How to pick a domain name for your small business

How to pick a domain name for your small business

What is a domain name? 

A domain name are used to identify one or more IP addresses. For an example, the domain name Microsoft.com represents about a dozen IP addresses. Domain names are used in URLS to identify particular web pages. For example, in the URL http://www.pcwebopedia.com/index.html, the domain name is pcwebopedia.com.
 Examples:

          .gov-Government agencies                               

          .com-Commercial business

          .org-organizations  (nonprofit)

          .edu-educational institutions

Because the internet is based on IP addresses, not domain names, every web server requires a Domain Name System (DNS) server to translate domain names into IP addresses. 

Choosing a domain name for your business is just as important as naming your business. Just remember your website is the identity of your online business. It can be overwhelming when choosing a domain name, so let me give you some helpful tips to make the process easier. 

First tip, you need to find what kind of domain name is available. The reason why its so important because if you can't use the domain name you wanted, you have to decide on another name, especially when you really like the name you picked out for your business. So being very specific about the domain name you chose becuase it can help increase your chances of finding the best domain name.

For an example, let say your an electrician in the San Mateo area of San Francisco California and the name of your company is Astro's Electric. Now, let's take this general name and make it more specific and find a good domain name.

• Electrician.com or Electric.com: too general
• CaliforniaElectric.com: getting there but still to general
• SanFranciscoElectrician.com: this is better but San Francisco is a big city and county, so its still too general.
• SanMateoElectric.com: San Francisco has many surrounding towns and one is called San Mateo. If you were an electrician that worked in this city, this domain name might work good for you. It really depends on your area but you would get a boost when customers search  online for an "electrician in San Mateo" since those words are in your domain name. So the more specific we get with our domain name, the better the chances that it is available. 

Next tip is to build a memorable domain name for others to remember so they can keep coming back to visit your business or brand. If your website address isn't memorable it can also make it harder for customers to recommend to others about your business. Especially for small businesses, we get most of our business through word of mouth, so recommending our business to others with an easy domain name to remember can be helpful to the business. So let's go over what a memorable domain looks like and compare it to a less memorable domain name. 

Less Memorable:

• AstrosElectricServicesLLC.com: this is too long for to remember.
• AtsrosElectric5642.com: numbers are also hard to remember, especially the random numbers.
• Astros-Electric-ServicesLLC.com: this would also be hard to remember too because of the dashes and remembering where the dashes are placed.

More Memorable:

• AstrosElectric.com: using your company name is a great way to refer customers to your website.
• SanMateoElectric.com: using the name of the area where the company services.
• 650Electric.com: using the area code where you serve your company is also a great domain name to use and it is very memorable.

The shorter the better, I always say! Plus, it just looks better and easy to remember. But when you choose between two domain names with similarities, go for the one that's shorter. 

Last tip is about which domain IP address should you use? Researching the internet about this, it says the best choice would be the .com because it is the most common. If you buy a .com also try to buy the .net and .org version if they are available. This will give you a lot more traffic and you can redirect them to your website on the .com. Another thing is if you can't find an available .com, use the .net and .org as your next choice. But your first choice would be .com if you can because sometimes customers can accidently tpe in .com instead of .net or .org or what ever other domain address your are using. Buying the domain name should cost you an average of ten dollars. Also remember to auto renew your domain name because many business forget to renew it and they end up loosing their domain name.

In conclusion, picking a domain name tend to be a hard choice at times because it seems likes the good domain are usually taken. But you have to remember that every business is unique in every way so you have to be specific to get a good  match for your business. So look into the points I made and it will help to choose the best domain name for your business.

By: Alison Beyale


workcites:
https://www.thesitewizard.com/archive/domainname.shtml
https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/231331
https://firstsiteguide.com/choose-domain/

Instagram For your Small Business

Why your Business Should Have an Instagram Account 

By: Lori Sanchez 

   As there are several social media platforms, Instagram is one of the new popular social media apps that is being downloaded by 40% of the US. Instagram is simply to share visual content or a short video. 

   With Instagram you are able to connect all of the other platforms your Business is on like Facebook and Twitter so you can become published on Instagram. On your Instagram page you will also be able to share the Business webpage link and a short Bio about the Business.
   As you will share visual content with your customers and consumers you want to make sure and sell the lifestyles behind your product. You always want to make sure and relate your photos with your Business.
   Things to consider before you upload be imaginative, stay relevant, and don't bombard your consumers with a photo every second once a day or even once a week would be fine. You are going to want to use Instagram stories to show things like behind the scenes or new things that the Business is coming out with.
   Another advantage you will have while using the social media platform is monitor what is working and what is not working to your benefit. You will be able to see what content is getting more views and shares so you will learn what your viewers enjoy instead of again bombarded them with stuff they have no interest in.
   Make sure to interact with your customers on the comments. You may also want to include giveaways to show the compassion you have for your consumers. Another great idea is Hashtag games where you have consumers post relevant pictures with your hashtag and you pick the best picture and send them a discount code, coupon, or a free item. Then you will also be able to show that person love by posting their photo on your Instagram. Hashtags are great because potentially consumers can learn and see how much people love your product. As an Instagram user you can also consider hiring social Media Influencer  which are a lot more affordable than someone famous. Before you consider hiring you want to research the top influencers in your field of business and research each of there engagements and how many likes and comments they get, and you want to have a plan for that person of what you want from them.
   One thing you want to make sure and do is like other business and influencers post so you get your name out there and you want to share there stuff as well so you can build an audience.
   Last thing I want to advise is to be patient, like anything you are new to. It is going to take time but you will grow as Instagram users are very active and love to engage, and there is a total of 500 million users on the platform.





Reference:
https://sproutsocial.com/insights/instagram-for-small-business/
https://blogs.constantcontact.com/5-reasons-your-small-business-should-be-using-instagram-uk/
https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/280964#