Years ago when I started an online business it was considered a bad idea to use your real name online, you know, all the creeps and crazy people might hunt you down. So I created a fake name for myself and created a blog, website, and many articles using my fake name. Then along comes the shift in internet marketing and now we are advised to "brand ourselves" by using our real name on everything. Your own .com business using Yournamehere.com. But is that really a good idea?

Personally, for your website or your blog I would use a name that is related to your business and subject material. This will draw in people who are searching for the kind of content that you create. The search engines will also be more friendly to you.

Should you decide to choose YourName.com to brand yourself, in the long run it will be very beneficial to you. You will become your own brand. However, this will take allot of work, and allot more time than choosing a name related to your business. By using your own name, people will have no idea what your site is about.

My personal and humble opinion is this: If you are in this for the long haul, and you won't starve to death if you don't get immediate results, it is to your advantage to use your own name dot com. You must be willing to work hard, offer a ton of value and be yourself. Put your own unique personality into yourname.com business.

If you are operating your online business on a part-time basis then I would suggest using a domain name that is relevant to your market and what your are marketing. Don't use dashes in your domain name. It makes it harder for people to remember. Use your subject and add a name to it. For instance, if your business is accounting services you could put worryfreeaccounting.com or bestaccountingservices.com. Try to keep your domain name to three words and if you go over three words, make sure the words are short and easy to remember.

Personally, I have several income streams and I have found that when I use a domain name that is relevant to what I am marketing, I have a much easier time creating traffic and sales. I have a relevant domain name for each income stream that I have.

Another great thing you can do with domain names is creat sub-domains using your name. For instance, charlesgraham.accounting.com or coaching.bycharles.com etc, etc. You can use this method for your various income streams. Create a main domain name, and then sub-domains. Most services such as Godaddy will give you a certain number of domain names for free.

Using sub-domain names you could create your own online empire by creating allot of websites that generate income for you. It also would be allot of work, especially if you are only part-time. There is an easy way to create multiple sites without allot of work and without going broke in the process. But that subject is for an upcoming article.