Can I Buy a Domain Name that Is Good and Affordable?
So how many internet users that have a blog or website have actually taken the steps to buy a domain name of their own? My guess is the percentage is very, very low. The prevalence of “parasite” hosts makes purchasing a domain unnecessary for most users.
A parasite host provides everyone the ability to create their own website, automatically generating a subdomain url. Examples are Blogger and Wordpress.com and Myspace. It is unbelievably easy with any of these services to create a blog or page to share who you are with the world and any other topic of your choosing, and you can do it for free.
If I created a page on Myspace, my url would look something like: mynickname.myspace.com That is actually a subdomain, but one that I would not have to buy. I just receive it automatically.
So what’s the big deal? Who cares? Well, if you’re a serious webmaster, you really have to buy a domain name of your own. You need this for credibility. But herein lies the dilema.
Despite all the millions of blogs and pages created on the free parasite hosts, many internet users still believe that all the good domains are already taken. It is estimated that greater than 30 million .com, .org, and .net names have been registered. That’s a lot. And it is clear if you go to a prominent registrar like GoDaddy looking for a simple little .com, you will likely learn it has already been reserved. But the internet is not as crowded as it may seem.
What is true is that thousands of previously registered domains — premium names — are not renewed and so become available again for purchase every day. Anyone can buy a domain name from an expired list. The trick is learning where to find these names and avoid paying bloated market values.
When you search for a simple little domain name on GoDaddy now, in addition to learning the name you want is already registered, you are provided with a list of related premium names for premium prices. They’re fun to look at but rather pricey. There must be somewhere in cyberspace to find terrific names at terrific prices. But where?
