Turning An Idea Into A House Hold Name
By John Edet
You have thought about how the website should look, you have developed some ideas about branding and written your business plan. You have registered the company name and a trademark.
Things are coming together now. Then, after all this time, after months and months of work and planning, you finally do a search for your chosen domain name (web address) and find, to your horror, that someone has already registered it and that your whole business plan needs to be revised. The purpose of this article is to empower start-up businesses with the knowledge to help them avoid making this classic mistake.
Domain names
A domain name is a web address. It is what people type in their browser to get to your website. An example of a domain name is www.google.com. A domain name can be relatively inexpensive when purchased new, but can hold tremendous value for a business. A domain establishes identity on the Internet and is the primary link between the offline and online worlds. It is an integral element of a successful company, whether the majority of its business is conducted online or not.
We recommend a holistic approach to making decisions relating to branding, trademarks and domain names, as it can be an expensive and tiresome business trying to secure a domain name that you consider essential for your business further down the line. Domain names should be factored into a business proposition from the outset, BEFORE registration of company or trademark. If you have got an idea, go and search for relevant domain names NOW. It is free to search and at the same time you will get an idea of what is already out there and who your competitors might be.
Simple generic domain names can be extremely valuable. The problem is that most, if not all of them, were purchased long ago. Business.com was recently re-sold for $350 million and dictionary.com for $100 million. These examples indicate the value of strong domain names in todays market.
Consistency
We believe the ideal situation for a business is to have consistency between its company name, its trademark and its domain name. That way there is a much reduced chance of potential clients making a mistake or getting sidetracked when trying to find your website and finding their way to a competitors instead. For example, imagine you want to set up a new business called NewBiz. You should register your company as NewBiz, register a trademark of NewBiz and register domain names such as newbiz.com, newbiz.co.uk, newbiz.net and newbiz.eu.
About The Author
John E, Media Relations Adviser Easily.co.uk - Domain name registration, register your low cost domain name today! Search domain names quickly, all major extensions and no catches.
