Domain Names

A domain name is a unique identifier which assigns a name to a specific IP (Internet Protocol) address. Since IP addresses are merely strings of numbers, the Domain Name system was developed to facilitate ease of recognition and recall of site addresses.

http://64.62.139.48 is the Numerical address for this website on the internet, but to make things easier for us humans the domain name was created in alphanumeric form, meaning we can use words to remember our website locations on the internet instead of a series of numbers. The alphanumeric “domain name” version is www.company-online.co.uk which will generally be easier to remember if used only frequently.

Each country has its own unique domain name, the commonly used domain for the UK is .co.uk along with .com and there are also other variations like .tv .info .biz

A domain name is also referred to as a “URL” (Uniform Resource Locator) The address identifies the location of a Web page on the World Wide Web.

When registering a domain name for your business, the name should either be memorable to previous visitors by using your company name, or a short description of your business. If you are unable to register the domain name you desire, then another idea would be to register a domain name that would be used in a search engine to find you.

A company in Barnsley called XYZ plumbers might register www.xyzplumbers.co.uk so people aware of the company would stand a higher chance of finding their site by name. But for people searching for a plumber in Barnsley, a domain name like www.barnsley-plumbers.co.uk would also be as beneficial.