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Can I buy domain names to keep them from be used?

I was doing very well with web advertising until my comp secured an amazing domain name. Is it possible for me to buy any/all available similar domain names to either keep them out of the hands of other competitors or (better yet) find a way to utilize these names to my advantage. ex: Set up a dummy site with the new name and direct them automatically to my existing site. Where is the cheapest place to get a domain? And what can I expect to pay in maintenance fees once securing these domains?

Public Comments

1. Yes, if you can afford it, buy them all up - before people like me do! ;) Always protect your brand & business name with as many .com's as you can think of. Have them automatically forward web users to your existing website, or create an individual holding page for each one. If your UK based or don't mind paying in £ then try Krystal hosting or LCN. .com's are about £7 for 1 year. Domain names have to be registered yearly. There is no maintenance fee other than the reg fee. If you want to have a site behind the domain, you will need web hosting which costs more. Although you already have a site, so just use your existing hosting package. There are some cheap domain name and hosting providers listed here http://www.advertisebrand.com/?page_id=67 Hope that helps :)
2. It is BEST to actually grab up all domains, especially ones that sound like your domain name to protect your business. You may not need it at this time, but it is more for protecting your domains and preventing others from grabbing it and using them against you Go with GoDaddy http://www.godaddy.com Maintenance fees? No such thing -- only renewal fees. You can pay for the domains for 10 years (cheaper option in the long run) or purchase them for 2 years with auto renew so that you won't make the mistake of failing to renew them. If you do that, others can grab these domains from under your nose