DOMAIN NAMES (BUYING AND SELLING)

This aspects of my blog deals with Domain Name Buying and Selling. Here, you will learn how to get yourself rich selling and buying domain names.
Enjoy!

DOMAIN NAMES
When you have decided to start your online business the first thing you will need to do is choose a domain name. This is the name that your website will be called, and will be the most important part of your URL link. A lot of people enjoy the process of choosing a domain name, whilst others may feel a bit overwhelmed. This is understandable because your domain name is so important, and not something you can easily change if you do not like it anymore.
As I mentioned before, choosing a domain name can be a bit overwhelming. Luckily there are some basic guidelines that will help you make your decision. Firstly, remember that shorter domain names always work better. A shorter name will be more memorable, and if your domain name is too long the people may tend to forget a part of it. If they are really seeking your website, they may type the part of your domain name that they do remember into a search engine, but the results brought up may not point to your site! A short, simple domain name will be more effective with regards to your marketing, both on and offline.
Naturally, it's a good idea to use your business name as your domain name. If your business name is too long, shorten it appropriately. If your business name is not available perhaps you could work with a variation of it by putting a dash in between two parts of the word. Alternatively, you could choose a domain name that suits the niche market that you are trying to target. Get creative with the different variations you can use. Always remember to keep the name as short and simple as possible. Another good idea is to use a targeted keyword as your domain name. For example, if you are going to have a business that sells chocolates and confectionaries you could perhaps use a domain name called chocolategoods or the like.
Once you have decided on the actual name part, you are going to need to decide on which domain extension you are going to use. The most popularly used domain extension is .com if you are aiming to target an international audience. Oftentimes .biz will be used by companies, whilst .net is normally for networking sites and some hosting or software companies. It is recommended that you steer clear of the .info extension, as even though it is the cheapest domain extension to register, it is not taken very seriously in the online world. If you are going to primarily target your local audience it is best to use the extension of your country. When in doubt, simply use .com. With a .com you can never go wrong! If you have an organization or political party a .org site is always nice and suitable.
As you can see, it is not too difficult to choose a domain name. A lot of good registration sites will offer you variations of your requested domain name if the one you have chosen is taken.

How to Pick the Right Domain Name
So you have your business idea and now you want to put this idea into motion by setting up your own website as a way of selling products or services. Your next step however involves a lot more thought and effort than many people realise; I am of course talking about choosing your domain name.
If you were to ask any Internet marketer what their domain name means to them they will automatically and always tell you that it is their company's identity. It tells an Internet surfer everything that they need to know about your company; including who you are, what you do and what products or services you have to offer.
The choices that you make when it comes to your domain name can severely affect whether or not you are a success or a failure when it comes to your Internet business venture. It is a choice that you should do your research into and one that shouldn't be made lightly. The reason that I say this is down to the fact that all of the choices you make when it comes to it will affect your ranking within the search engines, your popularity and the amount of visitors that your website receives. Remember it is the first thing about your business that most people will see so it needs to make an impression if you want any hope of getting people to stay on your website.
There are certain things that you should keep in mind when you are choosing the name for your website such as the following:
Unique - make sure that it is unique; there's no point in having a name that is very similar to another one. This is why it is so important that you do your research so that you don't fall into this mistake.

Brand - it represents who you are to your entire market as well as demonstrating what you hope to achieve as a company, so you need to ensure that it reflects this.

Length - Both short and long have their benefits. The reason that I say this is due to the fact short names are easy to remember but a long name will enable you to incorporate SEO and explain your products/services in a better manner. The length of your domain name comes down to what your website is about and what products or services you are selling.
A lot of the branding for your business comes directly from your sites name and allows you to immediately build trust with your users. One of the most effective ways of doing this is by using your product/service or your companies name within your websites name. So if you sold, for example cars, you should try and include the word cars within your sites name as it will more likely be picked up by the search engines.
So when you are choosing the perfect domain name for your website make sure you keep the above points in mind in order to drive more traffic to your website and to help make your online venture a success.

How to Check Expired Domain names before buying
Many people are wary of purchasing a pre-owned vehicle for a common reason - the risk of inheriting the problems it has experienced in the past. The same goes for buying an expired domain name - you simply don't know whether it has a history of online success or failure. Some domain names expire simply because the owner forgets to renew them at the end of their registration term. Others get "dumped" because they can no longer succeed in the search engines. With such uncertainty, why not avoid expired domain names altogether?
Expired domain names can bring instant page rank and link popularity - two important SEO factors that can take a new Web site a considerable amount of time to achieve with a new domain name. By taking advantage of the previous owner's SEO efforts, you can jump to the top of search engine results pages simply by buying a domain name. However, much like with a pre-owned vehicle, there is always the possibility of getting a "lemon." If this happens to you, there could be serious consequences for your online business. If you're considering using expired domain names, there are a few key areas you should investigate before buying domains that have a history online:

What does Google® say about the domain name??
If you choose an expired domain name that was once associated with a serial spamming or reciprocal linking infraction, you'll be fighting an uphill battle to gain search engine ranking. Google, in particular, blocks domain names that break their stringent regulations. And once the Web site is blocked, you'll have to petition to have your new Web site indexed. This takes time and effort - which defeats the purpose of buying an expired domain name for immediate linking and ranking opportunities. Google's cache is a helpful online tool for public use. Type "cache:yourdomainname.com" and you'll get a glimpse of the version of the site that was used for indexing. If no cached version exists, it could very well indicate a problem.

Who is linking to the domain?
While using expired domain names can help bring you instant link popularity, remember that the quality of the links is more important than the quantity. Take a close look at the Web sites linking to your prospective domain name. Ask yourself: Is their content relevant to my Web site? What is their page rank? You can check a domain name's inbound links by typing "link:yourdomainname.com" into the Google search box.

When was the domain name created?
A search of the WHOIS database can tell you the date that the domain name was originally created and when it expired. Search engines view longer registration terms as a sign of stability and this can help your rankings. Also, if an expired domain name stood the test of time, it is a positive indicator of its legitimacy.
By taking steps to check expired domain names before registering, you can eliminate the possibility of getting stuck with a "lemon" that may sour your success.

Best Domain Registrars For 2009
1. They hold the master 'database' of domain names on the Internet.
2. They allow anyone to reserve a domain name.
3. The registration record holds the basic information about your website. (IP address, email server, etc..)
The biggest names in Registrars right now are:
* Godaddy.com
* Yahoo.com
* Register.com
* NetworkSolutions.com
We'll take a quick look at each service and compare the features.

Godaddy.com
They are the low-cost leader. For about $10/yr. you can reserve a single domain name. For a few dollars more, you can get private registration or additional domain uses (.info, .tv, .net, etc...). Navigating the site can be a bit challenging since it's very cluttered. However, they do provide the best value and features for domain management.

Yahoo.com
They have raised their prices over the past two years. 1 year domain registration is now $15/yr. (used to be $10). The user interface is fairly simple to navigate, but you need a Yahoo email to login to the domain manager.

Register.com
Not sure why they charge $34.99/yr. for domain reservations. However, they have a very clean user interface and all the same features as godaddy.

NetworkSolutions.com
They are the original Registrar. It all started with them. However, they have not innovated past their beginnings and must be feeling the pain. Their email servers have constant issues and they are difficult to deal with if you need to call them.
My recommendation for 2009 is godaddy.com.

Domain Name - 4 Important Tips to Remember When Choosing a Good Domain Name
If you are interested in having a growing website business, you will need to understand the importance of a good domain name. Your domain name is your website's address on the internet.
The extension to the domain name tells the visitors if you are a business, an organization, or a government agency. For example, ".com" indicates a commercial website, ".org" is used for an organization's website, ".gov" is used for a government agency, and ".edu" is used for an educational institution.
Shown below are 4 easy tips to help you in choosing the best domain name for your website:
1. Make your name explanatory - show your visitors the nature of your website. For example, if your site is about seashells, use a pertinent keyword in your domain name, such as "seashell," or "shells" to help identify the type of site you have.
2. Make your name easy to remember - Help you visitor to recall the name of your site. A name that is long or complicated makes it that much harder for visitors to remember and therefore they may not be able to return to your site. And don't forget -- every time someone visits your site, you have a potential sale!
3. Make your name shorter rather than longer - A short, descriptive name is easier to remember and easier for visitors to type in their web browser. Having a shorter name also makes it easier for telephone callers to hear and understand your name when you answer the phone. However, many of the shorter, catchy names have already been taken, so you may have to be creative!
4. Make your name easy to pronounce - The simpler your website name, the easier it will be for visitors to spell it. And don't forget - you'll be speaking your website name on the telephone, so you want your listener to be able to easily understand it.
Your Domain Name is a very important part of your website business. Make sure you make it easy for customers to remember for return visits.

The next i will be giving out is on How to Make 10,000 Dollars Weekly Buying and Selling Domain Names and other tricks too. Enjoy!!!