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💻 Domains 101 for First-Time Founders From "What is a domain?" to "I just bought a perfect one" You’re building something, you’re excited — but your domain name can make or break your credibility. so, here's a guide for you: 1. What exactly is a domain? Think of your domain like a digital street address. example.com → Domain www.example.com/about → A specific page inside that domain Once you buy it, it's yours as long as you keep renewing it annually. 2. Where do you buy domains? From domain registrars — aka the online stores for domains. Popular, trusted options: Namecheap (great balance of price + UX) GoDaddy (popular but cluttered UI) Dynadot (clean & low pricing) Porkbun (excellent for quirky TLDs like .tech/.xyz) Squarespace Domains (took over Google Domains in 2023) Hostinger (domain+hosting) Search → Add to cart → Buy → Done. 3. What kind of domain should you buy? If your startup is called Zentra, you have choices: zentra.com → Best. Most credible. Likely expensive or taken. zentra.in → Great for India-focused products zentra.tech → Good if you're a SaaS, AI, or devtool zentra.xyz → Budget-friendly and trendy in web3/dev circles getzentra.com, tryzentra.com, zentraapp.com → Smart backup options zentrahq.com → Useful for B2B/startup products Avoid anything like zentra-biz.online or zentra1234.io — looks scammy, untrustworthy, and forgettable. 4. How much should a domain cost? .com: ₹600–₹1,200/year .in, .xyz, .tech: ₹300–₹900/year Premium domains: ₹10,000 to ₹10 lakh+ 💡 Pro Tip: If a domain looks too good to be available, it might be a premium or squatted. Always check pricing before getting attached. 5. The Secret Domain Hacks You Won’t Hear Often Use tools like: instantdomainsearch.com → Live search while you type namechk.com → Check domain + social handles lean domain search → .com-only ideas based on keywords whois.com → See who owns a domain (if it’s taken) Buy immediately if it feels right. Even a few minutes can change your luck. Domains get sniped fast. Use Porkbun or Freenom to explore alt-TLDs for side projects or MVPs. Buy multiple formats if you’re serious: zentra.com, zentra.in, zentra.tech, getzentra.com — protect your brand. Lock in social handles at the same time. Branding is stronger when domain and handles match. 6. What makes a great domain name? Use this checklist: ✅ Short (ideally 6–12 characters) ✅ Easy to spell & say ✅ No hyphens, numbers, weird punctuation ✅ No trademark conflicts (search TESS, Trademarkia, or Google) ✅ Available on all major socials ✅ No unfortunate slang in other languages ✅ Looks legit when you tell it to someone verbally 7. When your perfect domain is taken… You’ve got 3 paths: Tweak it — Add a prefix (get, use, try) or suffix (hq, app, labs) Buy it — Reach out via dan.com, sedo.com, or use WHOIS Pivot — Rename early. Better than sticking to something you’ll regret branding for years 8. Real Founder Case Studies Stripe → Started with getstripe.com, then paid a fortune for stripe.com Notion → Still uses notion.so — strong brand trumps .com Twitter → Originally twttr.com Calm → Went from calm.io to calm.com after funding Figma → Early MVP was figma.io — later moved to figma.com 9. Domain traps most founders fall into Using weird spellings to seem cool: skript, kwik, lyft — hard to search, hard to grow Choosing “cheap” TLDs that feel spammy — .online, .site, .biz rarely inspire trust Ignoring renewal dates — set auto-renew to avoid accidental expiry Sharing your idea on Twitter before securing the domain Buying a domain without checking social handles or trademarks 10. Final Domain Tips (Don’t Skip These) 👉 Keep a .txt file or Notion sheet of all your purchased domains and renewal dates 👉 Consider SSL (https) and email hosting bundled via Namecheap or similar — looks more pro 👉 Use Google Trends to check if your domain keyword is rising or dying 👉 If unsure, test with 5 strangers: Ask them to spell it after hearing it once 👉 Avoid regional slang or niche words that don’t scale globally Your Domain = Your First Impression It’s not just a name. It’s your: First trust marker First investor pitch detail First thing users will google First branding footprint on the internet Get it right once — and it’ll pay off for years. Get it wrong — and you’ll spend more fixing the mess later. Want a simple framework to choose? Perfect Domain = → Short → Clean → Easy to say → Feels like a brand → Looks real at first glance → .com (if you can) + a quirky alt (if you can't) if I missed out anything people should about domains , drop them in comments...