How important is to locate the best domain?

One of the most crucial preconditions for having a successful Internet presence is the domain name. It is what visitors will discern first when they come across your web site and what they will identify you with. The domain should be easy to memorize, but should also be something that informs your web page's visitors what the web site is about.

Generic Top-Level Domain Names (gTLDs)

A domain typically has 2 parts - a Top-Level Domain (TLD) and a Second-Level Domain (SLD). If you have domain.com, for instance, ".com" is the Top-Level Domain Name and "domain" is the Second-Level Domain Name. There are a couple of sets of Top-Level Domain Names that you should contemplate before you select the domain you wish. Your selection should be based on the intention of your site and on its target viewers. Let's take a look at the gTLDs, or generic TLDs - these are the most typical TLDs intended to signify a given intention - .com (commercial establishments), .net (networks), .biz (corporations), .info (informative web pages), .org (organizations), .mobi (handheld devices), .asia (the Asia Pacific region), .name (individuals or families), .pro (particular walks of life), etc. As you can see, these Top-Level Domain Names encompass most fields of life, so you should settle on the one that would denote the objective of your website best. There is no restriction as to who can register such Top-Level Domain Names, but some of them involve additional steps to show that you are eligible to register such a domain name (.mobi and .pro, for example).

Country-code Top-Level Domain Names (ccTLDs)

The ccTLDs, or country-code Top-Level Domain Names, are country-specific Top-Level Domains. Each country has its own ccTLD. Picking such a Top-Level Domain Name is good if your target group of website visitors is from a given country. Many visitors would prefer to buy commodities or services from a local site, and if your aim is Canada, for example, settling on a .ca Top-Level Domain Name could boost the visits to your site.

Domain Name Forwarding

You can register several domains, which can send your web page's visitors to a given website like domain.com, for example. This would increase the traffic and decrease the likelihood of somebody stealing your web site visitors by using the same Second-Level Domain with another TLD - if you are not availing of a trademark.

Name Servers (NSs)

Each and every Top-Level Domain Name has domain records. The name server records (NS records, also known as DNS records) show where the domain is hosted, i.e. they point to the hosting vendor whose name servers (NSs, also known as DNSs) it is using at the moment. You can switch the NSs of your domain whenever you wish. You can have your domain registered with one provider and get the webspace hosting service itself from another. So, if you register your domain and find good website hosting solutions somewhere else later, you can point your domain name to the present provider's DNSs instantly.

Name Server Records (NS Records)

In general, as long as your domain utilizes a specific set of DNSs, all its NS records will direct to the same site hosting provider. Some web space hosting suppliers, however, permit you to edit certain records, like the A records and the MX records of your domain. The A record is an IP address, which demonstrates on which server your website is located, whereas the MX records designate which server tackles the mail addresses associated with your domain name. For example, if you hire a new website designer and he creates an .ASP site that will be located on his own Windows web server, you may wish to change just the IP address (the A record) but not the MX records of your domain name. So, www.domain.com will point to the Windows server, but your email boxes or any sub-domain names such as forum.domain.com or shop.domain.com will still be in your present Linux website hosting account. The .ASP platform is created by Microsoft and requests a Windows hosting server, although a Linux web hosting server would be far more stable.

Cut-Price Domains Offered by 'Host Mates'

Just a number of web hosting distributors allow you to modify given DNS records and very often this an extra paid service. With Host Mates , you get a vast variety of Top-Level Domains to pick from and you can modify all records or forward the domain names via a forwarding tool at no additional charge. That is why, 'Host Mates' would be your best pick when it comes to handling your domain and to building a successful presence on the web.