In this installment of Internet marketing, A-Z, I’m tackling the letter W with Whois. I bet you thought I was going to do something obvious like web design or web page. Well, I fooled you didn’t I? Truth is, Whois is something that not a lot of people give much thought to. Well, this article is going to give you some reasons why you should give Whois some thought. There is more to it than just a place to get info.

Okay, for those who don’t know what Whois is, a little definition is in order. Whois is a utility that returns ownership information about domains. Every domain on the Internet has to be registered and has to contain information about the registrant. This helps keep people honest, though the truth is, lots of folks could care less. Still, it’s a start. So, why am I dedicating a whole article to something that most people would consider so trivial? The answer is simple. Most people don’t realize the power of Whois to help AND hurt you. So that’s where this article comes in.

Let’s start with the help part first. I’m sure you’ve all been here as a marketer, especially if you create your own products. One day you find a website that is selling YOUR product illegally as if they created it themselves. This stuff goes on all the time. So what do you do? Well, the answer is simple. Take down the domain name, go to Whois, type it in and find out who it’s registered to and who the host is. Then you do two things. You contact the offender and order him to take the product down and then, if he refuses, contact the hosting company and tell them. They’ll end up yanking his account unless they want to get in a lot of hot water themselves should you make a legal case out of it. That’s how Whois helps you.

But how does it hurt you? Well, again, you have to register your website too. That means people who want to do you harm can simply lookup your Whois info and do whatever evil deed they want. So how do you stop this? The answer is simple. Each web host gives you the option of registering your website privately, which means you don’t have to have you personal info such as name, address and so on, on file. This way, people can’t find out who you are or where you live. It makes it harder for them to track you down. Still, you want to work within the law of the Internet. Your web host is still listed and if they get a complaint about you that can be verified, they WILL yank your account. So make sure you mind your business.

Whois can be a valuable tool to marketers if they simply learn how to use it properly.

To YOUR Success,

Steven Wagenheim

Tired of busting your behind for peanuts online? Go to my web site and find out how I earn a monthly income that exceeds 5 figures and how I can help YOU do the same. Get your free report at http://www.mysecretarticles.com/report.html