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The Benefits of Country-Specific Domains

When going to register a domain name, you probably look for something with a .com TLD or decide to settle on .net if your first choice is not available.  This is very understandable being that both of them add more professionalism and credibility to your web presence.  While neither of these extensions make a bad choice, there are several reasons why you may want to consider registering a country-specific domain instead.

SEO Benefits

There are many cases when the major search engines will provide higher search engine rankings for web pages that have country-specific TLDs.  For example, if an internet user from Canada is searching for software consulting services in that specific country, the site at mysoftware.ca may rank higher than another website with a .com extension selling the same product.  This type of domain can also help increase your visibility through directories commonly referenced by local web surfers.  Directories make a great way to enhance search engine rankings and build qualities links that lead to more traffic to your website.

Boost Customer Confidence

Having a country-specific domain can help increase confidence in customers as many of them feel more comfortable purchasing from local merchants.  For them, it makes it much easier to track their sales and follow up with any questions or concerns regarding the product.  Even though business is conducted across international borders everyday, some customers would just like to know that they are dealing with someone residing in the same country rather than one operating in a foreign locality.

Better Identify Your Audience

Another benefit to country-specific domain names is that you are better to identify where your customers are actually located.  This makes things more convenient for both you and the customer.  You can easily display products and services targeted at shoppers in that particular region and customers do not have to worry about choosing the geographic area they are located in.  Again, this gives your site that local feel and instills the confidence the customer needs to feel safer doing business with you.

Maximize Your Potential

When factoring in their distinct advantages, you may want to consider registering both a country-specific TLD and a traditional extension such as .com or .net.  This is a simple but strategic move that makes your business appealing to both international and national audiences.  You should never overlook the potential sales and business that can be reaped from a domain name and all it takes is another small investment for an additional name that could result in huge benefits.

Conclusion

There are many domain name extensions available and the ICANN seems to be adding new ones on a regular basis.  The country-specific variation represents a very broad category and as you can see, offers a wealth of benefits.  While you have a vast selection to choose from, you should always keep yourself open to such an excellent opportunity that could help you attract other markets and extend your reach online.

Free Domain Name Resources

“Free” is one of those misleading terms that gets thrown around quite a bit these days.  By the time you read the terms and conditions of the product or service in question, more often than not, you find that is it not free at all.  You may assume that free domain names is just another trick designed to toy with your emotions but believe it or not, they do exist.  We have compiled a list of services that can help you establish a web presence with your very own domain without paying a single penny.

Dot TK

Dot TK is a domain registrar that offers free domain names in the .TK extension.  Millions of users have being using this TLD since 2001, which makes it more recognizable and powerful than you might think.  There are some advantages to having a .TK domain name, especially if you plan to use it with a short secondary domain.  In addition, it can be used with any type of website you may have, whether it is a blog or e-commerce site.

.CO.NR Free Domain Name

This is another service that offers free domains with a variety of extra features to boot.  Your name comes with the .CO.NR extension, a project designed to help those who are strapped for cash obtain a unqiue domain that can establish a degree independence similar to premium domains.  Some of the features that come along with the service include domain forwarding, URL cloaking and meta tag support, all of which are free with your domain name.

Afraid.org

Afraid.org offers a host of free services.  On the menu are domain names with the .afraid.org extension and several more, sub-domains, URL cloaking, dynamic DNS support and full DNS management.  In order to reap the benefits of Afraid.org, you must first sign up as a member, which can be done for free.  There are also paid packages that provide a greater level of flexibility as more capacity is available to you.

UNI.CC Network

Here you have one of the most popular free domain name services available today. UNI.CC Network allows you to build your web presence with the unique .uni.cc extension.  The service provides a variety of domain registration tools along with a DNS Setup Wizard that makes managing your identity a breeze.  This service is provided at absolutely no cost.  All you are required to do is keep your contact information up to date and abide by the site’s terms and conditions.

Fadlan

Fadlan is another great site that offers a free URL redirection and DNS service.  Domain forwarding is free, so you get a domain such as mysite.fadlan.com as well as path forwarding and three types of directs.  Because it also specializes in free DNS services, if you have dedicated IP address, you have the ability to run your own web server on a sub-domain.  Fadlan isn’t the best looking site, but it has come become very popular and offers a few services you may find useful.

How to Incorporate a Domain into Your Blogger Account

Blogger is one of the most popular blogging applications in the world.  However, this platform was not always optimized to help you create the best identity and presence in the Blogosphere.  For instance, in past times, every Blogger URL looked a lot like “myblog.blogger.com”, which is fine for some, yet very restricting to others.  This has changed in recent times as you can now incorporate your very own domain name into your blog.  The key is knowing how to do it.

Your Domain Control Panel

The first thing you need to do is register a domain name.  This can be done for very cheap when signing up with reputable companies such as GoDaddy or Name.com. After registering the name, you will need to perform some domain management tasks, mainly working with your DNS settings.  This must be done to point the newly registered domain to your Blogger site.  By following these steps, you will see that it is all a simple process.

Adjust CNAME Values

In your domain control panel, find the “CNAME records” section to see if a “www.” value exists.  If it does not, go ahead and manually create one and then save it.  With the CNAME value configured in this manner, whenever a visitor enters “www” in front of your domain, they will be automatically redirected to your blog site.

Change Name Server

In order to make sure they are taken to the right location, you must enter “ghs.google.com” next to the “WWW” value field.  By doing so, you will get your domain pointed to Google’s Blogger server.

Keep in mind that it may take a little time for these changes to take effect, roughly anywhere from a few minutes to a 48 hours.

Activate Your Domain on Blogger

There is still more work to be done as you must now configure your blog account with the domain name you just set up.  To do so, log in to your Blogger account.  Once inside, click on “Settings,” select “Publishing,” “Switch to Custom Domain” and then navigate to “Advance Settings.”  From here you can enter your domain name in the provided text box.

Next, simply saving these settings and try to refresh your blog.  You should notice that it appears with the new domain rather than old sub-domain previously assigned by Blogger.

That’s it.  You can now enjoy start giving out your Blogger domain and reap all the benefits that along with it.

Conclusion

The best thing about having a custom domain is that it will not negatively impact your existing Blogger sub-domain.  Therefore, visitors who are more accustomed to the old URL can still use it to access your blog yet will be redirected to the site under the new name.  This means that you will not lose any traffic and still keep your previously built search engine rankings intact.  If anything, a custom Blogger domain will help you bring in even more visitors and quality traffic from the search engines.

How Search Engine-Friendly is Your Domain Name?

A search engine-friendly domain name can put you on a path to achieve the rankings and traffic you need to be successful online.  It can aid in helping target your audience, increase conversions and open the door to multiple streams of revenue.  If these benefits are desirable to you, the following tips should come in handy when going to the registrar to acquire the name.

Think SEO and User-friendly Domain - In order to be considered search engine-friendly, your domain name must be preferably short and easy to remember.  This way, users can recall it much faster and the probability of generating quality traffic becomes much greater.  In most cases, a long, complicated name will only work against you and hinder your success.

Focus on Keywords - Keywords add to the success of a domain name because they play such a critical role in the SEO process.  When implementing keywords into your URL, search engines like Google will index it faster, thus increasing the possibility of higher click-through rates and most importantly, more exposure.

Be Cautious of Hyphens - Many SEO experts speak strongly against inserting hyphens in a domain name.  This is because they can lead to complications such as users forgetting where the hyphen is to be positioned within the domain.  Because there could be many similar websites that contain domain names without hyphens, you want to be very careful that you do not direct visitors to your competition.

Optimize for Type-in Traffic – Some internet users have a habit of typing keywords directly into their browser bar instead of a search box.  To leverage this type of traffic, you may want to register a domain that contains your targeted domain in its entirety to increase your traffic through this prevalent market.

Choose a Fitting TLD – There are many top level domain to choose from, but you will likely have more success from SEO standpoint by choosing a .com.

Establish Inbound Links – Inbound links are another part of the SEO process. You certainly want to establish quality links that include your domain.  If your site is devoid of such links, the search engines will conclude that it lacks relative content.  Keep in mind that poor links will negatively effective your optimization efforts.  For this reason, you want to avoid link farms and questionable practices employed by questionable SEO firms.

Choose a Good Domain Name Registrar – The key to obtaining an search engine-friendly domain name is to register the name with a respectable registrar.  There are many registrars on the market but not all can be relied upon.  We recommend sticking with known and trusted brands like GoDaddy and Yahoo or opting for one with your web hosting provider.

Registering a search engine-friendly domain will not guarantee you increased traffic or visibility.  Even SEO itself calls for you to promote your site in traditional ways and most importantly, make sure it contains quality content web surfers will be interested in.   Once you come to realize this, we are confident that these tips will go a long way in helping you achieve the visibility and success you desire online.

Acquiring the Domain You Want Through Back-Ordering

Commonly, domain names are registered on a first come, first served basis.  Thus, whoever is able to identify an unregistered name first can visit a registrar, pay the required registration fee, and acquire the name for themselves.  Once you register it, the domain is no longer available to anyone.  However, it can be placed back on the market should you not pay the annual renewal fee or decide to sell it to someone else.  While good domain names are certainly hard to come by these days, there are other ways you can obtain them, including the back-ordering route.

Common Back-Ordering Options

There are essentially three ways you can take advantage of back-ordered domains.

1.) You can pay close attention the status of the domain you want and register the name when it goes back on the market.  This is a manual process that requires a lot of patience and plain old luck to be successful.

2.) You can utilize a software application such as the Expired Domain Express program to automate the process for you.  This type of software will automatically monitor the status of the desired domain and also register it as soon as it becomes available.

3.)  The last option you have is to sign up with a back-order service.  This approach calls for you to pay a third-party company to monitor the domain and register it on your behalf as soon as it becomes available.

Essential Factors to Keep in Mind

A large majority of people looking to obtain a domain name through the back-ordering process rely on the third option, which is signing up with a service provider.  The advantage here is that the company usually has more reliable resources available than you have access to yourself, thus increasing your probability of acquiring the domain.  While there are numerous benefits, you should also beware of three important factors before investing in a back-ordering service.

1.) Regardless of what the firm might tell you, no back-ordering service can guarantee the domain name you want.  You may then ask, what happens to the money you paid?  Unless you have inquired within the service provider before signing up, you may not know at all.  The good thing is that most firms allow you to apply those fees to other domain related purchases, but it is still a good idea to find out.

2.) Domain name back-ordering services are infamous for inflating prices.  For example, if two people desire the same domain, the company might set up an auction for them to bid on the name.  Therefore, you want to make sure you know what to expect before entering into an agreement with a service provider.

3.) Lastly, it is worth mentioning that one of the best ways to acquire the domain name you want is to combine a few of the approaches mentioned above.  For instance, you can sign up for a back-ordering service and purchase a software solution while manually monitoring the status of the name yourself.  If you have the budget to work with, this combined approach will help you maximize the possibility of finally landing the domain name you have been after.