A domain name serves as your website’s unique address that helps users locate it online. It plays a crucial role in defining your brand and identity, so careful selection is important.
Guidelines for Selecting the Ideal Domain Name
Keep it Short and Memorable: Keeping the domain short and easy-to-remember encourages your users to return visits and shares.
Use Keywords Relevant to Your Niche: Adding relevant keywords to the domain can be helpful for SEO and searchability. For example, if your niche is cooking, it can be beneficial to include the words “cook” or “recipe” in the domain.
Avoid Special Characters: Including hyphens and numbers in the domain name can create confusion and make it difficult for users to remember.
Steps for Domain Registration
Choose a Registrar: Registrars like GoDaddy, Namecheap, and Google Domains are reliable and easy-to-use.
Check Domain Availability: Check availability by entering your desired domain in the registrar’s search tool. If the domain is available, you can enter the purchase process.
Register Your Domain: During the registration process, link the domain name with your name and business. After paying the yearly fee, the domain officially becomes yours.
Web Hosting Options for Beginners
The selection of web hosting also impacts the functionality and speed of the website. It stores and serves your website content when users access the website. Hosting plans and types vary and are chosen according to website needs and traffic.
Types of Web Hosting Explained
Shared Hosting: Shared hosting is a beginner-friendly and cost-effective option. In this, multiple websites share a single server, which reduces cost and maintenance. It is suitable for beginners but performance may be affected on heavy traffic.
VPS Hosting: Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting provides dedicated resources and control which is suitable for mid-sized and growing websites. VPS is more stable and scalable than shared hosting.
Dedicated Hosting: In this type, a separate server is dedicated to the website, which is ideal for high-traffic and resource-intensive websites. Dedicated hosting offers more control and customization but it is expensive.
Cloud Hosting: A scalable and flexible solution for hosting needs that uses a network of multiple servers. If your website has traffic spikes and demand fluctuations, cloud hosting is effective in handling them.
Factors to Consider When Choosing Hosting
Reliability and Uptime: It is important to check the uptime guarantee and reliability of the hosting provider. The uptime percentage should be 99% or more so that website accessibility remains consistent.
Speed and Performance: Website speed and server response time directly impact user experience and SEO. Fast-loading servers and optimized performance should be a priority of the hosting provider.
Support and Security: 24/7 customer support and robust security features, such as SSL certificates and malware protection, should be included in the hosting package.