After you sign up for Microsoft Office Live Small Business, you can purchase a custom domain name. A custom domain name is a unique name that identifies your Web site. For example, if you own a coffee shop called Fourth Coffee, you might choose to purchase the domain name fourthcoffee.com. You can search for a new domain name that reflects your business or company name, and purchase that name through Office Live Small Business.

This topic provides instructions for purchasing a new domain name and tips for choosing a new domain name through Office Live Small Business. For information about redirecting a domain name that you already own to your Office Live Small Business Web site, see Redirect your domain name to Office Live Small Business. For information about how to renew a custom domain, see Renew your domain name registration.

 Important   Each Office Live Small Business account is associated with one Web site. If you want to purchase a custom domain name for a second Web site that is not related to the first, you must create a new Office Live Small Business account.

• Purchase a domain name

• Learn how to choose a domain name

Purchase a domain name

 Note   Before you purchase a domain name, see the Office Live Small Business Worldwide page to check the countries/regions where Office Live Small Business is available. To learn which Office Live Small Business features are available in a specific country, click the link for that country/region.

1. On the Office Live Small Business Home page, at the top, click More, and then click Domain Manager.
2. On the Domain Manager page, click Purchase additional domains.
3. In the Domain name box, type the domain name that you want to use, select the domain suffix (for example, .com, .org, .info, or .net) from the list, and then click Check availability.

    Note   The annual cost of purchasing a new domain name is listed on this page, next to the Domain name box.

4. If the domain name is not available, you are asked to choose a different domain name. Type a different domain name or choose a different suffix, and then click Check availability.
5. If the domain name is available, make sure that it is spelled the way you want it to appear, and then click Confirm.

 Important   The first custom domain purchased through or redirected to Office Live Small Business is automatically designated as your primary domain name. If you purchase another domain name that you want as the primary domain name that customers use, you must set it to be your primary domain. You can purchase additional domain names to send traffic to your primary domain.

 Top of Page

Learn how to choose a domain name

Technology wizards have made it easier than ever for small businesses to get on the Web. With services like Office Live Small Business, for example, you can have a full-featured Web site up and running in a couple of hours. What remains a challenge, however, is coming up with a good domain name — the Internet identifier that not only serves as your Web site address but that also says a lot about your business.

For example, if you owned and operated a coffee shop called Fourth Coffee, you might settle for using fourthcoffee.com as your domain name. But if Fourth Coffee actually specializes in a particular brand of coffee, a more specific name that incorporates related terms might drive more relevant search engine traffic your way.

So think carefully when choosing your domain name. It not only points people to your Web site, but it also becomes powerful part of your business identity and brand. And also be prepared to have more than one idea for a name. There's a good chance that your first name choice is not available because another person has already claimed it.

Tips for choosing your domain name

• Choose a short, memorable domain name. It is easier for your customers to recall and is easier to display on your logos, business cards, and billboards.
• When selecting your domain name, choose one or two words that are easy to spell. Also, before purchasing your domain name, make sure that the spelling is correct and that the domain name you specified is what you want.
• Try to avoid using numbers and hyphens in your domain name. If you purchase the name "my-company23.com," you will have to tell people that your domain name is "my hyphen company twenty-three dot com." It is easier for people to remember your domain name if it is short and simple.
• Choose a domain name that relates to your business or organization. Choosing a name that is related to your business makes it easier for your Web site visitors to remember the URL.
• The domain name can contain only letters, numbers, and hyphens; it must consist of 3 to 40 characters and begin and end with a number or letter. Spaces are not allowed.
• When you are securing or buying domain names, you may want to buy more than one. Consider buying a name that contains keywords that capture type-in traffic. Type-in traffic refers to users who reach sites by typing keywords into the address bar of their Web browser instead of using a keyword search on a search engine. Also consider buying the domain names that are variations of your Web site domain name or a misspelled version of it. You can redirect users to your site with these additional names.

 Top of Page