Vodafone Hosted Services - A Guide to Selecting and Preparing Your Own Domain

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1 Vodafone Hosted Services Domain and packages User guide

2 Welcome. This guide will help you to choose and purchase your Vodafone Hosted Services packages. From here you can select and buy your own domains, and choose which web hosting and packages are right for your business. And because Vodafone Hosted Services are completely flexible, you can change your packages whenever you like. domain services homepage 2 buying a domain 3 using an existing domain 4 hosting packages 6 packages 7 checkout 9 managing your domains 10 what are domains? 11 choosing a domain name 12

3 domain services homepage The Domain services homepage is where you start building your own domain and hosting package. Here you will be led through the process of choosing a domain name for your business, or using an existing one choosing a hosting package to fit your business choosing an package buying your packages. Opening the domain services homepage If you already have a Vodafone Hosted Services account, you can get to the Domain services page by logging in to My Vodafone, then clicking on Domain services. Otherwise, just go to and click on xxxxxxxx. When you finish the buying process, a new Vodafone Hosted Services account will be set up for you. 2

4 buying domain names If you already have your own domain, registered or hosted somewhere else, go to Using an existing domain to see how to use it as part of Vodafone Hosted Services. To learn more about domains, and choosing the best domain name or names for your business, see the Choosing domain names section at the back of this guide. Check what domains are available The Domain services section of My Vodafone provides a simple way to check what names and suffixes (for example,.com,.org or.co.uk) are available. in the main Vodafone Hosted Services page, click on the tab labelled My Vodafone click on Domain services enter the name you d like to use in the, and choose the suffix you might as well choose the.com one to start with click on Go, and you ll see if it s available in the Domain check results try that with as many variations of names and suffixes as you can, until you have a list of all your possible domain names Add domains to your Cart Beside every domain that s listed as available in the Domain check results section you ll find the option to Add to Cart (ie. your shopping cart). you can keep on adding domains to your cart as you explore different options in Domain services, as your cart can be edited before final purchase you may also have the option to choose different ownership periods. Continue to and hosting packages Once you have added the domains you want you can explore the and Web hosting packages. click on Continue at the bottom of the Domain check results. if it s not available, then you ll be offered a choice of variants on the name or suffix that are available 3

5 other domain options Sub-domain option Instead of buying a full domain, which will require hosting and renewal, you also have the option of having a domain within the Vodafone Hosted Services shared domain. This would give you a domain name such as com, and addresses of myname@ mybusinessname@vodafonehosted.com This option is cheaper and quicker to set up than the full domain registration process, but it is not as focused and memorable as having your own domain. However, you can always transfer it to your own domain at a later date. Basic only option If you just want an address without any domain customisation, you have the option of just creating a vodafonehosted.com address. Please note that if you choose just this option you will not be able to use any hosting services. click on Add Basic in the Domain services page to see your options. Also, with the sub-domain option you can only use the Basic package. click in the Add Subdomain text entry box, and enter the domain name you want then click Add Subdomain. 4

6 using an existing domain If you already have your own domain elsewhere, you also have the option of transferring the registration and/or the hosting to Vodafone Hosted Services. Simply enter your domain name and suffix in the Domain check box and click Go. You will see that your domain is marked as Unavailable, but you will also see options under I m the owner of.... Hosting transfer Transferring hosting for your domain means that you can use the Vodafone Hosted Services website tools to make your website work as hard as possible for you. It also means that you have one less service company to deal with. To complete the hosting transfer we just need your DNS (Domain Name Services) settings. You can either get these from your existing service provider or use our migration tools to automate the transfer of your domain name or website to Vodafone Hosted Services. we will keep you informed how the transfer is progressing. Registrar transfer Transferring registration for your domain as well means that all your website administration can be dealt with in one place. domain name transfers can usually be completed in five days or less, but some transfers take up to seven days 5

7 hosting packages When you have finished in the Domain name section, click Continue at the bottom of the Domain services page to choose your hosting package. Add hosting Whatever level of hosting you sign up for, you will still get a thoroughly professional result. And if you find you need more capacity, features or tools, you can simply and cost-effectively move to a more powerful package. So your website can grow as your business does. Web space Advanced templates help with emarketing and blogging SEO optimisation helps increase the chances of your website appearing near the top of the list in web searches Shop creator helps you create your own on-site store. Technical features These allow greater control and administration. If you have a web administrator or technical advisor, they should be able to suggest which features you need. The bigger your website is, the more space you will need. This is especially true if it will be using lots of images and videos. Site tools The Website builder is more than capable of creating a professional website. However, for a more sophisticated website there are other tools you may need: See the Getting Started guide for more information on specific Site tools. 6

8 packages Once you have your own domain and hosting you can can have far greater control over your company s than if it s left to your ISP. However, our size means that you can relax as far as reliability and security are concerned. Vodafone Hosted Services lets you tailor your packages to suit the number of addresses you need and what your users need to be able to do with them. You will be automatically taken to the packages section once you have selected a hosting package. or you can click on Add in the Domain addons page if you don t select a hosting package. Basic Although they re called Basic, the entry packages give you some very powerful features: multiple addresses large mailbox integration with your personal , contacts and calendar Professional The main difference between the packages is that Professional has Microsoft Outlook client support, as well as sophisticated mobile . even larger mailbox size collaboration with shared contacts, and calendar and group scheduling more advanced search options. Choosing packages Otherwise you need only decide on the number of addresses you need to work out which package to choose. However, you can add both Basic and Professional packages to your cart, so you can select the mix that you need just click on Add to Cart for each package you want. Note that the Professional option isn t available if you are only using the Vodafone sub-domain. 7

9 basic vs professional Although it s called Basic, our standard package still gives you a large number of features. However, advanced users will benefit from the Professional package, with larger attachments, shared documents and calendars, and more sophisticated webmail and mobile mail. The real advantage is that your business can have a mixture of both, depending on what each user needs or doesn t need. For example: Basic users receptionists general workers Professional users salesmen (need to work away from the office) designers (work with large files) managers (need to collaborate with other people and groups) PAs (need to keep track of multiple calendars). package: Basic Professional Mailbox size 5 Gb 10 Gb Largest attachment 25 Mb 100 Mb Auto-complete addresses Yes Yes Create calendar appointments Yes Yes Organise messages in threads Yes Yes Spell check Yes (if composing in HTML) Yes Number of aliases 1 Unlimited Mobile phone support Yes View multiple accounts Yes Share documents Yes Share calendars Yes Share contacts Yes Webmail interface HTML AJAX (better looking) 8

10 checkout When you ve chosen your packages, click on Continue. This will take you to the Checkout. you can also go to Checkout at any time by clicking Checkout in the shopping cart on the right of any Domain services pages. In Checkout you can add or remove domains and addons before going to the secure payment area if you want to continue exploring the Domain services site, click on Continue shopping to share the contents of your cart with others before you continue to the secure payment area, click on basket otherwise, click on Vodafone secure checkout. Login or register Note that your password must contain at least one capital letter, one number and one symbol Secure payment You ll then go to the confirmation area, where you can check that all your details and package options are correct. If so, click on Submit. if you already have a Vodafone Hosted Services account, this will then be added to your account if not, then you ll be taken to a secure payment server where you can enter your payment details. You ll then be given confirmation of your order, as well as your order number. Details of how to access your hosted services will be also ed to you. Go to the Getting started guide to setup your domains and . If you already have a Vodafone Hosted Services account, enter your login details now. If you don t have an account already, then click on Register, and complete the registration form. 9

11 managing your domains Your domains should need very little attention once they re set up. Manage domains You can see all the domains that are hosted by Vodafone Hosted Services in one place. in the main portal, click on the Domain Names tab, and click Continue this will take you to the Domain Portfolio page select the Manage Domains tab. This shows you your portfolio of domains, as well as their status and expiry date. Select from the Action menu to modify the domain name s registrant and administrative contacts, name servers and authorisation codes. Auto-renew is automatically turned on when a domain is registered. Renewing your domains It is worth remembering that generic toplevel domain names enter a redemption period after they expire. if you renew your domain name during this time it may be subject to an inflated renewal fee pending deletion, and will eventually be deleted from the registry database. Once deleted, the domain will be available for anyone to register on a first-come, firstserved basis. Why are your registration details important? will have no proof of ownership, and may be unable to transfer the domain. Transfer orders Click on the Transfer Orders tab in the Domain Portfolio section, and you can see the progress of any domain name transfers, and your domain transfer history. A domain name is likely to enter this period anywhere between 1 and 45 days after its expiry date. The redemption period then lasts for 30 days and during this time no changes can be made to the domain name configuration. If the domain name is not renewed during the redemption period, it enters a queue All domain names need to be registered to an individual or an organisation. It is very important that the information you provide is valid and accurate, as if there is a domain dispute later on, this information will be used to decide the legal owner of the domain name. If the details are out of date, misleading or otherwise incorrect then you 10

12 what are domains? A domain name is a human-friendly address, sometimes called a URL (Uniform Resource Locator). The internet works on IP (Internet Protocol) addresses. These are numbers, much like a telephone number. However, most people find it much easier to remember names rather than strings of numbers. Like all companies, Vodafone choose to publicise their domain name ( rather than their IP address ( ). Your domain name is unique to you. When someone types it into an Internet browser (such as Internet Explorer or Mozilla FireFox) they ll be taken directly to your space on the Internet where they can view your site or files. Domain names also have other uses. For instance, when choosing an address, rather than having john. smith.58965@myisp.com you could have john@mydomain.com. This is far more memorable and belongs to you..org.co.uk.co.uk How do I get a domain?.com.org.com.co.uk.com Only authorised authorities, called registrars, can allocate domain names. This is so only one person or organisation can own a specific domain at any one time. Vodafone Hosted Services is not a registrar, but we work with several partners to provide domain names for our customers. This means that we can keep this process cost-effective for you, but it also can speed up the process of getting your domain name up and running as this can take some time. Can I have more than one domain name? Yes, you can. In fact, it s often a good idea to own several variants of your domain name, so that other companies cannot get them and cause potential confusion for your customers. For example, if your business is called Roger Green Books, then you might want to own etc., etc. All of these names can actually take your customers to exactly the same domain ( this is called pointing. Because buying a domain name is relatively inexpensive, it s wise to cover as many options as you can. How long does it take? It depends. Some types of domain name such as.com can be operational in just a few minutes. Others can take much longer. It also depends where in the world you are, as different countries have different rules. However, it s more important that you get your domain name right than choose a weaker one that may be operational a bit faster. Remember, your domain name may well last as long as your business does..co.uk 11

13 choosing a domain name Make it obvious If your business is called Mike s Flowers, then people will expect your website to be something similar co.uk, for example. If you choose something very different, then it makes your business look unclear. If you re starting up a business, and you haven t settled on your business name yet, it s worth choosing one that gives you a clear and memorable.com or.co.uk name, rather than go for a far more confusing suffix (the bit that goes at the end of the web address) like.org.uk or.uk.net, etc. What s allowed However, there are a few rules about what s allowed in a domain name and what s not. What s allowed: standard alphabet numbers plain dashes underscore What s not allowed: commas apostrophes exclamation marks question marks brackets almost all other symbols and characters (although symbols will be allowed in the near future) You shouldn t rely on using capital letters in your name, either, as they aren t distinguished from lower case and can be confusing for your customers. Generally, keep to lower case letters. Write down all the possible variations of your company name, and try and keep them as simple as possible. This will help you make the next decision the suffix..com or not.com? The first thing to note about choosing a.com suffix is that most of the good names have already been taken. This is partly as.com was one of the first suffixes created, so it s been around longer. Which gives.com names more status, and they make your company look bigger and more prestigious. Having a.com suffix also means that people can just type your domain name without the www. or the.com bits in the browser bar where they enter the website address, and it will take them to your site. This usually means that you face a choice: do you go for a longer, less easily remembered.com name, or go for a simpler name, but with a less-obvious suffix? Suffixes The main suffixes available (and for UK use) are:.com 1.co.uk.org (for organisation, usually for information-only sites, or charities).net Generally, any more complicated suffixes are confusing to remember, and usually make your company look less competitive. Examples are:.biz.uk.net.ltd.uk.org.uk.gb.net There are also more global suffixes, like.eu or.tv (for Tuvalu, but used by TV stations) that you can look at. For example, unless your business has an unusual name, almost none of the short.com names will be available. 1 For various reasons, the UK is one of the few countries in the world that doesn t have a Top Level Domain, like.fr for France or.it for Italy. 12

14 2010 Vodafone Group. VODAFONE, the VODAFONE logos are trade marks of Vodafone Group. Other product names mentioned herein may be the trade marks of their respective owners.