Is it worth buying a domain name when testing a niche ?

I was considering trying a new niche, and I was wondering if it was worth buying a new domain name just to try it out ?
It's not about spending $8 but more about the thought of it being wasted in case the niche wouldn't eventually be worth it.

I know I could just use Wordpress.com, blogspot or Tumbler, but i really like to control everything under a self hosted wordpress installation.

So would a subdomain would be viable or do you guys have any particular advice on that ?

 

I think it is always good to test and is worth it, if it is only $ why not try it out see how it works. Subdomains are fine as well. This forum is a subdomain.

 

well, when you say "test" it, I assume that you would be creating a site or a landing page for it?

No doubt, you would be able to sell the site, and domain for $8, so while it might not have the results you need to continue your work on it, someone else might be interested in it, so probly worth while in the long run to grab a domain.

 

I have to agree with matt at the very least you can sell it for what you buy it for. But would a subdomain give you the full testing you would want to do? I would assume to get the full insight you would want to test it how it would actually be used.

 

It's $8..... Why are you worrying about something so small?

 

I agree with others you can always sell the site if you find it not worth your while.

 

I would say it's worth it. In the grand scheme of things, $8 is nothing.

 

Once you got a great hosting company, adding domains for $8 (more or less) is something you can risk for a huge potential return. Wish you the best...

 

In my opinion If youre trying a completely new and unrelated niche dont use it with subdomain as it will mixed up with your main domain niche and we dont want that wether in real readers conscience or even robots algorithm.
Lets take example in Panda, Panda is applied at a host name level so sub-domain and topical sub-domain incorporation could bring negative result in 2 kind of niche mixed up together.

 

I think you can get away with either or. It depends on how confident you are and where the traffic would be coming from. $8 isn't much, so you would not be losing much. If you already have another website, you can set up a subdomain like you said.

 

Of course it's worth it, Jesus. The idea that you don't want to "waste it" is nonsensical to me. Spend the 8 bucks, take a punt, and if it doesn't work out, move on safe in the knowledge that you've learnt something and it's basically cost you nothing!

WebDev

 

It is actually a good time to use the free sites like wordpress or blogspot. Because of the domain authority with these domains you can easily rank. If you are testing a niche this is a good way to do it, save your money for backlinks.

 

tobalson, I actually agree with you here. Yes buying a domain that doesn't work out is totally a waste. Even if it's eight bucks or what not. I have like 10-30 domains that haven't worked out. Y'all can do the math . . . I hope Guess it's part of the process but there should be a better way . . .

 

$8 is a pretty low cost for testing out strategies. And even if it does not work, will it be that big of a money given the things that you have learned? Sometimes, you really need to compute the real cost of not taking action.

 

Yeah, not taking action is definitely costly
But, as WDClub says, it's more about going with testing multiple times, cause for just 8 bucks yeah, that's not a big deal, but it can add up after some time.

But in the end, i think you're right, it maybe not such a waste when you think about what you gain from it, success or not (as experience at least)

 

Scout out for deals and coupons - there's always some $0.99-$2 ones available.

 

It's much better to have the actual domain or the dotcom rather than .blogspot.com or .wordpress.com.

Also, since it IS only $8, it's rather a small price to pay if it works out and turns out to be a great niche. Also like someone mentioned earlier, owning it is the smart thing to do because if it turns out to be something you're not interested in, there may be other people who are and they may try to purchase it from you. I'd say just spend the $8.

 

domainpricemonitor dot com/domain-coupon.aspx
Check out that site for the best coupons for all registrars, domain extensions etc.

 

Look at it this way: Buy one less 6-pack of beer this week and you've already made enough money to buy a domain. I'd consider it even more worth it when combined with the fact that I have total control over my domain. As opposed to starting a Blogspot or Hubpages site, where they can really do whatever they want with my site and there's nothing that I can do about it.

 

IMHO, I suppose you're in the testing phase (aren't we all).

Have you considered getting a general domain name? This way you can just add subdomains as and when you are testing a new niche.

So instead of buying that $8 worth of domain name multiple times, I think you can actually save by using one general one.

But it might also cost you some credibility.

Just my 2 cents worth.