The first question to ask yourself is: Is the name I chose subject to trademark protection? Indeed, if you choose a domain name that isn’t unique such as “shoes.com”, you won’t be able to get protection because the domain name is too common. You will have to decide if it is better to choose a simple and easy-to-find domain name or to choose a unique name that could be protected but harder to find.
Is the domain name I want available?
Finding a domain name that hasn’t been reserved yet is a difficult task. Some people buy a domain name years before they even use it or build a website. The name you wish for your website might already belong to someone else. If that is the case you might have to find another domain name that makes sense with your business or choose a different business name.
You can do a search to see if a domain name is available by using the search engine,http://www.networksolutions.com.
If you try to purchase a domain name on GoDaddy for example, the website will rapidly tell you if the domain name you are trying to purchase is available or not.
Once you figured out if the domain name is available, you may want to buy it immediately or then check to see if it is registered with any governmental entity as indicated above!
Reserving a domain name will cost you around $35 for 1 or 2 years before you have to renew.