Info Sheet : What is a URL?

Do I need one and how do I get one?
A URL is a Uniform Resource Locator, for example: http://www.yourname.com.au. It is the address of where your website is stored and the address that lets people view or link to your site. In simple terms a URL is a domain name. If you want a business website, you will need one.

URL = Uniform Resource Locator or DOMAIN NAME

What to call it?
The first step is to pick a name that is synonymous with your business- something people will assume it to be if they are ever looking for you online (obscenities, place names and names of goods or services will not be permitted). Keep it short and make sure it is easy to spell. Once this is decided, do a search to see if the name is still available (this can be done at http://www.auda.org.au/) or you can ask Sue or Peter at Smartype to help you.

.com, .com.au, .org or .net?
Simply using the .com extension will lead most people to assume you are either an American or International business. For organisations with the majority of their operations and clients in Australia, it is recommended you purchase the .com.au extension. This tells the world you are an Australian business (com = commercial, au = Australia) and will be the extension most Australians assume you have (unless they know otherwise). If you have the budget, it may also be worth purchasing the .com too, especially if you have clients in Australia and overseas. This can also impact on your search engine rankings, moving your website closer to the top of a geographic search. For example, an potential American client will search www.google.com or www.yahoo.com whereas a potential Australian client may search www.google.com.au or www.yahoo.com.au or www.ninemsn.com.au it is our understanding that you may rank better in the .com.au search if you have a .com.au domain name.

Unless the .com.au and .com versions of the name you had your heart set on are taken, avoid the .org, .net, .tv, .cc, .ws extensions as they are nowhere near as popular.

How do I purchase a domain [url]?

Most hosting companies and specialised domain name companies who online can sell you a domain, just be careful to choose one that is recommened by AUDA, the Australian Domain Name Administrator, for a list of domain name registrars click here. Smartype is a Channel Partner with MelbourneIT and we are licensed to sell domain names, please email domains@smartype.com.au with your enquiry or telephone us on 1300 762 786.

You can purchase the domain in real time with a credit card, just make sure that they do not keep your credit card details on file for further automatic deductions.

Registering a .com.au domain name will set you back between $70-$140 for 2 years [depending on what deals are being done at the time]. The domain name extension .com.au cannot be purchased for any less than 2 years. Confirmation will generally take 2 days, after which time you will be the owner of www.yourname.com.au for the next 2 years. Smartype will notify you 1 month before your name expires. You must also supply an ABN or business registration number. This is not necessary for a .com domain.

The .com extension can be purchased in one year blocks and will cost you from $25 per year for the registration.

Buyer beware!

• Check registrant details of your domain are your details
• Check registrant and administration email address is your email address
• Do not allow the domain name supplier to keep your credit card on file for automatic deductions
• Keep the receipt of payment handy forever! You will need to produce this if there is ever a dispute regarding your domain
• Make sure you receive the 'domain name key' and 'domain name password' when you purchase the domain and keep it handy

It is vital that you make sure that the domain name is registered in YOUR NAME, some not so ethical domain name suppliers will register the domain in their own name and you a left with a fight on your hands if you decide to change suppliers. The registration and registrant details should always be your own, especially check that the email address is your email address and that it is current.

Now you need somewhere to host it.

Horror Story

We have seen a few horror stories relating to domain names but two recent ones illustrate how careful you need to be when purchasing your domain. Domains are relatively inexpensive in the overall operating budget of a business, but extremely important once you come to rely on them.

The first story involves an organisation that were clever enough to own a generic domain name like www.saucepan.com [not the real domain] and they used it for quite a few years. It came time for them to update their website and they decided they did not want to do this with Mr Wolf [not real name] who originally built the site. He had become arrogant and slow to respond so they wanted to find a new supplier. When Mr Wolf caught wind of what was happening he immediately wrote to the organisation informing them that the domain name was registered in his name and they could not move it. He offered to sell it to them for many thousands of dollars. They declined and registered another, not quite so exciting domain name.

The second story involves an organisation who similarly wanted to redesign their website with another supplier. They had had their original website built with Mr Wolf's friend, Mr Snake [not real name]. Mr Snake gave the organisation a date that he would terminate his services. Mr Snake then became very unavailable and because the organisation did not have the passwords for their domain they could not move their domain without his help. Unfortunately Mr Snake had also registered their domain with a disreputable hosting company who joined him in making it difficult for the organisation. The organisation had to find their original purchase invoice for the domain, pay a fee to the hosting company, fill in many documents and go without email for 3 weeks before the matter was resolved.

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