As with any business or household, websites require an address (called a domain name - eg woolworths.com.au) so people can find them easily and refer others to them.   

We all understand how street addresses work, but out in cyber-space the rules are different. There are no streets containing houses and buildings organised in neat, sequential rows so a domain name points to where the website is located (or hosted) and can indicate the name of the business.   

The domain name: freshfruitmart.com.au  indicates that the business name is Fresh Fruit Mart, that it is a company (.com) and the website is located in Australia (.au)  

There are two main types of domain name:

1. Domain names that end in .com, .net, .biz etc. These are available for use by anyone around the world and are generally referred to as 'global domain names'. You can find out more about global domain names by visiting www.icann.org (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers is the international policy authority for domain names).
2. Domain names that end with a 'country extension' such as com.au, org.au, net.au.  In Australia this is referred to as the '.au domain space' and is administered by .au Domain Administration Ltd (auDA).  

What can I have as my domain name?

There is a common misconception that because you already have a company or business name, or a registered trade mark, you have an automatic right to register a corresponding domain name. This is not the case. No-one has an automatic right to a domain name. Domain names are licensed on a "first come, first served" basis to eligible applicants.   

Some organisations own a number of brands or products which they want to represent individually and separately on the Web. This requires registering a domain name for each of the brands and establishing separate websites. The sites can all sit on the same host computer (ie web server) but this will be invisible to the user who will consider the sites, should they even know that multiple sites exist, as quite separate.  

Checklist for choosing a domain name

The following questions will help guide you in choosing the most appropriate domain name for your website:

• Would average users guess the domain name without recourse to search engines? 
• Does the domain name support the branding of the organisation? 
• Does the domain name stand on its own and convey meaning - if it was the only thing on a poster or billboard would the public be able to guess the type of site and its content?
• If an acronym or abbreviation has been used, does it make sense to the target audience?
• Has the most appropriate and obvious organisation type (or types) been chosen - eg .com or .biz?
• Is the name too long or awkward to type or remember?
• Have additional domain names been considered that users may guess and that should be registered along with the preferred domain name - eg freshfruitmart.com.au & freshfruitmart.com?  

The cost of registering varies, depending on the type of domain you choose, the registration period, and the services included with your registration -  all of which vary between registrars and resellers, as do the  terms and conditions offered.  Visit the .au Domain Administration Ltd website, http://www.auda.org.au for links to registrars and resellers, to confirm current fees and options.  

What to do

Before registering your domain name yourself, or having your ISP do it for you, do some background research and preparation using these sources:

• Refer to the set of guidelines designed by .au Domain Administration Ltd to help you develop your domain name: http://www.auda.org.au

• For a detailed explanation of domain names download a brochure prepared by DCITA, Staking your claim on the Web: http://www.dcita.gov.au/communications_and_technology/publications_and_reports/2003/03/staking_claim 

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