How to Get a Domain Name That Isn't Taken

Your choice of domain name can make or break your website. Choose a catchy domain name that will stick with visitors to keep them coming back. It doesn't matter if you are running an e-commerce site, a blog or a general information site; a good domain name is needed. Learn to find available domain names that will work for you.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. 
    

   Make a list of domain names you hope to use. Try to be creative with the list, emphasize your creativity to come up with a list of hopefuls. Every possibility needs to be easy for people to remember, and as short as possible.

2. 
    

   Choose a domain registrar to secure your domain name. Most providers are priced competitively. Some popular choices for domain registration are GoDaddy.com and NetworkSolutions.com. Shop pricing options between the companies (see Resources for more providers).

3. 
    

   Visit the registrar of your choice and begin going down your list of possible names, eliminating those that aren't available. You may go through many domain names before you find one available; many people register domain names in bulk and hope to re-sell them.

4. 
    

   Register the domain name you have selected. To save money, register the domain for as long as you can; yearly fees tend to be lower when you choose a long term registration.

Tips & Warnings

• Consider using other top-level domains beside ".com" to get the address name you want. Many other domains are available, such as ".net", ".org" and ".biz".

References

• Choosing a Domain Name

Resources

• Go Daddy
• Network Solutions
• Register.com
• Domain.com

[neilsinatra]

on 10/7/2009 right, domain search can be very frustrating, but you can use tools like DomainWhiz.net (http://www.domainwhiz.net) to make your search easier. It generates hundreds of suggestions and tells you which ones are available and which are not.