Ways to make quick money

Without a domain, websites are specified by an IP address. What is an IP address? It is an identifier that is used by computers to determine the location of a web server or website. However, for humans, an IP address, which is written in a numerical form, can be difficult to remember. This is why domains were invented. With a domain, people can visit a web site through more user-friendly words or phrases. While a domain can include digits, they usually do not make up all of it, like what is seen with an IP address.

In terms of format, domain names have several parts. The first part of the domain is the protocol. The protocol lets the browser know what the domain name is going to point to. This will usually be ‘http’, which means the browser can expect to locate a hypertext document.  In layman’s terms this means a web page. In the rare cases the URL is not ‘http’; it may be ‘ftp’ instead’, which means file transfer protocol. A webmaster would opt to use ftp if they would like visitors to download files from their server.

The second part of the will be the subdomain. An example is “www,” which stands for “World Wide Web.” If a web site consists of more than one server, the subdomain helps to identify the specific server to connect to.

The subdomain is followed by the actual domain name, which can be a combination of letters, numbers or phrases.  A good domain name will be short, memorable and search-engine friendly. In fact, some webmasters tend to concentrate more on a domain name’s effectiveness with SEO, (or Search Engine Optimization), than they do on other factors. To do this, they make sure to choose a domain that has a commonly searched keyword.

The final portion of the domain name is what is known as an extension. This lets the person know more about the website’s origins. For example, take .com, the most common domain name extension. It stands for ‘commercial’, and was originally intended for commercial organizations. However, the extension is now used by almost everyone looking to create a website. And this is for good reason, since most Internet users will think about the .com before they would think about .org, .biz or .net. Yet, don’t think the other extensions can’t become memorable either. Consider Wikipedia.org which is a very popular website despite its .org extension.

Domain name extensions can also specify which country a web site is from. An example are country-based extensions such as .fr, (which stands for France), or .au (which stands for Australia). They can also be state-based, such as .ca, (which stands for California).  Both can serve as excellent tools for localized Internet marketing.

To get a domain name, an Internet user can either: 1) get one from their web hosting company, provided they offer that service or 2) get one from a separate domain name company. The price things will vary with each option, though typically the cost will range from $6.50 to $35.

Seasoned investors take advantage of the current economic downtrend by investing in assets at low prices like shares listed in the stock exchange or real estate in depressed markets. For seasoned Internet marketer James Schramko, this is also the best time to invest in domain names or domain buying which he expects to experience a huge appreciation in value as soon as the economy improves.

What is “domaining”?

The art of domaining is simply buying domain names for financial profit. The cash gains can come in any of the following:

• Buy and sell: Where you buy a domain name at a low price and turn around to sell it at a much higher price, often 1000 times more than the acquisition cost.

• Buy and hold: Here you buy a domain name at a low price in anticipation of its future cost later and simply hold on to it until the opportune time to sell it at a high price.

• Buy and lease or sale: Using keyword research and a feel for the market you are targeting, you buy a domain which you build, create content, and promote well to get excellent search rankings and then offer it for lease or sale to a business that needs it.

Advantages of Domaining

James started buying domains initially for his affiliate marketing programs and eventually got the idea about flipping it or selling it for fast cash from other successful marketers like Kenny Goodman. He decided to learn more about it by attending a live seminar and got hooked instantly. James cites the following advantages of domaining as a business:

Low investment capital: Unlike most traditional investments, you don’t need a lot of cash to start your business of domaining. You can buy domains at $8 or $9 and sell it at a much higher price to others who need them.

Brandable assets: You can take a domain name and use Internet marketing techniques to promote awareness so that it becomes an identifiable brand that you can later on sell to a rival website which may be outranked by your domain. Or you can sell the site with its great content and sizeable following to a business in the same niche for thousands of dollars.

While domain buying and flipping may sound easy and simple to do, like any investment activity, you need to learn the right way to do it in order to make money out of it. James gives this advice to those who want to start domaining: Using keyword research tools to determine good names to buy, make it a habit to buy at least one domain each month and grow your portfolio that way. As soon as the economy bounces back to life, interested businesses will start looking for relevant domains to buy and yours could easily one of them.

Without a domain, a person does not have any way to find a website.  The only problem is that domain names cost money.  Granted, if you are operating one or two sites, the cost of a domain name probably isn’t particularly expensive.  However, what if one is an avid marketer, and is involved with a number of sites?  Even the cheapest domain name fees can mount up.  This is why Internet marketing gurus might want to consider registering for free domains.  Three types of free domains exist: third level domain names, first level domain names with lesser used extensions and first level domain names with traditional extensions.

The first type of free domain is known as a third level domain name.  This is a domain name that is commonly distributed by free web hosting companies or affiliate programs.  Yet, there is a drawback to this type of domain.  This drawback involves the first level domain name, often the company’s name, having to be a part of the third level domain.

The second type of free domain is a first level domain that contains an extension that is not as popular with domain registrants.  Examples are the free domains offered by Dot.tk or Free Domain.co.  The TLDs offered by these companies are .tk and .co.nr, respectively.  These are not as well known as a .com or a .net, but they are not as cumbersome to use as a third level domain name.  The main key is to make sure the initial domain name is short and easy to remember, so potential visitors won’t be as offput by the unusual extension.

Finally, there are free domains with extensions that are more commonly used such as .com or .org.  To find these, you has to do some sleuthing.  Sometimes individuals will offer them for free, since they were about to expire anyway.  You can find these domains through forums dedicated to web design.  Other times companies will offer these types of free domain names because they are getting free ad space.  What happens is every time the free domain name is used, a pop-up ad will be shown to the vistor.  This is how the free domain name company gets its revenue.

In conclusion, free domains can be an excellent alternative for someone needing domains for several websites.