I only just recently purchased my full name as a domain name (yourname.com, so if my full name is Jessica Smith, that would mean I purchased jessicasmith.com). For a long time, I didn’t understand the point. My business, obviously, is set up under dinosaurstew.com, so I didn’t really see why I needed myname.com as well. However, I ended up wanting my own personal email address of me@myname.com, so I purchased it and hooked it up. Here are some reasons why you should consider purchasing yourname.com.
It’s Cheap
Domains are super inexpensive to purchase. Usually, you can pick one up for around $12 per year. GoDaddy* and Namecheap.com are two places you can pick up a domain on the cheap.
It Gives You Control
Owning yourname.com gives you control over what shows up when someone searches your name in Google. A search engine is likely going to weigh a domain name pretty heavily, so it’s very possible that the first result that someone sees when they Google “Your Name” is going to be yourname.com. This is super helpful in the event that A) the other people who share your name are low-life scum or B) you are low-life scum yourself and are just trying to fake the funk. Having yourname.com show up in the search results will push those yucky ones down. They will still be there, but they won’t be as prominent as before.
It Protects You From Jerks
Anyone can purchase any domain name they want (as long as it’s available). That means, if I wasn’t such a sweetie, I could totally get revenge on an ex-boyfriend by purchasing hisname.com and turning it into an unsavory sort of website. There are also people out there who will purchase a whole bunch of domain names with the hope of selling it to you when you really need it — for a huge, inflated price, of course.
You Can Get a Sweet, Professional Email Address
If you purchase the domain name, you can easily set up an email address that looks pretty sweet. Sure, a gmail or hotmail e-mail address doesn’t have to be unprofessional, but doesn’t something like polly@pollypocket.com have such a better ring to it than pollypocket1987@gmail.com? Yup!
So. Do it! Do it now! Go register that yourname.com domain name and thank me later! Stay tuned for another riveting post on cool things you can do with yourname.com and how you can set up your you@yourname.com email to work with Gmail!
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Cassie says
3/25/16 at 9:33 amAs always, this is such excellent information! I never knew someone could purchase my name and possibly cause me damage down the road. Thanks Dinosaur Stew!!!!
Ashley says
3/25/16 at 10:38 amYay, glad we could teach you something new today! 🙂
Vikas Singh says
3/27/16 at 12:03 pmHello Ashley,
Nice article. I would love to read more. Keep writing. 🙂
Sarah Wilson says
9/30/16 at 4:53 pmAh! That ship sailed for Sarah Wilsons of the world a long time ago.
It’s amazing to be such a character – unique, quirky, on-of-a-kind – and yet one of so many Sarah Wilsons.
Back in my acting days, I would have had to be some other name entirely because of the Sarah Wilson’s already SAG members.
I’ve tried just about every conceivable option that is marketable, and even pondered a little domain name sniping at expiration time, but…
I’ve made peace with it.
Ashley says
9/30/16 at 7:15 pmAhhh bummer! Well hey, on the bright side, it gives you a good reason to come up with a totally creative, whimsical name like mine! 🙂