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Domain Forwarding
Versus Domain Masking
Even though a lot of people now
realize that the word “domain” refers to the address of a website, some do not
understand other words or tech-jargon associated with the term “domain.” So
here is a quick look at two popular terms that are associated with domains, in
case you or someone you know could use some help.
Domain Forwarding & Masking
Domain forwarding helps with
the directing of your site link to the address of another website. And domain
forwarding is very helpful for websites that may have longer, more complex
addresses as well as for advertising purposes; for example, to use a new domain
like MarchSale2007.com for directing traffic to a special sales web page.
The forwarding process is
pretty simple. Begin by registering the new domain name of your choice that’s available.
Next log into the domain area where you purchased your domain and click on the
option to “forward” this new domain. A space should become available then where
you simply insert the URL or domain name of the site where you want your visitors
to be directed when they click the link.
Domain masking allows you to
hide or protect the address of your website while still continuing to allow
your prospects and clients to visit your site and access the contents there.
Domain masking works in this manner:
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Register your
domain name first. For example, register the domain name, “TinyURL.com” or the
domain of your choice. Then set up a forward as mentioned above and add masking
to it by clicking the masking box in the control area and add masked
description meta tag and masked keyword meta tag words
to help direct search engines your way when people key in these terms for
searches.
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Although
TinyURL.com will be the ‘visual’ address for people who click on the link, it
will not be the main Internet address of the website because the main address
is too long with too many letters to list in print ads, for example, like
MyDomainNameIsTooLong.com. Therefore the masked domain address TinyURL.com will
be listed in emails, ads and other communications to direct Internet visitors
to the site. And your website visitors need only key in the address TinyURL.com
to discover all the content of the main address at: MyDomainNameIsTooLong.com on
their computers.
Note that the main difference
between domain forwarding and domain masking is that with domain forwarding, your
site visitors will still see the original or actual domain name in their
browser after they click the new domain link and get directed to the site. In
other words, the new domain link does not hide the long original name. So when people
click: TinyURL.com, they are directed to the site, yet once they arrive at the
site, the domain that appears in their browsers will read: MyDomainNameIsTooLong.com.
Why would you prefer to
place a mask over the original address rather than simply forward traffic to
the site? In cases like this:
Some website addresses are
very long, full of coding with numbers and letters that often may or may not
make sense like: http://ThisIsYourAffiliateLinkabczyx12379_JohnSmith.com . So to make the link easier to read and to look more
professional, an Internet marketer may mask a short domain like http://JohnSmithNews.com for two reasons (1) to hide the fact that it’s an
affiliate link, causing some to be uneasy and leave the site right away and get
in touch with the main seller instead and (2) to make the site appear more
professional and memorable with a recognizable name as the address.
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http://movingaheadcommunications.com/service
& contact Moving Ahead Communications at