What to do if Your Domain Name is not Available

You’ve spent a lot of time coming up with the perfect domain name for your new website only to discover it is already taken.

In the following paragraphs we’ll discuss the options that are available to you when this happens. You may still be able to get your preferred domain name. Read on!

Is it for Sale?

If you discover the domain name you wanted is taken, go to the website to see if it really is an active website. Many people buy up popular domain names with the intent of reselling them so you may still have the option of buying it. It will be more expensive than registering a domain name that is readily available but if that particular name means a lot to you, it may be worth it. Even if the domain name is not actively for sale, you can still make an offer to the owner of the domain. If the website is active you may be able to contact the owner via a “contact us” link or you may be able to find their contact information by doing a “Whois” search. If it’s not for sale or the price is too high, though, there are other ways to get your preferred domain name.

Check the Expiration Date

Every domain name has an expiration date and there are companies that mine these expiration dates and then sell those lists to prospective clients. Sometimes, you can even get these lists for free if you subscribe to them. You can also check the Whois database for the expiration date. Sometimes, domain name holders forget to renew their domain name registration and accidently let it expire. If the domain name you want is already taken and expires, you may get lucky and be able to grab it up.

Use a Hyphen

Most people want to avoid hyphenating their domain name whenever possible but it is a viable option when your domain name is already taken. For example, if you had your heart set on the domain name abc123456.com and discovered it was already taken, you could still register abc-123456.com as long as it is available. There are many valuable websites whose domain name registration is hyphenated so it is an option you may consider.

Choose a Different Extension

Suppose abc123456.com is already taken but abc123456.net is available. In fact, at many of the domain name registration services, you will be able to search a domain name’s availability and you can see at a glance which extensions the domain name is available under. Be careful though because while you may be able to get the domain name you want, not all of the extensions are trafficked as well as the leading .com, .net, and .org extensions. It may be better to go with a slightly different domain name with a leading extension than it would be to stick to your original domain name with one of the lesser known extensions like .info or .biz. In addition, web surfers usually take the leading extensions more seriously and visit them far more often than they do the others.