How to Get a Business Domain
Getting a business domain is similar to getting any other website. There are websites known as registrars that help to ensure that domains are properly registered with ICANN, the nonprofit organization that maintains the standards for website domains. Some examples of registrars where one can register a domain are:
- GoDaddy
- Namecheap
- Google Domains
- Domain.com
- DreamHost
Domain registrars will check for name availability on the desired extension (.com, .org, .net, etc.) and ensure that the appropriate information is taken for proper registration. They also maintain this information for ICANN as well as the WHOIS database, which is a public lookup containing all the information about who owns a particular domain. In order to keep this potentially sensitive information from those who may use it maliciously, private domain registration is available and keeps names, addresses, and phone numbers off the public WHOIS search.
Business Domains and Email
In addition to having a website address, domains can also be used to create email addresses. Once a business has a domain, it can then also register that domain to be the email domain as well. An employee or department email for a large company looks better if it is being directed at the same domain as the website. While it can be an additional cost for email hosting, many domain hosts will offer it as a part of their product assortment to companies and individuals in need of a domain.
The reason for having a domain email name is as evident as seeing it written in a sentence. One of the most famous examples is that of Jeff Bezos, CEO and founder of Amazon. He has had a long-standing policy of making his email public so he or his executive team can be reached directly about customer concerns. His email address is Jeff@amazon.com. If he were to use another mail server that did not use the company domain, it may not look as official.
Business Domain Examples
There are myriad business domains out there with plenty of name recognition. While many companies will opt to use their full name or brand as their domain, if the name seems too long, an abbreviated domain name may also be used that will redirect the user to the website with the longer name. This allows a wide net to be cast for those needing to find the same page.
A few familiar business domains and their abbreviations include:
- Facebook (www.facebook.com and www.fb.com)
- Amazon Web Service (www.amazonwebservice.com and www.aws.com)
- The New York Times (www.nytimes.com and www.nyt.com)
As seen in these examples, it is easier to type the abbreviated domain into a browser and get to the same page just a bit quicker.
Choosing a Business Domain Name
In order to properly pick a business domain name, there are a few tips that will help with successfully creating one. Domain names can be changed, but this can be an expensive change if there are a lot of marketing materials and brand recognition tied to the original domain. It can also lead to a drop in people finding the website because it will impact SEO as well.
Some suggestions for how to create an effective business domain include the following.
- Checking for availability — Domain names are popular, and there is even a market that buys them based on speculation. A simple search will confirm if a domain is available. If a name is trademarked or has copyright protection, this gives the holder of those protections the right to have it first regardless.
- The closer to .com, the better — Top line extensions such as .com are those that are most familiar to people when entering a web address. Extensions that end in .com, .org, .net, and .edu all have specific meanings and are considered top line extensions.
- Keeping it short — The shorter the domain, the easier it is to remember and drive traffic to a website. If a name is too long, abbreviated domains or abbreviations in certain words can help to lower the character count.
- Hyphens — If a domain needs to be two separate words for style or clarity reasons, a hyphen helps to maintain a separation. This is not always advisable for traffic reasons, however, as it has been shown that traffic to a website declines if hyphens are used.
Lesson Summary
A business domain is the text address that a business uses to direct people to their website. It serves as a unique identifier as well as branding opportunity for a company on the internet. Choosing a proper domain involves some skill in order for it to help rank a page for SEO. Search engine optimization, or SEO, is the practice of helping search engine web crawlers find and bring the most relevant content to those searching for it. In this case, a properly constructed domain will put a website at the top of a search. Shorter domain names are helpful, and it is best if they end in .com due to the familiarity of the extension with people looking for a business website.
