Blogging: Why Every Blogger Must Get A Custom Domain

Many at time newbie bloggers are faced with the question , "Must I Get A Custom Domain Name?
Well, it's not compulsory, but it is necessary. You might not know the importance, but even if you don't have enough funds yet, why not go for the free ones?

Now what is a custom domain?

When you created your blog or website, it was bearing something like www.x.blogspot.com, www.x.wapka.com, www.x.wix.com, www.x.wordpress.com and so on depending on your hosting site.  Now, these names come with some restrictions and believe me, they are very huge. You can’t even monetize it and it is very non-professional. You can’t just approach a company and say, “hello, come and do some sponsored posts on www.x.bogspot.com”, they would just set you off the queue of thousands of other competitors. Even ad networks like AdSense would have a low rate of approving you, some would never.

Getting a custom domain name is the act of purchasing or getting a more pro name like www.x.net, www.x.com, www.x.ng, www.x.com.ng, www.x.tk, www.x.org, www.x.biz and so on. They are so many depending on your needs and budget and they are also very cheap.  Some like the www.x.tk are completely free, at least for the first year. You can get them from www.dot.tk. So if you don’t have enough funds yet, you can go for them. They are good but mostly, a normal domain name like .com is better.

Why must you get a custom domain name?

- You know that www.infoguideafrica.com sounds better than www.infoguideafrica.blogspot.com
- Adding a custom domain will help you sound more professional
- It is also a means of encouragement in blogging, since you have invested in it.
- Should you leave a hosting site like blogger, you still keep your traffic, Alexa rank, backlinks and so on.
- If your blog gets deleted for going against Bloggers terms of service, you wouldn't feel it much.

Before you purchase your domain, use this tool to check if it's still available

So step up to this level of professionalism now? Head on now to get your custom domain at only $11 from BlueHost or as cheap as N1,250 (.com.ng) from Whogohost. No one would do it cheaper for you. Even after changing, your visitors from the .blogspot.com will still be redirected to the new one.