While it’s not important that you know the in’s and out’s of domain names, a high-level understanding is helpful.

Let’s take a look.

Domain names are like mailing addresses

We we mail a postcard, the mailing address tells the postal system where it’s going. So, for us, our Center Valley, PA post office will get it, look at the ZIP code, and put it on the proper truck. As it makes its way across the country, it’s handled and routed until it eventually ends up in its intended mailbox. It’s a simple system, and it works really well.

Domain names are just like mailing addresses. We we type www.forge3.com into our browser address bar, we’re telling the Internet where we want to go. The Internet is actually made up of a bunch of servers and connections – all of which know how to read our www.forge3.com “mailing address” to send us along to the Forge3 website server (which is currently located at Rackspace in Dallas, TX). The entire process takes milliseconds, and we’re soon browsing the Forge3 website.

It’s all about the pointers

So, our job is to tell the Internet where the Forge3 website is located. We do this by updating the domain name “pointers” – also called records – to point to the Rackspace server. Once we apply the updates, we wait 24-48 hours for them to take full effect across the Internet.

Proceed with caution

Messing around with your domain name can be confusing and dangerous – possibly causing you break your website, email and other mission-critical pieces of your business. This is why we have a master Forge3 account in which we manage all of our client’s domain names. We ensure that they don’t accidentally expire, and can make and necessary changes along the way. Regardless of who handles your domain name, just make sure it’s in good hands.

Let’s take a look at what you should know so that you can walk-the-walk and talk-the-talk.

Hits

First off, hits are useless. If someone tries to sell you an ad based on hits, run away. They’re either clueless or taking advantage of you.

Technically, a hit is the server’s response to a request. That sounds fine, until you realize that a single web page is made up of multiple pictures, graphics and other items – all of which are considered separate hits. So, as an example, when you visit the www.forge3.com home page, it generates 30+ hits. Needless to say, this number is useless for most of us. So, ignore it.

Visitors (usually called Uniques or Unique Visitors)

This is a better measure of activity. A visitor is counted when someone comes to a website at least once. If they come back later in the day, he/she is still only counted as one visitor.

For example, let’s say that we’re looking at monthly visitors, and I visit your website today. That’s counted as a visit. Then, let’s say that I come back the next week. This is still counted as a single visitor for the month.

So, if you’re buying an ad based on unique visitors, you’ll want to know how many visitors will see the ad and over what period of time.

TIP: Keep in mind that visitors are estimated. Why? Because most of us use multiple computers, phones, and gadgets to access the Internet. If I visit your website from my phone, and then again from my computer and laptop, this is counted as three separate unique visitors. This is because the website can’t tell that you are you - so it just counts each device as a separate visitor.

If you’re not, you’re probably at least curious about what the fuss is all about. So, let’s take a quick, high-level look at Twitter.

What is Twitter?

Twitter is all about connecting us with our audience – whether it’s our target market, clients, friends or anyone else that we care about. It’s a public forum to represent who we are and what we do.

And, more importantly, it allows us to keep our fingers on the pulse of what matters most to our businesses. If you engage the Twitter community, we’ll see market trends, hear feedback and engage with our target audience. This is powerful stuff.

How does it work?

Twitter is a very simple messaging system that allows us to send and receive messages to one another. These messages, called “tweets,” are limited to only 140 characters.

Here’s what a message could look like:

forge3
We’re ready to launch the new Forge3 website. What would you like to see on it?

This message is automatically sent to everyone on Twitter that cares about what we’re doing and has chosen to “follow” us.

But, Twitter is really about listening. So, anyone can send a “reply” to us using the following format:

clientABC
@forge3 I’d love to see some information on how to use Twitter.

The @forge3 part of the message is telling the system that the message should be sent to Forge3. It’s as simple as that.

Some real-world examples

OK. Now that you know the basics, why should you care? Here are a few real-world “tweets” to get kick-start your creative thinking.

JetBlue was one of the first big brands to use Twitter. The following example uses shortened links (from a service called bit.ly). This allows us to stay within the 140 character limit.

JetBlue
Our Sample Sale is going until 11:59 p.m. MDT today only. http://bit.ly/samplesale Mobile users: http://bit.ly/mobilesample

JetBlue also listens to messages written about them. And, more importantly, they respond publicly, like this:

JetBlue
@matthewfong We will honor the lower airfare & issue you a JB credit if your flight prices drop before departure :)

Should you use Twitter?

Absolutely! Why not?

• It’s free
• It’s an easy way to keep up with the latest news and trends concerning your business
• It offers a direct channel into your target market and your customer’s minds
• It provides transparency and breaks down the barriers between you and your customers
• Everyone else is doing it – if you’re not, the perception is that you just don’t get it

And, be sure to follow @forge3. We’ll see you on Twitter!