Preferred Domain Extensions

Hello. First post here.

I am looking to start a blog based on two niches that I'm passionate about. I was wondering if domain extensions actually matter in terms of ranking and appeal to visitors? I have a domain I'm looking at that has a ".org" available which I think should be fine.

Also, I'm quite new to terms in the world of internet marketing as I am just stepping foot inside with this blog. Are there any tips one might want to share? Just general tips on how to get a blog running when it's brand new, such as with plugins (if necessary). I'm not looking for any tips on how I should monetize and make money as I do have an idea for that which I'd like to implement if my blog actually gets moving.

I'm looking to spend at least a couple of months to years of work to make this really successful. I plan to utilize this website LONG term, as long as I can actually.

Any tips or even encouragement is greatly appreciated!

Since you plan to build on this site for years to come, I would highly recommend getting a .com if possible. It is by far the most widely used extension, and it carries more weight and credibility. It is best for branding because most consumers perceive it as legitimate and safe. In terms of ranking, it doesn't really matter according to google, and most people consider org/net the best options after .com, and there are many popular sites with these extensions too. New extensions like .club, .guru, .asia, .clothing, etc. have yet to gain much traction.

Although it often seems like all ?good? .coms are taken, there are still good ones available. It does take a lot of searching and creativity to discover them, and you might need to spend several days on it. It feels great when you ?discover? a good .com though!

Try adding these prefixes and suffixes to your niche/name and see if any of them work as a domain name: http://www.dailyblogtips.com/200-prefixes-and-suffixes-for-domain-names/

Lean domain search (http://www.leandomainsearch.com) also has compiled a list of the 5000 most commonly used domain suffixes and prefixes. They have a search engine which is handy, as it checks your search together with the suffixes/prefixes, and checks whether they are available to be registered as a domain. A lot of them won?t make sense, but some will work well with your niche (the less competitive niche, the better results you usually get).

I always check available .com domains at whoisrequest.org, to see their past registration history. Lots of the domains I have registered recently have been registered for 10-12 years, and dropped just recently, without ever having a site on them. I guess people parked them and have been unable to sell them, and eventually gave up. I find that nearly all good domains I find recently have this kind of past registration history, so there are probably good recently dropped domains in your niche too.

As for registrar I would recommend 1. namesilo 2. namecheap 3. internetbs. Stay away from godaddy. It is also a good idea to keep your registrar and your host separate.

It seems I'm a bit limited to what I can say since I'm new here.

I will be looking into the sites you posted, but I may just stick with the one I have in mind since it fits with my niches almost perfectly.

Also, can't I use Wordpress as a registrar by just making my own URL and paying a yearly fee instead? Since mine is a blog, not a website.. Not sure if it matters.

Do you mean registering a .org at wordpress.com, and having wordpress as both your registrar and host? It is possible, but hardly reccomended. You will have a lot more control over your web property if you register the domain at another registrar and self-host it. The wordpress CMS is free, and most hosts have something called softaculous that installs wordpress automatically for you.

As you're planning to maintain this site for a long term, I suggest you to install an SSL on your site so your pages are served from a secured https connection. Your hosting company will do it for you. Google recently announced that site's using ssl are given a little boost in the SERPs so it's easier for you to leverage that especially when you're starting out. It doesn't matter if it's a blog or website. Wordpress is a complete CMS with tons of goodies and can extend endlessly with plugins.

I wish you all the very best on this journey to build an Authority in the next 2 years. If you need any help/support, add me on Skype : FBGuru.

Go for dot com and use the https extension - so from day one you can rank well.

I agree with first answer by Jet Black -
since it's your first experience, it is advisable to go with .com or .org extension.

I think I'll have to do some more research with making a website, haha.

But thank you for all the input. I will probably take the .org domain available I had in mind though.