{"id":20072,"date":"2024-05-13T14:00:56","date_gmt":"2024-05-13T12:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/?p=20072"},"modified":"2024-05-13T15:07:18","modified_gmt":"2024-05-13T13:07:18","slug":"what-to-do-if-your-preferred-domain-name-is-taken","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/what-to-do-if-your-preferred-domain-name-is-taken\/","title":{"rendered":"What to Do If Your Preferred Domain Name Is Taken"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\"><p>[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]There are billions upon billions of possible domain names. The number of existing domain names is in the hundreds of millions. What are the chances to have your preferred domain name taken when you go to the registrar? Math would say slim.<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Experience, however, proves otherwise. Coming up with a combination of letters and numbers is one thing. Making sure the combination produces a good domain name is a completely different process. There are simply not that many good ones to choose from.<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]This is exactly why it\u2019s possible that, when <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/what-is-a-domain-name\/\">checking domain names<\/a>, you\u2019ll find that someone has already registered your top picks. These things happen. We\u2019ll show you, however, what your options are if it happens to you.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]You\u2019ll read about:<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;22px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#check-if-domain-name-is-available\">How to Check If a Domain Name Is Available<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;5px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#what-to-do-if-you-want-to-keep-the-name\">What to Do If You Want to Keep the Name<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;5px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#pick-an-alternative\">No Luck? Pick an Alternative<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"check-if-domain-name-is-available\"><\/a>How to Check If a Domain Name Is Available<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;24px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder    \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"554\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/How-to-Check-If-a-Domain-Name-Is-Available.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"How to Check If a Domain Name Is Available\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/How-to-Check-If-a-Domain-Name-Is-Available.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/How-to-Check-If-a-Domain-Name-Is-Available-300x172.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/How-to-Check-If-a-Domain-Name-Is-Available-768x439.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/How-to-Check-If-a-Domain-Name-Is-Available-620x354.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]When you want to create a website and you\u2019re trying to figure out that perfect name for it, you\u2019d be smart to come up with a couple of ideas in case one of them is already taken.<strong> You can figure out the name is taken during the brainstorming or research process if you simply type the domain name into your browser\u2019s address bar and press enter.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Three things can happen. <strong>You can visit a website<\/strong>, which means that your domain name is taken. <strong>You can be directed to an error page<\/strong>, which likely means your domain name is free for you to grab. Finally, <strong>you can be served a sales page asking you to contact whoever owns the domain name and has put it up for sale.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]If you worry that visiting an unknown website poses a security risk, you can check website availability at websites such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whois.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Whois.com<\/a>, a tool you might want to remember because we\u2019ll come back to it in a moment or two. <strong>Also, some hosting providers that work as registrars might offer you to look up the domain name of your choosing online without going to the website.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]In the case of bad news, which can be any news except that your preferred domain name is free to use, you can continue further in two ways. <strong>You can either do whatever you can to keep the name, or you can find hacks or alternatives that might work.<\/strong> Let\u2019s explore both options a little bit.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;80px&#8221;][vc_widget_sidebar sidebar_id=&#8221;new-top-picks-banner&#8221;][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;81px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"what-to-do-if-you-want-to-keep-the-name\"><\/a>What to Do If You Want to Keep the Name?<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;24px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder    \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"553\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/What-to-Do-If-You-Want-to-Keep-the-Name.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"What to Do If You Want to Keep the Name\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/What-to-Do-If-You-Want-to-Keep-the-Name.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/What-to-Do-If-You-Want-to-Keep-the-Name-300x171.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/What-to-Do-If-You-Want-to-Keep-the-Name-768x438.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/What-to-Do-If-You-Want-to-Keep-the-Name-620x354.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]When you want to use a domain name that is already taken, your first course of action would be to figure out who owns it. Head back over to Whois.com and type in the address. <strong>If the contact information of the owner is available \u2013 if it\u2019s not made private \u2013 you\u2019ll be able to see it and contact the owner directly.<\/strong> If not, maybe the website itself will have some contact information about the seller.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;72px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"qodef-h5\">How to Handle the Purchase of a Second-Hand Domain Name<\/h3>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]If they\u2019re willing to sell \u2013 great, you only have to navigate buying a domain name from a person or company you\u2019ve only ever met online. <strong>Usually, this means using services that will help you make the exchange.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]A service like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.escrow.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Escrow<\/a> can help. You and the seller agree on the terms and then you put your money in escrow at Escrow. <strong>The seller then transfers the domain name to you \u2013 something every registrar has a procedure for, you check and approve the domain name, and they get the money.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;72px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"qodef-h5\">What to Do if You Can\u2019t Purchase the Website?<\/h3>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Things get more complicated if they\u2019re not willing to sell. In that case, you might try to get your lawyers involved and sue the owner for cybersquatting. Depending on how it\u2019s handled legally in your country, <strong>you might be able to win the suit, but only if you prove that they\u2019ve infringed on your trademark, or are generally sitting on the domain name with bad intent.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]If you don\u2019t want to get your lawyers involved, or if you simply can\u2019t find out who the owner is, <strong>you can try purchasing the domain name with an alternative TLD<\/strong>. So instead of .com \u2013 we\u2019ll suppose you went straight for it, as you always should \u2013 you can try buying the .org or .net version of the website. <strong>Keep in mind, however, that this can lead to some confusion and maybe even brand dilution.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Also keep in mind that people trust .com domains more than any other. A lot of country code TLDs are perceived as spammy (this is particularly the case with .cn and .ru). But then, there are country codes like .me that can be perfect for certain brands. TLDs like .tv are great for businesses from the entertainment, video or gaming industry. Extensions like .net, .tech and .store are also popular, trusted and can make a great fit for a variety of businesses.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]<strong>In some cases, you might even manage to split your domain name into two and use the second half as the top-level domain.<\/strong> So, for example, you can get examp.le instead of example.com. Again, this might cause some confusion and it might work better if the domain name is made up of two words.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"pick-an-alternative\"><\/a>No Luck? Pick an Alternative<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;24px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder    \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"553\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/What-to-Do-If-You-Want-to-Change-the-Name.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"What to Do If You Want to Change the Name\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/What-to-Do-If-You-Want-to-Change-the-Name.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/What-to-Do-If-You-Want-to-Change-the-Name-300x171.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/What-to-Do-If-You-Want-to-Change-the-Name-768x438.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/What-to-Do-If-You-Want-to-Change-the-Name-620x354.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]<strong>For one reason or another, you can also decide to avoid the hustle of figuring out how to get the perfect name and choose an alternative.<\/strong> This can be an exceedingly difficult decision if the domain name you wanted is your brand name, too, but these things happen often, and brands find ways to work around them.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]You don\u2019t want to use a name that has absolutely nothing to do with your business, blog, or whatever you tried to register. There still has to be some kind of connection to the original idea.<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;72px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"qodef-h5\">Expand the Original Domain Name<\/h3>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]There are certain words you can add to the original domain name that wouldn\u2019t distract from its meaning \u2013 they might even serve to amplify it. <strong>The exact thing you can add will vary based on the domain name, the type of business, the industry, and a whole lot of other factors.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]But let\u2019s say your domain name of choice was \u201csomething.\u201d <strong>You can expand the domain name by adding an appropriate verb<\/strong>, such as \u201cdosomething\u201d or \u201cbuysomething\u201d or \u201creadsomething\u201d and \u201cmakesomething.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;72px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"qodef-h5\">Use Related Words<\/h3>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<strong>There are also several kinds of related words that might work as a domain name instead of your brand or business name.<\/strong> Again, these will work better for some brands and businesses than others, but they still might be worth a shot.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]<strong>You can, for example, use a keyword instead of the brand name.<\/strong> So instead of \u201csomething\u201d you can use \u201cbeststoreinlondon,\u201d for example, or \u201corlandoplumber.\u201d <strong>In this case, the name of your business doesn\u2019t have to match the name of the domain.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]<strong>If there\u2019s a way to make a word out of the original domain name that\u2019s similar and brandable, you might also try to do that.<\/strong> So, for a magazine that\u2019s called \u201csomething,\u201d the website can have the domain name \u201csomethingians.\u201d You can let your imagination run wild, but you should <strong>always make sure that it ties somehow to the brand, business, product, or industry.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;72px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"qodef-h5\">Add Location to Name<\/h3>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]This is not a solution that can fit all brands or businesses, but it can work great for many. If you\u2019re looking for a domain name to start a website related to a business with physical locations, like a shop, a bar, a restaurant or a cafe, a local output of a big company or franchise, you can only benefit from adding the name of the city, country or neighborhood to the name. It is good for SEO and it is good for user experience since it provides more complete information than just the name.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]For instance, if you have a pet store named Paws, and it\u2019s located in Prague, and paws dot com is, as expected, taken, you can go for pawsprague dot com, or even pawsinprague.<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]It\u2019s even easier if you\u2019re operating in an entire country or region &#8211; pawseurope or pawsgreece dot com are quite solid domain names.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;72px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"qodef-h5\">Look Into Domain Hacking Options<\/h3>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Although it sounds like something not quite lawful or right (and it shouldn\u2019t be confused with domain hijacking), domain hacking is actually a legitimate practice. It consists of creating a domain name that\u2019s a combination of a word, phrase or name, and the extension, ie. of the adjacent levels of the domain name, to create a name that suggests a word. An example will explain it better &#8211; for instance, the WordPress founder Matt Mullenweg has a blog with the domain name www.ma.tt. The .tt extension is the official ccTLD of Trinidad and Tobago. Clever, right?[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]The Montenegro ccTLD .me is a particularly productive one, and a lot of brands already use it: even Facebook has an URL version fb.me, then there\u2019s WordPress with wp.me that redirects to wordpress.com, and a particularly smart one is ti.me, used by the famous news magazine. [\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Another good one is the top level country code TLD for Lybia: .ly. It\u2019s particularly popular with lifestyle, fashion and cosmetics brands, but in a lot of other industries, too &#8211; just think of bit.ly. If you\u2019re based in the US, but even if you\u2019re not, you could also look into .us, to create a domain nam consisting of an adjective ending in -ous, like delicious, righteous, gorgeous, etc.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\">Let\u2019s Wrap It Up!<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Domain names are important, and you needn\u2019t look further than the reseller industry for proof. When you\u2019re choosing yours, make sure you have a couple of alternatives. If you go to the registrar determined to get one name and it turns out to be taken, you can end up signing yourself up for an unpleasant and maybe even expensive ride. It might be much better to show some flexibility \u2013 something that even big brands had to do when faced with a domain sitter who wouldn\u2019t budge.<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Has your preferred domain name been taken? Don&#8217;t worry &#8211; we&#8217;ll show you a couple of things you can do to either get your name or pick a good alternative.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9295,"featured_media":20136,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[59,4],"class_list":["post-20072","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-resources","tag-hosting","tag-tips"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20072","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9295"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20072"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20072\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20136"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20072"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20072"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20072"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}