Technical Explanations

Purchasing a Domain

A domain is an Internet address used as an address forwarding service. Choosing a proper domain name is crucial for causing your customers to remember your website's address and self-branding.

General Explanation on Domain Address

It is more convenient to use a domain name instead of an IP-address, because a name is much easier to memorize than a series of numbers. A domain name consists of a name of your choice followed by an ending, which usually indicates a website's field of activity. For instance, loadmydomain.co.il: “loadmydomain” is the domain name and “co.il” is the ending.
Different endings serve different purposes, e.g. .org indicates organizations, .com / .biz stands for commercial or business institutions, .net is used by communication companies and internet providers.
In addition to that, there are regional and national endings, such as .de for Germany, co.uk for the United Kingdom, and so on.
The site materials are stored on a server possessing a unique address which is called IP. The IP-address consists of a series of numbers, for example 62.219.12.179. The domain address forwards the visitors to your website by means of translating the domain name into the IP. This process is performed with the help of DNS servers.

When searching for a domain name, the search engine addresses the database containing all registered domain names and, only in case the domain name is vacant, it is available for purchase. This mechanism is aimed to prevent domain name duplication.

Tips for Choosing a Domain Name

The process of choosing a domain name requires thought, as this name will represent and brand your business. Think of your domain as if it were a real location to open your office in. A good business in a bad place will not be a success, as well as a website with a long, cumbersome and hard to memorize domain name.

It is recommended to consider the following points before choosing a domain name:

Make sure the name perfectly fits the contents of the website.
The domain name should be as short and catchy as possible – both by sight and by ear. Each additional character is an obstacle your potential clients will face.
It's important to keep in mind that changing a name after a long-term activity might be a problem, because your longstanding visitors are already accustomed to the current address.
Try to avoid foreign words that cannot be transliterated into English in an unambiguous manner. For example, “Hanukkah” or “Chanukah”.
It is advised to fit your website's TLD to its target market, i.e. if you are aiming at the international market, a domain name with regional endings like co.uk will not suit you.
You may shorten your domain name by substituting full words with their shortened counterparts: U instead of You, 4 instead of for, etc.

Pay Attention!

In case you have chosen an international domain and your target market is abroad, it is worth considering buying the same domain name with regional endings referring to different countries. If you ever decide to launch a separate website for each country, the domain name will already be yours, which may spare you from long and unnecessary negotiations with other owners that can cost you a lot and hinder your progress.
In addition, if your desired name ending in .com is already occupied, you had better give up the name, but not the ending, because it is the most popular one among other international top level domains.

If you choose a regional or national domain, it is recommended to acquire the same domain name with an international ending as well. This will prevent confusion, in case a visitor mistakenly types in .com instead of co.uk. Besides, if your domain name with a different ending remains vacant, it can be abused by your competitors.

Remember! Good domains are like successful real estate – they're quickly bought up and grow more expensive with the demand increase. So, if you have found the domain, order it right now, before it is too late!