The Web is About to Change Forever…

April 25, 2013   admin   No comments

“Hundreds of New Domains coming soon!”  That is the headline I read recently on  www.GoDaddy.com   announcing the fact that starting this summer, hundreds of new domain extensions will become available for your business.

It’s an exciting time and there are countless opportunities to register a great domain that can more closely target your market with a premium keyword or brand name.  For example, this will allow you to target your business or personal website to your industry (biz.marketing), or your interest (biz.wine) or your geographic area (biz.vegas).

However, the onslaught of new gTLD’s (generic Top Level Domains) has raised many questions.  For example, even though there will be many more options for domain extensions, the “internet” has generally been acclimatized for many years to automatically think  and type “.com”. Does a business that builds it’s business on a domain extension like “.food” face an uphill battle trying to brand itself?  Will a mortgage broker who registers a domain on “.mortgage” lose customers to the “.com” version of its name?

These questions will be played out as the new gTLD’s become available in mid-2013.

Here are categorized lists of new gTLD’s becoming available:

BUSINESS

  .ads   .agency   .associates   .booking   .business   .career   .careers   .center   .ceo   .company   .corp   .ecom   .enterprises   .farm   .forum   .foundation   .gives   .global   .gmbh   .inc   .industries   .institute   .limited   .llc   .llp   .ltd   .ltda   .management   .market   .marketing   .ngo   .ong   .partners   .press   .sarl   .services   .solutions   .srl   .studio   .trade   .trading   .ventures   .xin

REAL ESTATE

.apartments  .Build .builders  .casa  .condos  .estate  .forsale  .haus  .home   .homes  .house   .immo   .immobilien   .land  .lease   .maison   .mls   .mortgage   .place   .properties   .property   .realestate   .realty   .reit   .rent   .studio   .villas
INDUSTRY
.auto .autos   .bio   .boats   .boutique   .build   .builders   .car   .cars   .casino   .catering   .cleaning   .clothing   .construction    .cruises   .design   .diamonds   .earth   .eco   .energy   .farm
GEOGRAPHIC
.abudhabi   .africa   alsace   .amsterdam   .aquitaine   .arab   .barcelona    .bayern   .berlin   .boston   .broadway   .brussels   .budapest   .bzh   .capetown   .city   .cologne   .corsica   .country   .cymru   .desi   .dubai   .durban   .earth   .eus   .frl   .gal   .gcc   .gent   .global   .hamburg   .helsinki   .international   .irish   .ist   .istanbul   .joburg   .kiwi   .koeln   .krd   .kyoto   .london   .madrid   .melbourne   .miami   .moscow   .nagoya   .nowruz   .nrw   .nyc   .okinawa   .osaka   .paris   .pars   .persiangulf   .place   .quebec   .rio   .roma   .ruhr   .ryukyu   .saarland   .scot   .shia   .stockholm   .swiss   .sydney   .taipei .tatar  .thai   .tirol   .tokyo   .town   .ummah   .vegas   .vlaanderen   .wales   .wien   .world   .yokohama   .zuerich    .zulu
MONEY & FINANCE
.accountant  .accountants  .bank  .banque   .broker   .capital   .cash   .cfd   .cpa   .credit   .creditcard   .creditunion   .estate   .exchange   .finance   .financial   .financialaid   .fund   .gold   .holdings   .investments   .ira   .loan   .loans   .money   .mortgage   .pay   .reit   .rich   .tax
LIFESTYLE & IDENTITY
.active   .actor   .airforce   .arab   .army   .baby   .beauty    .bible   .bio   .black   .ceo   .church   .community   .contact   .dad   .date   .dating   .democrat   .diet   .exposed   .express   .faith   .family   .fan   .fans   .fashion   .fit   .fitness   .gay   .gent   .gop   .group   .hair   .halal   .health   .heart   .hiv   .icu   .indians   .irish   .islam   .jetzt   .kid   .kids   .kim   .kiwi   .kosher   .lat   .latino   .lds   .lgbt   .lifestyle   .live   .living   .love   .luxury   .mba   .mom   .mormon   .navy   .nowruz   .organic   .pars   .persiangulf   .phd    .ren      .republican   .scot   .shia   .shingles   .style   .top   .uno   .vet   .vip   .vision      .vote   .voting   .voto   .wang  .wedding   .whoswho
SPORTS
.baseball   .basketball   .bike   .coach   .cricket   .dance   .fan   .fans   .fish   .fishing   .football   .futbol   .golf   .hockey   .horse  .indians   .moto   .motorcycles   .racing   .rodeo   .rugby   .run   .ski   .soccer   .sport   .sports   .team   .tennis   .yoga
TECHNOLOGY
.app   .blog   .box   .cam   .camera   .chat   .click   .cloud   .codes   .computer   .comsec   .contact   .data   .digital   .direct  .directory   .docs   .domains   .dot   .download   .email   .epost   .fail   .feedback   .graphics   .host   .hosting   .idn   .link   .mail .map   .media   .mobile   .mobily   .mov   .network   .online   .phone   .search   .site   .software   .systems   .tech   .technology   .tube   .web   .webcam   .website   .weibo   .онлайн   .сайт   .اتصالات   .موقع   .中文网   .在线   .微博   .手机   .移动   .网址   .网站   .网络
MEDIA
.actor   .art   .audio     .band   .book   .broadway   .buzz   .bway    .events   .exposed   .film   .gallery   .hiphop   .media   .mov   .movie   .music   .news   .photo   .photography   .photos   .pics   .pictures   .press   .radio   .show   .theater   .theatre  .video
FOOD & DRINK
.bar   .beer   .cafe   .coffee   .cooking   .eat   .food   .kitchen   .kosher   .menu   .organic   .pizza   .pub   .recipes   .rest   .restaurant   .vin   .vodka   .wine   .catering   .cityeats   .soy
PROFESSIONAL
.abogado   .accountant   .accountants   .actor   .airforce   .archi   .architect   .army   .associates   .attorney   .broker   .career   .careers   .ceo   .consulting   .contractors    .cpa   .dds   .democrat   .engineer   .engineering     .esq   .expert   .heart   .law  .lawyer   .mba    .navy   .republican   .vet
HEALTH
.clinic   .dental   .dentist   .diet   .doctor   .fit   .fitness   .health   .healthcare   .hiv   .hospital   .med   .medical   .pharmacy   .skin  .surgery
COMMERCE
.ads    .auction    .bargains    .bid    .blackfriday    .buy    .cab    .capital    .center    .charity    .cheap    .claims    .coupon   .coupons
.deal   .deals   .delivery   .discount   .ecom   .equipment   .exchange
EDUCATION
.academy   .college   .courses   .degree   .education   .ged   .how   .mba   .phd   .prof   .scholarships   .school  .schule   .science   .shiksh  .university
GOVERNMENT
.airforce   .army   .democrat   .gop   .navy   .overheidnl   .republican
ADULT
IDN
.कॉम   .佛山   .慈善   .集团   .在线   .点看   .คอม   .八卦   .موقع   .公益   .公司   .网站   .移动   .我爱你   .москва   .католик   .онлайн
.сайт   .联通     .时尚   .时尚   .时尚   .орг   .點看   .नेट   .商标   .商店   .商城   .дети   .新闻   .工行   .深圳   .كوم   .中文网   .娱乐
.购物   .קוֹם   .网店   .संगठन   .餐厅   .网络   .ком   .手机   .اتصالات   .بازار   .كاثوليك   .همراه   .닷컴   .政府   .شبكة   .عرب   .机构   .健康
.招聘   .рус   .大拿   .みんな   .世界   .网址   .닷넷   .コム   .天主教   .游戏   .企业   .信息   .政务
The first group of gTLD’s  should launch in mid-2013.   There are different phases for registration. For example the “Sunrise” phase is specifically for trademark holders.  A “pre-registration” phase allows you to submit a registration request ahead of that date. Pre-registration requests are taken and held in a queue untilit is time to submit.  After these phases, the registration is opens to the general public for General Availability to registeron a first come first serve basis.  To learn more visit  www.GoDaddy.com
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Where Do We FOCUS in 2013?

January 14, 2013   admin   No comments

Did you achieve what you wanted to in 2012?  I was looking through my monthly planner from last year and assessing how I did reaching my business goals.  What always surprises me is how quickly things change.

Each year I write down my Top 5 Goals for the Year, then break it down into monthly targets, weekly “to do” lists and then into daily tasks.  I find that internet marketing, and more specifically, domain business, is a series of ongoing TESTING to see what works and what doesn’t work.  So my goals for the year might remain the same, but my strategy changes according to the results of my testing.  My mantra going into 2012 was to FOCUS ON SELLING, because without selling anything I wouldn’t be in business long.  So, I tested different selling tactics through the year and looking back in my planner I could see the results I’d recorded and then my strategy adjustments.

Strategies also changed because of changes in the marketplace.  There are many niches in the domain business, but when behemoths such as Google make waves, it rocks everyone’s boat.  Google has squeezed parking revenues and Google has squeezed low-quality web sites such as sites with little valuable content on crappy domain names.  So whether you are in the business of buying/selling domain names, monetizing domains, developing websites, or generating leads, etc. – it’s a good time to focus on quality rather than quantity.

That’s my new mantra for 2013 – FOCUS ON QUALITY.  As I do every year, I’ve taken a look back to learn from the past year and written down my goals for the new year. Some goals for my business have changed, and so have the strategies.  I’m always testing things and depending how this month goes, my tactics may change – but the goals remain the same.

Last year my focus was on SALES, and this year it’s on QUALITY. If I can do the two together, that’s a pretty good combination.  So whether you are just thinking of starting a small business online, or you have been online for years and trying to find a profitable path, here’s a few small suggestions that may help you along:

1) SELL – business is about selling, giving value in exchange for money. So make sales.  It’s priority #1.

2) FOCUS ON QUALITY NOT QUANTITY – whether it’s domains, websites, content or whatever, it’s better to have fewer better than lots of garbage

3) TEST AND ADJUST -  You need to find what works and you do that by testing. If it works then scale up and if it fails then adjust your tactics/strategy.

4) LOOK AT THE BIGGER PICTURE – the web is a big place and things change fast. Take a step back and look at the industry, market and niche you are thinking about. How will you make money? Is there a better way to make money? Where would you rather be?

5) COPY SUCCESS – Look at successful business people, learn how they did it.  Read, research, learn – copy success.

I wish you all MUCH SUCCESS in 2013!

 

 

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Ex-Google Employee Reveals New World of SEO!

October 19, 2012   admin   2 Comments

“To please Google with your SEO, forget about SEO”  – That’s one of the messages from an EX-Member of Matt Cutts’s Search Quality team, Andre Weyher.

Do you want to know what Google is thinking, how SEO has changed, and tips for your site in the future?  Read on!  I found a recent interview with this ex-member of Google’s inner search team posted on JamesNorquay.com.

The interview has important insights into how Google’s search team thinks. For example, Andre talks about Google’s obvious goals and focus -  “…focus is fighting spam and keeping Google’s search results clean so that the user gets the best possible experience. This is a very important thing for Google ….Google’s entire earning model relies on the good quality of the organic results, if people didn’t trust organic, they would stop using search and not click on ads anymore.”

This is evident in Google’s recent algorithm updates to reduce “spammy” content such as Penguin and Panda, and more tweaks are on the way!  “I think the message Google is sending is very clear, they are fed up with people breaking the guidelines on an industrial scale and are coming down very hard on webmasters who do.”

So where do webmasters go from here?  Andre makes it clear that the world has changed – “At this stage a webmaster is out of his mind to still rely on techniques that were common practice 8 months ago.”  He recommends a few tactics that webmasters should focus on in future, and the most important being a GOOD DOMAIN NAME! – “First of all, choose your domain name wisely, having a good URL can give you a head start in the race. Good domains are still expensive and for a good reason.”

The interview is sprinkled with more good SEO tips and old tactics to avoid. For example, Google now puts more weight on the quality of your inbound links rather than the quantity. It’s more about “relevance”. And perhaps one of the most important messages, create good, valuable content that your audience will love and Google in return will love you.  Don’t try to manipulate the Google algorithm.

Lastly, search is evolving with Google moving towards more localized versions of search, as well as growing influence of “social” in search  (ie. Google+).

The entire interview and article is sprinkled with awesome information and provides a guide to where we go from here in SEO and website development.  A big “thank you” to JamesNorquay.com for posting that interview – you can read their entire interview/post on their site at JamesNorquay.com

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New Coupon Codes for Domain Discounts from Godaddy

October 17, 2012   admin   No comments

Recently I’ve come across quite a few different coupons codes from Godaddy for cheaper domain registrations. There is some great deals to be had here!

Granted, the coupons are usually only good for “one per customer”, but still offer significant savings on one-off domains  you may have been thinking about registering. And note that the coupons sometimes will not work in your country of origin, or if you have redeemed the same coupon code already.

Here are the Godaddy coupon codes I’ve come across. Remember to enter the code in the “Apply Coupon Code” box before you check out and click it to see if it reduced your total.

$2.95 .coms in recognition of Cancer Awareness Month -  Use coupon code:  cjc295v   (As printed on Godaddy.com >SPECIAL OFFER! .COM just $2.95*! Additional .COMs just $7.99* per year!Plus ICANN fee of $0.18 per domain name per year. $2.95 price for the first year of one new or transfer .COM per customer. Promotion expires after 10,000 redemptions. Additional years or .COMs may be purchased for $7.99* per year. Discounts cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer or promotion. After the initial year, discounted domains will renew at the then-current list price. Customers may not use gift cards, PayPal® or AliPay to redeem this offer. Your discount will be applied in your shopping cart.)

$2.95 for new or transfer .com -  Use code:   gtng2vt04

$2.95 for new or transfer.com – Use code:  gtng2tk01

$4.95 for new or transfer.com – Use code:  GFNF4ME26

$5.99 for new .org – Use code: In recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month  Use code:  INSPIRE  at checkout

$7.99 for new .net – Use code:  EXTREME123    at checkout

>>> Click here to register your domains now at  www.GoDaddy.com

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Premium .CA Domains Up For Auction

October 16, 2012   admin   No comments

I received an email from Snapnames announcing their premium .CA domain auction featuring 25 of the best hand-picked .ca domains.

Looking over the list, it is impressive!  Some great generic domains here.  The two week auction offers industry leading domains possessing branding potential and targeted visibility. (Note: I do not own any domains in the auction list).

Starts: October 16, 2012 Noon ET
Ends: November 1, 2012 3:15 pm ET (12:15 pm PT)

Featured Domains Include:

  • Alcohol.ca
  • Casinos.ca
  • Christmas.ca
  • Creditcard.ca
  • Dating.ca
  • Drugs.ca
  • Horoscopes.ca
  • Loans.ca
  • Tobacco.ca

If you are interested in bidding, visit  SNAPNAMES   to view the .CA auction.

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Basic Web Hosting Tips to Get Started Online

October 15, 2012   admin   No comments

If you are just getting started building a website, one of the first decisions you will make (after deciding what domain name you want) is where will you get web hosting?

Web site Hosting is the background service that makes your webpages and email work.  It is the behind the scenes “home” location for your where the data on your web pages and email reside.

Often, domain name registrars offer web hosting services. This makes sense. If someone is shopping for a domain name for their business, the next logical step is they need a location to “host” that domain name and build the business. For example, I often use  www.GoDaddy.com   to register domains and they offer a full package of hosting services/tools for websites.

The cost of Domain name registrations can vary between $10-$35 depending on the range of services and support offered with it. Similarly, there is a wide range in the cost of domain hosting services depending on the support and additional services offered with it.  Hosting fees are usually charged either monthly or yearly.  On the low end, you can get hosting for free (it is usually ad dependent and comes with little or no support).  For example, if you wanted to start a blog, you can sign-up with WordPress and setup a blog for free! Alternatively, you can get hosting services that offer free web-site building tools, or blogs, or scripts and databases with the service. Look carefully at what your package included and what your business needs.

For example, a service may include:
- 1-10 free email names with the account
- limits of size of data transfers
- limits on data storage
- full support or no support (do they offer phone support or only email support?)
- tools you can use to build your website (web builders, blogs, SEO tools, social media tools, etc)
The cost of hosting services, as mentioned can range from free to beyond. Most reputable companies seem to charge around $5-$20/month depending on your needs and usage.

Web hosting encompasses many important services for your business and building your website. Pick one that is a match for what you need and your own skills. Are you a “do-it-yourselfer”? Or are you outsourcing everything “web” related?  I think a great way to learn is to go with a hosting option that provides you with many tools that you can implement yourself. The plus side of this is you can learn while keeping costs down. The downside is you may get frustrated and end up spending way more time than you want to setting things up (remember, you have to value your own time too!). If you want to hire someone to set things up for you, you can hire someone inexpensively on sites such as elance.com

As you weigh your options and are trying to decide what hosting packages to use, I would suggest starting with a smaller, inexpensive package that will give you lots of DYI tools and options. Then if you find you need more your site or business, you can upgrade to a better package later as your business grows.

If you want to learn more about good web hosting plans, click to see  New Hosting Plans On Sale now at GoDaddy.com!

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Who Are the Best Domain Name Blogs?

October 09, 2012   admin   No comments

Looking over a recent list of top domain industry blogs from the TRAFFIC conference I thought it would be helpful to add a few more suggestions to the list – some domain blogs with fresh voices and valuable content, even though they may not have large readership numbers.

Of course, congratulations to DomainSherpa.com which was recently awarded the “Best Domain Blog” for 2012 at the TRAFFIC 2012 conference in Florida.  DomainSherpa.com has featured some great content, and I especially recommend anyone wanting to learn about domain names to visit the site and listen to the interviews with successful “domainers”.

The TRAFFIC  conference is one of the main domain industry events, and organizers put together their nominees for top awards in different categories. Looking at this years’ list of top Domain blogs, I can’t argue with the readership numbers those blogs have, but here are my suggestions for some other good blogs.  I’m basing my suggestions solely on the basis of them having some good content that can help visitors learn about buying, selling and making money with domain names as a business.

Here’s my recommended list:

  • RobbiesBlog.com – has some excellent recent Q&A interviews with domain investors
  • AntiCareer.com – different ideas on how to make money with domains and other types of internet marketing
  • WannaDevelop.com – young entrepreneurs perspective on the domain biz, development and buying/selling domains
  • DNFblog.com – hasn’t been active lately, but features informative posts on domain names

I’m sure there are many other great domain industry blogs that we can learn from. These are only a few added suggestions to help you along. Enjoy!

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