What's in a domain name? A lot more than you might think. Your domain name can be your first impression, your face to the outside world, and your new marketing plan. Learn more about what domain names are, why you should take the time to choose a good one for yourself, and how to go about it.

What is a domain name?
A domain name is an address for the Internet. It helps people find your web site. Just as homes and businesses have street addresses, all web sites have domain names. www.msnbc.com is an example of a domain name.

A domain name is made up of two parts, typically preceded by www. Let's use msnbc.com as an example:

• The first part, msnbc, is a unique name that represents the web site.
• The second part, com, is the extension, and stands for "commercial." There are many extensions available, though .com, .net, .biz, .info, and .us are the most popular extensions in the United States.

A domain name can be any combination of letters and/or numbers up to 63 characters. There are no spaces in a domain name but you can put a dash.