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02-Jul-2007

Cheap Domain Registration

Choice of domain name is a vital part of planning a new website. Site registrars can help you decide on a good and cheap domain name. They should be easy to remember, spell and relevant for search engines. Search engines including Google place value upon keywords in a domain name but selecting a long domain name is a poor choice. If you can select a cheap domain name which includes some desired keywords, it will improve search engine rankings. Try and select a name which is short and also contains a keyword. Customers may find longer or more complicated Domain Names harder to spell or remember, which will reduce usefulness of online presence. Avoid hyphens as extraneous punctuation in a domain makes it less useful for search engines and customers.

Your domain name can also impact markets apt to view the site. In the UK market, choose a .co.uk domain when registering a cheap domain name. The .co.uk will help target the UK market, but will deter some international visitors. A .com will help target international markets, but will perform slightly less well for local searches. Knowing your intended market can be a helpful tool when choosing cheap domain names. Some customers will buy regardless of domain extension however some search engines will put little value on this. Your site content, accessibility and other features matter more to your customers than your domain but you should consider this.

Web hosting location is important – a .com domain and a US host will tell search engines you are US based which can impact overall search engine rankings, particularly with regard to local searches. A .co.uk and a UK host will locate you in the UK. A domain with the extension .co.uk and US host will also identify you as UK based. To appeal to a wider international audience, a .com extension may be helpful for your business domain. Businesses seeking both local UK customers and clientele may find .co.uk extensions ideal for customers and search engine rankings.

First priority when choosing domain names may be ease of use for customers and clients however consider the impact of domain names for search engine rankings. Rankings are impacted by many things including domain name. Consider including keywords in domain name to further improve rankings. Search engines do look at likely location of your domain, it may be helpful to consider implications of the domain name and assumed location. Cheap domain name can be a useful asset and tool for a business.