market that generates millions in revenue each year. So, for webmasters, this means there’s no shortage of companies to choose from when they register their domain names.

Yet, what happens if they register with one domain name company, but decide later they want it to be operated by another company? Fortunately, they can get their wish through the process of domain name transferring. This is when a webmaster gets another registrar to handle their domain name. All payments are forwarded to the new registrar, as the old registrar is no longer in the picture, (at least when it comes to the domain name). If the registrar is handling a webmaster’s hosting, they still need to make the necessary payments to make sure their website stays in tact.

The actual process involved with a domain name transfer will depend on the registrar a webmaster is working with. For instance, if they charge a payment for domain name transfers, this fee must be received before anything can be done officially. Otherwise, the process begins as soon as a webmaster makes a request to do so. Some domain name registrars will require a webmaster to send a notarized letter informing their intent to transfer. Others may allow the request to be done online. Once the registrar authorizes the domain name transfer, it will take 1 to 7 business days for the process to be completed.

Sometimes a domain name may not be transferable. This could be for a variety of reasons such as legal issues with the domain name itself or the original domain name registrar. An example of the former could be trademark problems. For the latter such legal scenarios that could cause problems include bankruptcy and/or issues with scamming. There is also a possibility that a domain name registrar simply refuses to transfer the domain name.

How can a person prevent these types of problems? The best solution involves reading any fine print the original domain name registrar offers. A person should also check with the Better Business Bureau to make sure the domain name registrar doesn’t have any outstanding legal issues associated with it.

In conclusion, if a person wants to switch domain name companies, there is the option of doing a domain name transfer. If it is successful, the domain name will work as it originally did, with the only difference being who is managing it. However, if a domain name cannot be transferred, a webmaster must stick with the original registrar or consider a URL redirect service.

With a URL redirect service, the original domain name becomes masked by a new domain name. It is not as good as an official domain name transfer, but it is still better than nothing if transferring is not an option.

Misspelled Domain Names

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When it comes to search engine keywords, there are some that are potential gold mines that are being ignored. These are ones in which a word or phrase is accidentally misspelled. Usually, the search engine will link to results that contain the correct spelling, but it will still show any websites associated with the misspelled keyword. If one of these websites catches the eye of a surfer, they may visit it. This is why many webmasters will not only create websites around misspelled keywords but also pay money to bid on them in pay-per-click search engine advertisements.

But misspelled keywords can help in another venue of Internet marketing… one’s domain name. When a popular misspelled keyword is included in a domain name, the search engine bots will be more likely to notice the website. Granted, it won’t get listed with the properly spelled keyword, but even traffic from a misspelled keyword is better than nothing. A person will just have to decide whether they want their website to be branded with a domain name that has an improper spelling.

So, how exactly can a webmaster make such a determination when they are deciding on their domain name? Well, first they need to look at what their website is for. If they are just doing affiliate marketing or Adsense promotion, it doesn’t matter as much if their domain name is branded properly. This is because they are not promoting their own business. However, if they are using a website to promote a company, they will want to try to keep their domain name as professional as possible.

Secondly, a webmaster needs to see if there is profitability in a misspelled keyword. Even though a misspelled domain isn’t as harmful to a webmaster promoting affiliate sites, they don’t necessarily want to make it a first option, especially if the misspelled keyword in the domain name doesn’t get much traffic. To determine a misspelled keyword’s profitability, a person can look it up in a keyword analyzer. In fact, some paid keyword analyzers, (such as Word Tracker), even have features where a person can see which specific types of misspelled keywords are worth taking advantage of.

If a misspelled keyword fits both of these criteria, a webmaster may want to consider putting it in their domain name. From there they will need to decide if they want that keyword to be included in the content. If it is then there’s an even greater likelihood search engine bots will index the website according to the misspelled keyword. However, if it’s not there’s still a chance that the website could be indexed according to the correct keyword, though if this ranking is low, it may not be a preferable option.

The webmaster will ultimately have to decide whether their content still looks ‘professional’ with the misspelled keyword. Some words, (such as mesothelioma), are so hard to spell, that a person may not even notice improper versions of it. If this happens they won’t have any issues seeing it so many times in the content, since they didn’t really know how to spell it right themselves.

In conclusion, including a misspelled keyword in one’s domain name could be an excellent way to covertly get website traffic, at least if a webmaster knows what he or she is doing. If they don’t a misspelled domain name could cause a person to think negatively about a website.

For this reason webmasters must take caution in which misspelled keywords they choose for their domain names along with whether or not they continue to use it in their content.

Making Money Selling Domain Names

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Selling domain names can be quite profitable for webmasters. This is particularly the case if the webmaster sells a domain name that has an existing line of traffic. In these situations domain names can generate thousands of dollars for their webmasters. There have even been domain name names that allowed webmasters to collect millions in profit. With a little bit of basic knowledge, you can emulate such success for yourself. This article will provide that information through an easy to follow step-by-step guide.

First, you will need to find a search engine keyword that is highly searched yet not used much by other websites. You can do this by using a keyword analyzer. The best keyword analyzers are those that you pay for, such as Word Tracker or Keyword Analyzer. The reason why these are preferable over free ones is because they let you know how much competition you are facing with a potential keyword. Free ones only tell you how much the keyword has been searched. If money is a problem, try to get a paid keyword analyzer that is offering a free sample, such as Word Tracker. You can upgrade to the paid version once you return profit from the sale of your domain name.

With your keyword chosen, you will need to get a domain name and web hosting. Why do you need web hosting if you’re going to sell just the domain name? It’s because you’re going to need a website to drive traffic to that domain name. Without a website visitors won’t want to return to whatever domain name you selected. This lessens the main element that gives a domain name profitability: traffic.

Anyway, try to get a package that will include both web hosting and a domain name at the same time, since you won’t have to worry about transferring anything later. When you choose your domain name, make sure you include your selected keyword in its phrasing. If you find that your selected keyword is taken as a domain name, try making alterations like saying “a1″, “123″ or “101.” For example, say the keyword “Careers” is taken as a domain name. You could say “A1 Careers,” “Careers 123″ or “Careers 101.” Alternatively, you could try searching for a related keyword that isn’t taken as a domain name. Either way, keep trying until you get a memorable yet keyword-rich domain name that still has a .com extension.

Now, you will need to create a website for your domain name. It doesn’t have to be big… even a one-pager could do the trick, if you don’t mind a website so simple. Write an article related to the keyword you chose and create a simple site using Microsoft Word, (make sure you save the document as an .HTML file). Sign up for Adsense and/or an affiliate program, so you can offer additional resources for your visitors. You will also earn a commission if a sale is made or a clickthrough generated, (depending on the program you joined).

Once your website is uploaded, you need to focus on traffic-building. You can get an initial boost by buying traffic, though make sure the company you buy your traffic from uses expired domain names rather than bots or even incentive traffic, (such as paid emails). But even after this you will need to try to build up inbound links. These are websites that link to you. Post your site on any free site, such as directories, message boards or online classified ads. Also, make sure you submit articles to free article directories. Additionally, try to initiate link exchanges. You can do this by emailing the webmaster or finding link exchange networks such as Link Market.

Keep building up your links until you get a steady stream of traffic. If you get enough traffic, you will get an Alexa rating. If the rating is pleasing, find a domain name appraiser and see how much your domain name can go for. This will give you some idea of how much you can realistically get, but don’t get discouraged if the number seems low. Why? It’s because some people will care more about the traffic your domain name is receiving over the supposed SEO elements of it.

Either way, when you feel you are ready put your domain name up for auction. You may even want to include your original website, though this is optional. When the domain name sells, you will need to transfer it over to the new webmaster’s account… your web hosting company can help you with this.

With your profit you may want to consider doing the venture again with an expired domain name. This will get you a traffic boost without having to go through the actual process of traffic-building, (if you decide you don’t want to do that).

Local Marketing with Geodomains

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A webmaster increases their chances of getting a high search engine listing by including a popular keyword in their domain name. However, if a keyword is too popular, including it in a domain name means nothing, even if the website it’s pointing to is also optimized. This is why most Internet marketing gurus suggest that domain names as well as their corresponding websites use more specific keywords that aren’t as competitive. One of the best ways to do this is to include keywords based on geography. When such a keyword is used in a domain name, it is known as a geodomain.

Geodomains are highly used in the tourism industry. For example, if a person visits Maryland.com, they will see a site that offers information on what a tourist can do if they are planning a trip to Maryland. However, this should not dissuade other markets from centering in on a geodomain. As long as a product or service can be distributed outside of the webmaster’s location, they should not be afraid to use geodomains that target national or even international audiences.

This is not to say that geodomain marketing isn’t better for some industries than it is for others. Why? It’s because the areas that people live in have their own cultural and sociological needs. Even if one markets in their own country, people living in one state or province may not have as much of a demand for a particular product or service. For example, consider a website that is marketing private boats. If they use a geodomain that encompasses an area that is lower-income, naturally, their efforts won’t result in many sales. This is why it’s very important that webmasters investigate the general characteristics associated with the location they would like to create a geodomain for.

So, how can a person find a geodomain name? Well, chances are state-based or country-based geodomains are taken at least for the most common domain name extensions. If they can’t get these types of geodomains with lesser known extensions, they can consider combining a geographical term with something else or look for a more specific geodomain. When looking for something more specific, webmasters will need to consider making geodomains based off of cities, counties and even popular neighborhoods. They need to do this both for their own country and for other countries, provided that their website can meet the needs of an international audience.

In conclusion, a geodomain can be a good method for marketing, if a webmaster doesn’t mind trying to appeal to a local audience. Research will still be required to make sure a geodomain properly fits what is being promoted, but overall a webmaster will find that with the right geodomain, they will be able to generate more sales with less advertising expenses.

This is because the keywords used in geodomains are not highly focused on in the Internet marketing world, especially those that are very specific. And when this scenario happens, a website has a greater chance of ranking higher in search engine listings.

Is the .Com Overrated?

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When it comes to domain name extensions, most people are familiar with .com. Because of this the average webmaster is scrambling to get the perfect .com domain name. Some may even forego registering a potential goldmine of a domain name in favor of getting a less popular .com. Yet, there are dozens of other domain names available, some of which have gained popularity despite not being a .com. How can a webmaster determine if their site is going to be in such a league without the traditional .com? This article will explain how.

First, a webmaster needs to evaluate the purpose of their website. If their website is designed to simply direct people to an affiliate page, then it won’t really matter what extension it has, since they are only going to visit it once anyway. However, if a website is designed for repeat visits, people may not care about the site not having a .com. Sites that contain updated information, games and message boards tend to be the type of sites that get repeat visitors.

Secondly, webmasters need to consider the memorable nature of their domain name. If a webmaster is able to create a witty domain name hack, such as del.icio.us, and their content is good, it may not matter that they don’t have a .com. A good site that can allow a webmaster to register unconventional domain name extensions is New.net. This site offers extensions such as .love and .free. By looking at these extensions, webmasters can start pondering ideas for their own domain name hacks. If they need help, they can always type the word or letters used in the extension in a keyword analyzer or search engine.

Thirdly, webmasters need to determine whether or not a domain name with an unconventional extension will rank higher in search engines than a domain name with a traditional one. In fact, consider the above-mentioned example of del.icio.us. Honestly, how many people are typing such a domain name in their browser? While it is certainly memorable, all of the periods associated with it are annoying. Yet, the site still has a high search engine ranking, which is probably how it’s getting its traffic.

Surfers visit it from the search engine, bookmark it and never again have to be associated with its unique URL. This is the type of success a webmaster wants to emulate. Indeed, if a domain name is keyword-rich and memorable, webmasters need to definitely go for whatever extension is available for it.

Of course, this is not to say that a person must be limited to just domain name. If they want to still use .coms after using other extensions they can. In fact, the more domain names that point to a site, the more likely a search engine bot will index it higher. So, ultimately, with this strategy, webmasters will have two domain names they can work with. They can use the one with the unconventional domain name in search engine marketing in hopes of getting indexed high, while the other one can be used in printed media, where people are more likely to be concerned with the type of URL they are entering in their browser.

Hyphenated Domain Names

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You think of a perfect domain name. It contains a keyword that is found in search engines, has no trademark issues and is memorable for website visitors. You try to register your domain name with a domain name company. It appears to be taken. So, you put a hyphen in it. That version of your domain name is not taken, but should you go on and invest in it? This article will explore what webmasters need to consider if they are deciding to use hyphenated domain names.

First, they need to think about their website visitors. Most people are not accustomed to using hyphenated domain names. Even if they like a website, it may be simply a matter of forgetting to include the hyphen. If this happens then the unhyphenated version of the domain name will be what receives traffic, which is definitely not what a webmaster wants. Of course, if a domain name is not hyphenated in the first place, then such an issue would never arise.

However, a hyphenated domain name that is keyword-rich has a higher chance of getting a good ranking from a search engine than a non-hyphenated domain that is not SEO optimized. A higher search engine ranking might outweigh the initial disadvantage of how inconvenient a hyphenated domain name is. This is because if a website has a high search engine ranking, people won’t need to type in the domain name in order to access it. They can simply click on the listing given in search engine results. And if they like the site, they will bookmark it, an action that is preferable, since it shows they are really interested in what the site has to offer.

Webmasters should also consider whether or not their domain name is more understandable if they use a hyphen. Consider the unusual domain name molestationnursery.com. This is actually in reference to a website that talks about mole nurseries, not molestation. Yet, what will most website visitors think if they saw the domain name in that manner? Including hyphens can make such a website much clearer.

It would also be better for SEO, since search engines would index mole-station-nursery.com with keywords related to moles.

So, basically, there are advantages and disadvantages to using hyphenated domain names. If a webmaster thinks their domain name is going to bring them a lot of search engine traffic, they should go for it. And in some cases, a hyphenated domain name is necessary to make its meaning easier to understand.

Otherwise, webmasters should try their best to create non-hyphenated domain names, since these are the types of domain names that rule the Internet world. If they are having trouble coming up with a better domain name, they can consider using a domain name generator. Many domain name companies provide rudimentary domain name generators if a selected domain name gets turned down. Webmasters don’t have to settle for these type though, since there are more sophisticated domain name generators that can offer even more suggestions.

Get Traffic with Expired Domain Names

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One of the greatest difficulties in being a new webmaster is trying to acquire traffic. This is because trying to build legitimate traffic requires both time and money. How is this so? Well, if a webmaster is trying to obtain traffic through search engines, they will need to spend a great deal of time with link-building and content creation. If they are trying to get traffic through a pay-per-click program, they will have to invest hundreds to thousands of dollars if they want to take advantage of a high-performance keyword. However, there is another alternative that can allow a webmaster to get tons of traffic without having to invest too much in time or money. It involves purchasing expired domain names.

What is an expired domain name? An expired domain name is a domain name that never got renewed by its owner. This could be for a variety of reasons such as disinterest in the original website, lack of funds or something more serious, such as an owner’s death. Whatever the reason when the renewal fees aren’t paid, the expired domain name sits out in cyberspace still functioning as any other domain name. There is just one difference… an expired domain name doesn’t have a website attached to it, so it instead points to a 404 error page.

Indeed, it is a waste of traffic when an expired domain name points to a 404 web page. Many domain name companies have realized this, which is why quite a few sell expired domain names either through a regular, upfront sale or through an expired domain name auction. The prices for these domain names can range from less than $100 to over $1 million. Some of these sales may even include a website.

So, how does a webmaster know if an expired domain name is worth buying? First, they need to check to see the Google page rank of an expired domain name. To do this they need to download Google’s toolbar and then type in the URL of the expired domain name. The toolbar will then let them know what the page rank is. If the page rank indicator is gray, the expired domain name must be avoided since this means the site has been banned by Google. Otherwise, it should be okay, though webmasters should also take into consideration the actual number associated with the page rank. If the number is between 6 and 10, they should strongly consider buying the expired domain name.
Secondly, webmasters need to find out the Alexa rating of an expired domain name. The Alexa rating determines how much traffic has actually gone to a domain name. If a website has not received a significant amount of traffic, it will not have an Alexa rating. To determine the Alexa rating for an expired domain name, webmasters need to visit Alexa.com.

Finally, webmasters need to see how many websites are linking to the expired domain name. To do this they need to put the command link: followed by the URL of the expired domain name into a search engine. If a lot of links are returned, this is a sign that the traffic coming to the expired domain name originated from legitimate sources.

Domain Name Tasting

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A good domain name not only makes people more likely to visit a website, but it can also increase search engine rankings. This is because search engine bots index websites based on keywords found both in its content and domain name. Yet, how does a webmaster know if their domain name is going to be profitable? Usually most don’t until they put it into practice. Hence, there is the practice of domain name tasting.

What is domain name tasting? Domain name tasting is the process of registering a domain name and seeing how much traffic it brings to a website during whatever grace period the domain name registrar offers, (which is normally five days). If the domain name brings in a lot of visitors, the webmaster will keep it. Otherwise, they will cancel their registration and get a refund.

Does this sound interesting to you? Well, before you decide to do domain name tasting for your site, first consider the ethics of the practice. Domain name companies lose millions of dollars every year due to domain name tasting. While some may not feel sympathy for them, if domain name tasting continues without any legal restrictions, DNS enterprises may strike back by making their prices higher. Such a consequence would also hurt customers who intended on buying the domain name outright.

Another ethical dilemma involved with domain name tasting is the issue of good domain names not being eligible for more serious customers. Some may feel that in a system of free capitalistic enterprise, domain name testers have every right to access however many domain names they can. Yet, if they aren’t really going to buy them, why shouldn’t these domain names be available to individuals who may need them more? Many would argue it is better to sell a domain name to a company that is serious about using it as their brand than selling it to a person thinking they can use it to get quick traffic.

It is also important to keep in mind that a good domain name is not a sole indicator of whether or not a site is going to be successful. Domain name tasters are fooling themselves if they think their practice of domain tasting is what has brought about their success with website traffic. Granted, an expired domain name might have a little bit of traffic associated with it, but to get one that is of value, a person would have to pay hundreds maybe even thousands of dollars. Many domain name tasters wouldn’t have the funds for such a domain name, so they may instead deal with cheaper ones. And most of these cheaper ones probably do not have their own traffic stream.

Indeed, the type of website that gets a lot of traffic is one that has: a decent domain name, keyword-enriched content and lots of inbound links. Even if one doesn’t see anything ethically wrong with domain name tasting, doing it may not accurately reflect whether or not a domain name is valid. In fact, if a person does domain name tasting and their website did not have the other elements that make for proper traffic-building, they could potentially be throwing away a domain name that could be a gold mine in the future.

Domain Name Generators

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The process of registering a domain name can be quite annoying. Why? It’s because many times the domain name a webmaster hopes to register has already been taken. So, they have to ponder again what their domain name should be. But what do they do if that domain name has been taken as well? The best solution involves getting it right the first time with a domain name generator. This is a program or service that suggests domain names that are not likely to have been used by other webmasters. They can work in three ways including: giving random listings, giving listings based on input or using human suggestions.

The first type of domain name generator gives random domain name suggestions. Examples of sites that offer these types of domain name generators include Makewords.com and Domain-Generator.net. The only thing a visitor has to do to see a suggested domain name is click a button or, (in the case of Makewords.com), just visit the site. Depending on the complexity of the domain name generator, visitors will be able to see if the domain name has previously been registered and/or how valuable they would be if they decided to buy them.

The second type of domain name generator offers suggestions based on user input. 123Finder.com is an example. What happens is a user enters a keyword that describes the purpose of their website. The domain name generator will then return domain names that contain this keyword. A variant of this service could require a user to enter in more than one keyword. From this input the domain name generator would return a domain name that contains a mixture of these keywords.

The final type of domain name generator offers suggestions from human creativity. An example of such a service is Pickydomains.com. With this service, (along with others like it), customers have to pay a fee. Part of the fee goes to the person responsible for coming up with the domain name. After the fee is sent, customers must provide information related to their website.

Employees will use this info to choose a domain name. When the process is complete, the customer will receive a list of several domain names, each of which came from a human mind rather than a computer program, (which is used by the other types of domain name generators featured in this article).

Are there any downsides to using a domain name generator? Well, human-based domain name generators usually require a fee, while automated ones might not seem as creative. Other than that domain name generators are an excellent way for webmasters to determine what their domain name should be. Even if they don’t use the suggested domain name in its entirety, they can still use these types of services to generate ideas.

From there they can use their own mind to come up with an appropriate domain name. So, at the very least, domain name generators can serve as a tool for domain name brainstorming. They definitely should not be overlooked by any webmaster.