DOMAINS : HINTS, TIPS & FAQs
Many of our customers are now realising that most of the good generic domain names have been registered. So your best bet is to register your brand name, buy one from a private seller, rent or lease to buy perhaps. Try Platinum Domains, they offer a great service and some strong generic domains that are keyword loaded and product/service specific and you can get our packages at HALF PRICE!
We have great prices with no hidden costs and of course we make everything simple and easy to understand.
Keep it Short
Although some domain names can be up to 63 characters, you have to keep in mind that people need to be able to remember it, and easily type it into their browser. Try to register the shortest name that your customers and visitors will associate with your Website. The general rule of thumb is to keep it under seven characters if possible. (Not including the suffix.)
Dot What?
There are many different extensions available right now. For businesses, we recommend a .com, .net or .co.uk suffix.
Register Your Domain NOW
You must register as soon as possible, or risk getting stuck with "the-domain-name-that-no-one-wanted.net". You do not have to have a Webmaster or an ecommerce department or a web design consultant... you don't even need a web page. Just get out there and register before you lose the opportunity to get the name you really want.
One May Not Be Enough
Sometimes it is a good idea to register several similar domain names, particularly if you own a trademark for a certain name. If you have "yourname.com", register "yourname.co.uk" so no one else takes it. You can register your full company name and a shorter, easier to remember version. Some people even register common mis-pellings of their company's name. You don't need a separate web page for each, several domains can point to the same website using domain name mappings.
Character Types
Just a reminder that domain names can only use letters, numbers, and dashes. Spaces and symbols are not allowed. Also, domain names are not case sensitive.
If you really want a domain then spend spend spend...
If a domain has already been registered it may still be available....how?....well, the domain aftermarket is booming and domains are changing hands all the time for anything from £10 to £millions. If you really want a domain and it is for sale by the owner then haggle and who knows.....you may get it for a bargain. At least you have the name you really want that suits your business and in the long run it could bring you a huge amount of revenue through brand name relevance.
WHAT YOU GET WITH YOUR DOMAIN NAME. .
Web Forwarding
Web forwarding allows you to forward your domain name to another web address, for example you could forward your domain name to some free web space you have with your Internet service provider.
Automatic Redirect
There are two types of web forwarding: the first is automatic redirection, where the user's web browser is sent to the new web address that you specify, so the domain name will not be visible in the address bar of the user's web browser.
Framed Redirect
To have your domain name showing in the address bar you must use the second method - a framed redirect. With a framed redirect your web address is visible in your web browser's address bar. You can also set the title that is shown in the web browser and the meta keywords and a description of your website that search engines use to index your site.
Domain For Sale Page
Is your domain name for sale? Use this feature to place a simple page on your website advertising the fact that this domain name is for sale!
Unlimited Email Forwarding
This feature allows you to forward any email address @yourdomain.com to any email address you choose, for example a hotmail or yahoo.com address. You can forward each address to up to three different addresses.
Catch-All Email Forwarding
This feature allows you to forward all email from yourdomain.com to any email address you choose, for example a hotmail or yahoo.com address. Note that if you have any individual email forwarding accounts setup they will be processed instead of your catch-all email.
WebMail
We offer one of the most powerful and flexible WebMail systems to all our customers. Features include:
Folder Support
You can create as many folders as you need to easily store and organise your mail.
Enhanced Calendar
This handy feature allows you to manage appointments (tasks) on a quarterly, annual, or daily basis.
Outlook-to-Webmail Sync
Microsoft Outlook can be synchronized with your Webmail account so that contacts and scheduler data can be shared between a desktop and Webmail client. If a user adds a new appointment (task) or contact while using Outlook or Webmail, the data will be automatically synchronised between the applications.
Enhanced Address Book
Webmail's enhanced address book functionality allows you to import and export contacts from/to CSV (comma separated values) file format. You can also sync your Webmail account with your existing address-books.
Spell Checker
Spell check your email before sending it using the built in spell checker with a new and updated language database.
Mailbox Sorting & Searching
Messages contained in your Inbox can be sorted by subject, date, or email address. You can search your mailbox for keywords, allowing quick and easy access to your stored email.
Rich HTML Messages
Create eye-catching emails using different fonts and colours or by embedding pictures and sounds. Why not add your company logo or a customised signature? You can easily attach files to your emails to send to friends, family or colleagues.
Email Filters
Create rules to move specific messages or block unwanted senders altogether.
Webmail is one of our most popular features and we operate our Webmail system on a sophisticated hardware platform. This uses state-of-the-art hardware load balancers to distribute traffic to our cluster of Webmail servers. Your messages are centrally stored on giant disk arrays and backed up each day, first to another disk array and then to tape which is stored offsite.
Change Domain Contacts
This feature allows you to update the owner, admin, billing and technical contacts for a domain name.
DNS Management
This feature allows you to configure your own DNS records. All A, CNAME, and MX records for your domain can be altered.
Change Nominet Tag
This feature allows you to change the Nominet tag (known as the IPSTAG or IPS-KEY) on your UK domain name to another tag. This feature is free of charge with Eco Hosting (some companies charge up to £25 per domain name to do this).
Change Nameservers
This feature allows our customers the flexibility to move their domain names away to external hosts at any time, but you'll lose all the benefits of our extensive range of free services if they do! The service is free and fully automated.
Opt Out of .uk WHOIS
This feature allows private individuals to hide their personal details from the Nominet public WHOIS database.
FAQs..
Domain Name Questions
How long will it take for my new domain name to become active?
Domains are registered as soon as you order them, however it can take between 24 and 72 hours for them to become visible on the Internet.
Can I buy a domain name, but not buy web hosting?
Yes, you do not have to buy the web hosting when you buy a domain name.
Do I own the domain name?
Yes - unlike some companies we always register the domain in your name or in your customer's name if you are working on someone's behalf.
Can I transfer the domain at any time?
Yes, you can, and we provide a control panel so that you can make these changes yourself at any time and that's all included in the price.
Do I get a certificate of ownership for the domain I purchase?
Nominet issued certificates as confirmation of the contract that exists between Nominet and the registrant until August 2003. If you have a paper certificate, this remains valid until the expiry date shown on the certificate. Paper certificates and Reply Forms have been replaced by an online system called Registrants Online. Domain names are being transferred to the online system when they are next renewed.
How do I renew a domain with Eco Hosting?
We will contact customers via email about 30 days before the domain is due for renewal. You can then decide whether to renew the domain name or not. For this reason, we always ask customers to ensure that their email address is valid, working and up-to-date, to ensure they get such messages.
Can I sell the domain to somebody else?
Yes you can. It's yours to do with as you please. For all non .uk domains, we provide the facility in the control panel to change the owner details for a domain at any time. For .co.uk, .org.uk and .me.uk domains, such changes have to be made through the naming authority Nominet who can advise you on the procedure.