Page 150 - 597 Business Ideas You can Start from Home - doing what you LOVE! (Beginner Internet Marketing Series)

1 42 Your Idea, Inc.

domain is already taken, find one that isn't that will work with your

company name. For example, if your company is Hotel Hudson and

www. hotelhudson.com is already taken, look for something like www.
stayathotelhudson. com.

Ifyou have not yet decided on your company name, you can work
backward by searching for available domain names on a domain
registry site and then checking to see if the name is available in

the trademark database on www.uspto.gov. Once you have found the

right name, buy it. This becomes your website address .

Register the Domain Name

Register the domain name yourself (as opposed to having it in
the name of your web designer), so that you own it and can control
it. Even if you plan to have someone else design and build your
website, it is critical that you register and manage the domain name
yourself. There are many websites where you can search and regis­

ter domain names, such as www. 1andl .com, www.godaddy.com, and
www. register.com.

Domain names cost around $20 to register per year, and you
need to renew them. You will likely buy the domain name for a year
or two as you launch, but be sure that you keep a calendar remind­
ing you to renew, or opt for the automatic renewal feature offered
on most domain registration sites. As soon as things are taking off
and you feel like you are in this for the long haul, I would renew
for the longest amount of time possible, which may be ten years.
Doing so puts renewal out of your mind and also affords you a con­
siderable savings versus renewing annually. Some of these services
will e-mail you to remind you of the renewal, but track it yourself
as well.

Design the Site

Once you own the domain name, your web designer will make
it "live" by hosting it on a server. Some web designers host as well