Mosaic Web Designs » Domain Names

Web Hosting & Domain Registration Review: Yahoo Small Business

admin — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 15:05:05 +0000

Summary
Do you Yahoo? More and more people are jumping on the Yahoo! bandwagon. And with their wide selection of product offerings – and proven track record – Yahoo is quickly becoming one of the most popular choices for web services.

Web Hosting

Yahoo! makes it easy to get your first website up and running. They offer easy web site builder software to help the non-technical person build a good-looking web site. You can create your own design from scratch or select one of several hundred pre-made templates. Their service is reliable with minimal downtime or disruptions. The user control panel is simple to use. You can monitor basic web statistics. And they are very price competitive with packages starting at just $8.96 / month. You won’t break the bank with those prices, that’s for sure. And if you are interested in starting a blog, they make it easy to set up. Yahoo! Web Hosting is a low-risk way to start a new web site and to continue to maintain throughout the years.

Ready to sign-up? Learn more about Web Hosting from Yahoo! Web Hosting …

Domain Names
Yahoo! is very competitive in the domain name registry market, especially when you package your domain name with other services such as web hosting. Included with the purchase of a domain: the name (of course), 24 hour customer support, easy-to-use control panel for updating things such as the DNS, a starter web page at no additional charge, domain forwarding, and a few other nice-to-have features.

E-commerce
So you’ve been meaning to start an online store to sell that great product. But you get stuck when it comes to making it happen. Don’t wait any longer….. start your online store using Yahoo’s merchant solutions. They take all the pain out of setting up your e-commerce. And packages start at just $39.95 / month. Included with your monthly fee: shopping cart you can customize, shipping tools, a catalog manager, sales reporting tools, online payments (you’ll still have to set up a PayPal or merchant account), an assortment of marketing tools, 24 hour customer support, and just about anything else you will need to start selling on the web.

Wrap-up
When you are ready to take the first step to getting a domain, setting up your hosting service, and / or forging into the world of ecommerce, visit Yahoo! Small Business for simple, affordable, and effective solutions! Learn more…

Web Hosting Review: ICDSoft

admin — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 14:59:54 +0000

Summary

We have used the services of ICDSoft since 2001. In addition to the several web sites we host with ICDSoft, many of our clients use the service as well. ICDSoft services include web hosting, web mail, and domain name registration. If you want to set up a simple web site that does not require start-up fees or a big monthly price tag, ICD Soft is the way to go. You get a solid, reliable product without spending a lot of money.

Strengths:
-Affordable
-Reliable
-Unsurpassed customer service
-Easy-to-use admin panel

Weaknesses:
-No website building tools are included
-May not be the best choice for complex web sites

Affordable
You can host your web site for only $5 per month! We still haven’t figured out how they do it….. this is just a great price for everything you get in return.

Included with your $5/month fee is an unlimited number of email accounts accessible via webmail, ample storage space for a personal or small business web site (you can also upgrade to 3x as much storage space for $10 per month), basic site statistics, and 24 x 7 tech support. There’s a long list of other amenities, but those are the key ones to look for. You can also register your domain name with ICDSoft for only $5 at the same time you sign up for your hosting account.

So for $65, you can get your site up and running for 1 year, including domain name, with ICDSoft. And currently, renewals are $60 per year, so you won’t get sticker shock after the first 12 months are up.

If you run multiple web sites, additional plans are offered at 50% off.

Reliable
Our web sites have experienced minimal downtime with ICDSoft. In fact, we can’t recall the last time our sites were down! We have worked with large-scale clients who pay thousands of dollars per month for web hosting that have more downtime than that. And as mentioned earlier, we just don’t know how they do it….

Unsurpassed Customer Service
On the few occasions when we have required tech support or had a quick question on how to access one of the many web tools provided with the service, we have been blown away by the quick and helpful response. ICDSoft guarantess a 1 hour response to questions. But all of our inquiries have been answered in about 5 minutes using their online “live” support feature. Truly impressive.

ICDSoft offers a 30-day money back guarantee. So if for some odd reason you aren’t satisfied, you can get your money back.

No website building tools are included

If you plan to build a simple website using site builder tools, checkout one of our other recommended web hosts. ICDSoft does not include any easy website tools. You will need to use HTML and software such as Dreamweaver to create your website.

May not be the best choice for complex web sites

If your site requires a specific e-commerce package, content management system, or other proprietary software, ICDSoft may not be the choice for you. Contact ICD Soft directly for additional information regarding your specific requirements.

How to Sign-up
Ready to sign-up? It’s a very simple process. Visit the ICDSoft Web Site and click the “order now” link. Or select the “full hosting details” link to learn more about the services offered.

Where Should I Register My Domain Name?

admin — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 15:59:37 +0000

There are literally thousands of place where you can register your website domain name. And it really does not make all that much difference, as long as you register the domain through someone reputable.

So where do we suggest you register your domain name?

GoDaddy.com
We register all of our domains through www.GoDaddy.com because they are one of the least expensive services available and they provide an easy-to-use admin panel for managing all of your domains.
(Note: The GoDaddy website is a “busy” website and tries to upsell products. But if you can get past that, it’s really the best price going – for domain names, web hosting services, and other products.)

»Register your domain name at GoDaddy.com

Network Solutions
Network Solutions has been around for a long time and has established a favorable reputation. They cost slightly more than GoDaddy for domain name registration. But if you are more comfortable with their reputation and don’t mind paying a tad higher price for a more professional service, then by all means… do it.

»Register your domain name at Network Solutions

Insider tip:

You can usually save money if you register your domain name at the same time you sign up for a web hosting provider. Many web hosting services will throw the domain name in for free or at a very low cost.

What is a Domain Name?

admin — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 17:39:03 +0000

A domain name is the name of a website. A domain name is also called a URL or an IP address. Examples of recognizable domain names are www.google.com, www.yahoo.com, and www.amazon.com. You will notice that all 3 of the examples end in “.com”. But domain names can also use other extensions, such as .org, .info, .net, or .us.

So what do all those extensions mean anyway?
In the beginning, there were only a few domain name extensions in use:

.com was for commercial organizations
.net for network service providers
.org for not-for-profit organizations

But with the rapid growth of the World Wide Web, more and more extensions began popping up. You can use any of these extensions, such as .biz, .info, or .us. But if you plan to go online with a for-profit business, we recommend using the .com extension whenever possible. It’s just more recognizable and memorable than all those others.

A good domain name will be descriptive, easy to remember, and easy to spell. Try to keep the name as short as possible. But it’s better to select a name that is descriptive, even if that means the name may be a little bit longer.

How Much Does It Cost To Register A Domain Name?

admin — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 17:29:44 +0000

Like all things in a competitive marketplace, there isn’t a single purchase price for domain names. If you register only the domain name with no associated services, such as web hosting or private registration, you will pay anywhere from $10 – $35 / year.

If you purchase additional services with your domain name, often times you can throw the domain name in for free.

Insider tip:
Search engines look favorably upon domain names that are registered for long-term. So if you are serious about your business and want to improve your chances of ranking higher in search engines, register your domain name for 5 years or longer. You’ll also save a little bit of money when you register for a longer period of time.