Is Registering a Domain Name Worth the Trouble?

Contributed by Carpesomediem

Who uses a domain name?

Most high profile personal web sites, businesses and others with web design skills use a domain name to highlight their work or their product or service. A domain name gives them an easier presence on the internet than using a long, drawn-out URL and will help when you promote your web site by making it simpler for an audience to find it. Anybody can use a domain name if you can afford it and are willing to pay for it; it's just a matter of making sure you need it that counts in the end.

Do you really need a domain name?

If you are using a free site with less than five pages, chances are you wouldn't benefit from a domain name. However, if you are paying for web hosting on a private server with 20, 30 or 1000 pages, then, a domain name would benefit you and your audience tenfold. It all comes down to weighing the pros and cons of purchasing the domain name of your choice; if it's a good investment, go for it, even for a small five page web site if you generate enough traffic. If you want to do it for fun, that's worthwhile, too, as long as you're willing to pay the price.

Free services generally have bulky URLs and are a hinderance when passing out to family, friends or anyone else you want to see the home page. However, their are free alternatives that will at least shorten your URL to an easier to pass out format if you do a simple internet search for them. If you can find a good deal, cheap, on a domain name, and want to invest, then, it would be of benefit to wait for the lowest prices to do so and make sure the deal you are getting is more than worth it for a free home page that may not benefit from a domain name in and of itself.

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