Registering domain names is not as complicated as you might think. Your web design is completed, everything is set up and you are ready to go.
The best thing to do is to find a registrar that is an official Internet registering service and use this to register the name. Often web hosting sites will offer registration of your domain name. However, there is some confusion among some of the sites when it comes to ownership of the domain name so the best idea is to register it yourself.
Where to Go
Your domain name can be anything that you can think of that describes your site. As long as it is not already taken by someone else, you will be the owner of the name when you register it.
Find out if your choice is available by visiting http://www.whois.org and search the name you have chosen. Whois is a database that displays information for those searching for domain names. If someone does a search for the one you have chosen, after you register it, this is where the information comes from to show the name is already taken.
For instance, you may do web design for people who do not know how to do their own. The name of your site will be the URL that is entered when people search for a web design service to help them set up their own web site.
So the name you choose needs to reflect the service you provide so that it will be easier to find. Because there are millions of domain names this may prove a little difficult. But if you do a search for keywords that describe your site you should be able to come up with the right combination.
Once you have chosen the name you will use and made sure that it is available, visit some of the Internet registrars and find the one you want to use. What the registrar basically does is resells domain names.
The prices vary among the different ones but typically start at around $5.00 for a one year registration. They can go as high as $50 so finding the one that offers the best price can take some investigative work.
When you are ready to register the name, you will be required to provide either a PayPal account or a credit card to pay for it. This is not optional. Most all providers require this method of payment. On the plus side by paying using this method you can immediately have access to the name.
