Do you have your own domain name for your blog?
Stacie recently set up her blog as SimplyStacie.net. I haven’t taken that step yet, I’m still KellysLuckyYou.blogspot.com but I have purchased my name and intend to switch over sometime after Build A Beautiful Blog Week is over.
Why purchase your own domain?
One reason is for the initial impression of your blog. Having your own “dot-com” or dot-net” will instantly give your blog a more professional appearance and improved credibility.
A second reason is that it is easier to remember and people can find you faster. We all hope that people will remember our blog name, but the “blogspot” can be difficult and make non-bloggers eyes glaze over.
When you have your own domain name, you can also have your own email address. For example, you can have Kelly@KellysLuckyYou.com instead of a hotmail or gmail account.
How much does it cost?
Buying a domain for your blog is easy and if the name you want is available, it is cheap to do. I was pleasantly surprised when I found out just how little it cost! When Stacie went to buy hers, the .com was already taken, so she chose the .net. I thought for sure it would be some big expensive process, but nope it’s not. You don’t have to set it up on your blog until you are ready.
Now that we have you convinced, where do you go to buy a domain name?
Stacie recently polled her Facebook Page and asked where other bloggers bought their domains and these are some of the spots they said to check out:
Netfirms (This is where Stacie bought her domain.)
Domain.com
Godaddy
Basic Networks
Dreamhost (This is where I bought mine)
Bluehost
Blogger
The prices change and they offer specials, so if you are looking for the best deal, it’s worth it to shop around.
If you have your own domain, where did you buy yours?