Getting Started with Web Design
Domain Names
A “domain name” is your web address (i.e. vermontcompany.com). If you do not already have a domain name, you will need to select and register one as soon as possible. If you like, we can help you to research and purchase a domain name – we do this at cost as a service to our customers. Domain names can have a variety of extensions, each of which indicates something different - .com extensions are usually (although not always) for businesses, .org is always for non-profits, and .net can be either a business or a non-profit. Other extensions that are becoming more popular include .biz for businesses, .coop for cooperative businesses, and .us to indicate that the site is based in the United States.
If you already have a domain name, you may want to consider purchasing one or more additional domain names. If your domain name is based on your business name, you may want to consider getting another domain name that indicates the kind of products or services you sell – and if you have a product-based name, it is probably a good idea to get a domain name based on your business name as well. Business name domain names will help people find you even if they don’t know your exact web address, while product-based domain names may increase your search engine ranking for keywords about your products.
If you have an unusual name for your business that is difficult to spell, you should also consider registering possible misspellings of your domain name. Similarly, you should register likely variants of your name. For example, if your domain name is “vermontcompany.com”, you should also register “vtcompany.com”.
Domain names need to be renewed annually. We will send you a reminder every year when it is time to renew your names. Once we have your approval, we will take care of the renewal for you.
URL Redirects
No matter how many domain names you have, you will only ever need to have one website. If you purchase a new domain name, you will be able to set up a “URL redirect” that will automatically lead people directly to your site, no matter which of your names they enter into their web browser.
Splash Pages
Once you’ve registered your domain name, we can put up a single page website – a.k.a. a “splash page” – with your logo and contact information. That way, you can start printing your web address on business cards or advertising it in other places, even if you don’t have a full website yet. A splash page also helps your site get listed in search engines more quickly. Normally, websites take six to eight weeks to be picked up by search engines, but if you put up a splash page, you will probably already be listed by the time you put up your full site.