After tinkering with these domain name generators, test them out on actual Domain Name Registrars. A Domain Name Registrar, or Domain Registrar as they’re commonly called, is a company that’s authorized to register domain names and where you’ll buy domain names from.
In this lesson, I’m going to outline the pros and cons of each major domain registrar, specifically focusing on Namecheap vs GoDaddy, and identify the most cost efficient and convenient options. I’m also going to walk you through buying a domain name.
How and Why I Chose the Domain Name “RueTattoo.com”
Before I dive headfirst into buying a domain name, I’d like to explain the process I went through to get to the domain name for my tattoo removal site to give you an idea of what to expect.
There were two domain names I liked that weren’t available: ThinkBeforeYouInk.com and BeforeYouInk.com. So, after using Lean Domain Search, NameMesh.com, and NameBoy, I landed on the name TattooRegrets.com. Unfortunately, that was taken, too.
I then thought TheDisappearingTattoo.com or DisappearingTattoo.com would have been decent, but I was concerned about the length of the name, and that people would get lost typing it into search engines. A hard lesson to learn in this industry is that your audience isn’t as smart as you’d like to give them credit for.
TattooRemovalWeb.com is an exact match keyword I found on Lean Domain Search. Though not very brandable, it would have made a nice choice. The same goes for TattooRemovalJournal.com because if one day I decide to build out this site, the focus will be on my personal experience with the tattoo removal process. While either of these names would have been workable, I didn’t love them.
So, the next concept I landed on was TattooRegrets.com. Not really loving it, I searched synonyms for the word “regret” in Google and one of the results was the word “rue.” I really liked that word and decided on the domain name RueTattoo.com.
Yes, there’s potential for misspelling, but it’s short, contains a root keyword, and shares a double meaning: “rue” is French for “street,” so it’s like saying “Tattoo Street.” RueTattoo.com is an example of a domain name that doesn’t check all the boxes and isn’t perfect, but it’s close.
Namecheap vs GoDaddy vs Other Registrars: Which Is The Best Place to Register Domain Names?
Registering a domain name is more complex than most people think; it’s not as simple as clicking a button. That’s why I’m going to outline the process in the next few lessons. The three major options for registering a domain are:
- The hosting company
- GoDaddy.com
- Namecheap.com
Namecheap.com and GoDaddy.com are just two of the dozens, if not hundreds, of domain registrars that exist, but these are the two most common domain registrars in the Internet Marketing community. The main difference between these three options is cost, and one of the factors that adds to the cost is domain privacy.
Domain privacy is a service offered by most domain name registrars when you purchase a domain name. If you register a domain name and don’t opt for domain privacy, all of your registration information is open to the public: full name, home or company address, phone number, and email. Personally, I’m not too comfortable with this information being available to everyone, and you shouldn’t be either. My recommendation is to always purchase domain privacy.
The Easy Option: The Hosting Company
If you register a domain name with a registrar that’s not your hosting company, you’ll have to connect the domain name and said registrar by updating your name servers. If that sounds really technical, that’s because it is. So, if you’d prefer to avoid this step, you can simply register your domain with your hosting company.
The disadvantage of registering with your hosting company is that it’s going to cost an extra $10 to $12 a year. Now, this might not mean a lot if you’re building a single website, but you’ll probably own a lot of domains if you plan to stick it out in Internet Marketing.
It’s worth noting that this seemingly complicated and technical step takes five minutes, tops. That means you’re paying an extra $10 a year to save five minutes of your time. Personally, I don’t recommend this option.
The Short-Term Cheap Option: GoDaddy
Most people default to GoDaddy because they are well-known, have decent upfront pricing, and run incredible promotions. GoDaddy also provides domain names for as low as $1 for the first year and $3 for the first year of a “.com” domain (plus privacy). Pretty sweet, huh?
The problem with GoDaddy, though, is the long-term pricing. After the first year, expect the price to spike to about $25 a year (they have to make their money back somehow). That price has been going up over the years, yet there’s not enough added value to justify it.
The Long-Term Simple, Mainstream, and Cheap Option: Namecheap
Namecheap is another popular choice for domain registry. The difference between Namecheap and GoDaddy is that Namecheap ends up being cheaper in the end. The baseline pricing starts at $10 to $11 a year, especially if you have a coupon code for the first year.
Namecheap also charges the lowest price for domain privacy; it’s included for free during the first year. After that, the price is $3 a year, whereas GoDaddy charges 10% or more. Hosting companies typically charge somewhere between $10 to $12 a year for domain privacy. For these reasons, Namecheap is my personal choice.
NOTE: This is not at all required, but… if you’re registering your domain and you wouldn’t mind supporting what we’re doing at FIMP, please consider purchasing through the links at our Links & Resources page.
It won’t cost you anything extra (we’ve actually negotiated the best discounts possible), but these commissions help FIMP tremendously — and we have a lot of bonus content and community support that we’ll set you up with as a “thank you!”
Don’t feel remotely obligated or pressured, but it would help our project and community more than words can say if you find the contents of this training and the video training at FIMP helpful.
Recommended Readings
Decide On And Set Up Your Domain Name
In this section of the article How To Build A Blog From Scratch: A Comprehensive Guide, I discuss how to come up with a domain name and how to set it up on Namecheap.com