2. Choosing a Domain Name
Coming up with a good domain name requires a
combination of strategy, imagination and good
linguistic design practice.
You’ll find some basic pieces of advice all over
the Web, and it’s worth mentioning those right
away. Ideally, your domain name should be:
- Short
- Catchy and memorable,
- Easy to pronounce,
- Easy to spell,
- Not too similar to competing domain names,
- Not a violation of someone else’s trademark.
http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/05/02/the-effective-strategy-
for-choosing-right-domain-names/
3. Choosing a Domain Name
Discoverable domain name: found by someone who doesn’t know about
your website but is doing web searches on keywords and phrases
related to a specific topic, or by typing those words and phrases directly
into the navigation bar of the browser. Discoverable names are
generically descriptive.
Ex: buy.com, diapers.com,
Brandable domain name: establishes a distinct identity and communicates
indirectly to evoke interesting ideas and feelings. Provide a unique character
string unlikely to be found anywhere except in documents that mention that
particular website. That means people who know the name of the website
can easily use a search engine to navigate there.
Ex: Twitter, Squidoo, Boing-Boing, Woot, Amazon, Zappos
4. Choosing a Domain Name
Come up with a few ideas and then check to see if your domain name ideas are already taken.
5. Putting Names Together
Because you won’t be looking for a single-word name (unless you have big
bucks to spend), you’ll have to build your name out of pieces. There are
several different ways to do that:
Compound - Example: YouTube
Two whole words, often two nouns, stuck together. Don’t let anyone tell you that this
kind of name is a “fad” and will go away. This has been the most common way to coin
new English words as well as to create new names, and that’s unlikely to change in
the next few hundred years.
Blend - Examples: Microsoft, Farecast
A blend combines a part of a word with another word or word part. The name Microsoft combines the “micro” part of
“microcomputer” with the “soft” part of “software.” When blends involve a surprising overlap in sound between the two
words, they’re a form of wordplay. Farecast is like that. It combines the words “fare” and “forecast,” and “fare” resembles
the first syllable of “forecast.” When you create this kind of blend, be sure to avoid awkwordplay: don’t pile up consonants
in ugly ways (like in the name Syncplicity), and don’t use important words to replace syllables that aren’t emphasized (the
way the names Mapufacture and Carticipate do).
http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/05/02/the-effective-strategy-for-choosing-right-domain-names/
6. Phrase - Example: Six Apart
Words put together according to normal grammatical rules. Phrase names can be similar to compounds, but have a
different pattern of syllabic emphasis. In compounds, the emphasis goes on the first word, the way we emphasize “white”
in “the Whitehouse.” In phrases, the emphasis often goes on the second word, the way we emphasize “house” in “a white
house.”
Tweaked word - Examples: Flickr, Zune
Sometimes you can find a good domain name that’s basically a real word, but changed in some
small way. It might have a modified spelling, like Flickr, or it might have a changed or added sound,
like Zune (from “tune”) and iPhone.
Affixed word - Example: Friendster
Some names are new words created by sticking a prefix or suffix onto an existing word. Friendster,
for example, is “friend” with the suffix -ster attached. Biznik is “biz” with the Yiddish-derived suffix -nik
(as in “beatnik”).
Made-up name - Examples: Etsy, Odeo
Sometimes you can find a name that is, or seems to be, completely made up. For example, Etsy is
an online hand-made goods marketplace, and Odeo is an online music website.
http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/05/02/the-effective-strategy-for-choosing-right-domain-names/
9. Choosing a Hosting Service
Price
This is the aspect most of us will look at first when choosing a hosting provider;
however, it shouldn’t be the deciding factor. When you see price differences it’s
helpful to remember the old maxim that we get what we pay for. Jumping on the
cheapest offer you see isn’t necessarily the best idea, especially if you rely on your
site to make money. Things like non-outsourced support and quality hardware cost
money, and a hosting company that charges $1.99 per month likely won’t offer
these features. Take a closer look at the features that each host provides, and
THEN compare prices.
Tech Specs / Limitations
Take a good, honest look at your site and figure out what you want it to do. If you’re
hoping to host a blog, an e-commerce site, rich content, and videos, then you
shouldn’t go with the cheapest hosting package you can find. A cheap hosting
plan probably won’t have the RAM, processing power, and disk space to serve all
these needs, and you’ll spend more time dealing with downtime or load issues than
you would like. Look to see what you are getting with the cheap host and what
features are included in the cost. Do they charge for additional domains, support,
backups, etc.. Call them. Ask questions. Tell them what you envision your site’s
needs to be. Just don’t take it for granted that they take your site as seriously as
you do.
http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/10-important-factors-to-consider-before-choosing-a-web-host/
10. Choosing a Hosting Service
Tech Support
In most people’s opinions, this is the big one. When my site, for some
unknown reason, goes down, can I call up and get a real, live person on
the phone? And, more than that, can they find out what’s wrong and fix it,
or at least tell me what I need to do to get my site back online? Before
going with a host look into their reputation for customer support. See what
kinds of different ways you can contact them when you need support –
email, toll-free phone, chat, and so on. Are they staffed 24/7? Do they
outsource support?
You’ll find that, like in price and technical specifications, all hosts are not
equal. Some hang their hat on their support crew, and some view
customer support as an afterthought. Steer clear of the latter.
Features / Add-Ons
This area of consideration comes down to the following question – What makes this hosting company
special? What extra incentive do they provide to make hosting your site with them just a touch more
attractive? Whether it’s multiple data centers, energy-saving practices, or additional features such as
regular data backups or free domain privacy, hosting companies often offer more than just servers. If you
see one that offers something you need or find important, that can be a good indicator that you should
look into using that company.
http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/10-important-factors-to-consider-before-choosing-a-web-host/
11. Choosing a Hosting Service
Customer Reviews / Satisfaction / Reputation
This is one of those factors that you’ll have to get a little creative to get the real story on. Do a Google
Blog search for a particular hosting company, or look them up on Twitter – whatever you have to do to
see what their current (or former) customers are saying about them. Are they easy to contact for
support? What’s the average time it takes to respond to a ticket? When they find a problem with a site,
what’s their course of action? This is one of the great things about social media – ask a question about
a company, and you’re more likely than not to get a few answers.
Control Panel / User Interface
Even if you’re the least tech-savvy person in the world, there are some things – installing WordPress,
setting up email, setting up FTP accounts – you should be able to do without calling your hosting
company’s support line. Does your provider use cPanel or Plesk to make updates and modifications
easier, or do they use some clunky interface that no one can figure out? You’ll most likely be the one
working with it, so if you can’t figure it out, then that’s going to be a problem.
Scalability / Room to Grow
Finally, an important thing to consider about your hosting provider (and the plan you choose) is whether
or not they fit into your plans for the future. In other words, what you consider adequate hosting now
might not meet your needs two years from now, once you start selling your wares online and getting
some good traffic to your site.
http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/10-important-factors-to-consider-before-choosing-a-web-host/
12. Choosing a Hosting Service
Most hosts use cPanel to control the settings
and domains for your website(s).
cPanel Basics:
http://kb.westhost.com/questions/468/Introduction+to+cPanel
13. Upload your files with an FTP
The easiest method of getting files onto your site, and once there, changing them is using a FTP
(File transfer protocol) client.
FTP works by transferring files from your computer to your site.
For PC you can use FileZilla which is a free FTP software.
For Mac Users try:
1. Cyberduck; free FTP software designed for Macs
2. Transmit – FTP software you purchase designed for Macs
To use your FTP client you will need an FTP address of your site plus login name and password for
it. All of it should be in the Login Information email you got after registering your hosting account with
your hosting company.
For more information:
http://premium.wpmudev.org/manuals/wpmu-manual-2/introduction-to-ftp-and-using-ftp-clients/
