Your Domain Name(your website address) is as important
as business names.
They let people easily access you on the internet and brand
your emails to your business. You need to own and protect
your domain name in the same way you would your business
or company name.
These days, your domain name is as important as your business
name. It is your identity or address within the online community
using the Internet. The speed at which the internet came
into being left people confused and perplexed about what
domain names were, if they should own one or many, how they
should use these domain names and the fundamental question
of how much they should pay for the domain names. Let’s
rip back some of the myths and look at domain names today.
In the real world, our business has a “real address”.
I could come and see you at your business address whether
you are a home based business, own a shop or lease an office
space. There is a physical address that you are working from.
Likewise to have a successful business, you have a phone
number – a set of numbers that people can find you
at. Any time they use that series of numbers they will be
able to call your number and if you are in, communicate with
you.
Your domain name is the online address that people can use
find to find you on the internet. When they type in that
address, your information, in other words your website, is
located there. They can look up that address and see you.
In the same way that every physical address and every phone
number must be totally unique, your web address or domain
name must be unique. There can only be one of each. If there
were two every one would be confused.
It is very important that you own your domain name. Think
of it like a business name. You seek application to register
the business name and every two years you need to renew that
name – in other words pay some more money to keep using
that name. Your domain name is identical. For Australian
domain names every two years you will need to pay to continue
to use that name for another two years.
Once you have paid for the domain, you can then list what “computer
address” you want it directed to. Think of phone numbers – they
go no where until the telephone exchange sets it up in their
registry that number “xxxxxxxxx” will connect
to your phone at location “y” location.
Your domain name is the same – it goes nowhere until
listed within the central registry and told where to connect
to. This connection process in phones and websites is similar – someone
is making sure they connect the address and the location
together. The company helping you with your website should
help you to make sure that your domain address “points” or
directs people to your website.
Can this address be changed? Yes it can in the same way
that my phone number can be changed. For example, when I
recently moved office locations, I contacted my local Telco
Company, (Telstra), and told them that I was moving and that
I wanted my phone number to connect to my new address. They
organised in their central registry for the number to now
point to a new phone location.
The same is true for your domain address – if you
choose to move where your website is located, you can tell
the central registry that your new address is at “z” and
they will send people looking for your website to that a
location to find you. It is quite convenient when you think
about it and very similar to what happens in all of our other
business functions.
One last point that is essential that you understand. Owning
your own domain name gives you the opportunity to use your
very own email address advertising your company name. Many
people start using a name that advertises the ISP (Internet
Service Provider) that they use, for example I might have
billsmith@optusnet.com.au or jennyreid@domainking.com.au.
With your own domain address you can now have your name followed
by your company name. For example my domain is www.solutionsmanagement.com.au
so my email address is lbrighton@solutionsmanagement.com.au.
I not only advertise my company web address but when we
change ISP’s which we have yearly as their rates fall,
we do not have to change all the email addresses that all
our contacts use – we simply have them redirected on
the central domain registry. It is quick, simple and save
heaps of money on new business cards and lost business through
people not knowing our email addresses.
Owning your domain name is essential – it is part
of business today. You need to keep it paid for every two
years and point it to a good website so that you can enjoy
the increased amount of business happening online today.
Lea-Anne Brighton is one of Australia's leading Internet
Marketing Experts. Her company, SolutionsManagement.com.au
has built over 400 websites with full Content Management
Systems (CMS)and many with secure "real time" e-commerce
facilities.
Solutions Management has specialised in building websites
that have produced strong sales results. Natasha from
Surprise Box enjoyed a 400% increase in online sales (from
1-2 sales per month to 1-2 sales per day), with an overall
increase to her business of over 70%.
In 2004 Brighton formed the International Web Marketing
Institute which holds the patent application on their Search
Engine Optimisation methodology. It is blue print that small
business owners can use to dramatically increase online sales
through strong Search Engine Optimization, (SEO). IWMI.com.au
helped Jane from PartyKids.com.au to triple her website visitors
and double her monthly sales within 2 months.
Lea-Anne is also the President of the Micro and Home Business
Network (
mbn.com.au ),
in Australia. NFP with 20,000 home and small business asociates.
