What's your .com?

I'm talking about web domains. A crucial part of any website (so crucial that without one you literally can't exist on the interwebs).

It's a common question for businesses about to create their first website, or even those changing their sites - what domain name should I use? Where should I buy it? And WTF is it anyway?!

So… like most of the things I get lots of questions about I wrote a blog about it!

This post may contain affiliate links. These are denoted by a *. If you make a purchase via one of these links I may get a small kickback. I only recommend products and services I use and love myself! Thanks in advance :)

What is a website domain?

Your domain name is your address on the internet. A good analogy for how this works with hosting or your web builder is to imagine your home. In this scenario - your domain is your address, your website is the actual house, and the hosting is the land on which your house (or website) is built.

A domain contains multiple parts

Let’s look at this example https://www.risingtidecreatives.com

what is the Protocol

The protocol is the https:// part this could also be http// This is the protocol - it is not actually part of your domain, but is part of the url (uniform resource locator - the specific address each page of your website has). The specific https:// protocol stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS), and is what you should ideally be using to ensure that your website data is transferred securely. It is also preferred by google so should support your SEO.

what is a Top level domain - TLD?

The top level domain also known as TLD is the .com part of your domain. Some examples include .net .com .org .edu . There are also other types of top level domains, including country code top level domains (ccTLD) like .fr .co.uk or .dk. Finally there are sponsored top level domains SLDs such as .gov.uk (the UK government) or .mil (US military) or .gouv.fr (French government). These are top level domains sponsored by and representing a specific organisation.

what is a Domain name?

Your domain name is the second part in the hierarchy of your domain, after the top level domain - it’s the bit that is your name, your business name or similar. The words used in your domain name are factored into the search ranking, so it can be useful to include words relevant to what you do/ offer. But be careful here, google isn’t a fan of keyword stuffing and will penalise you for spammy, over specific domain names like the-best-indian-restaurant-in-birmingham.com.

This is just one of the considerations when you choose your domain name - we’ll explore these a more below.

what is a sub domain?

A sub domain is the part that comes before the domain name. A commonly used sub domain is www, but sub domains can also be used to create child sites for your website such as en.risingtidecreatives.com for an english version of a site where there are multiple language versions.

Once you have a domain you can set up sub domains if you wish - but be mindful, for SEO purposes it’s better to use sub folders e.g. www.risingtidecreatives.com/videos than videos.risingtidecreatives.com apart from for websites in multiple languages which will usually use sub folders for content type and sub domains for the various languages.

How do I choose a good domain name for my site?

Keep it short
Make it simple
Ensure it's easy to spell
Use letters only - avoid hyphens and numbers
Test it with people - when saying it, do you need to explain or clarify anything? If yes, go back to the drawing board & simplify
If it's multiple words check that they look ok grouped together (and don't accidentally say something rude!) remember Pen Island dot com ?!
Include words related to your sector if relevant
Relate to your brand/ business name so it's easy to understand & connect with you.

You can have more than one domain name that points to the same website - a good option if you have rebranded but don't want to lose your old audience/ traffic.

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How do I choose a top level domain?

For the top level domain (the dot whatever) it's generally best to start with .com as a first option. If you're locally based .co.uk or .fr or whatever your country code is could also work. For not for profits .org is usually best. If in doubt check out your competitors and see what they're doing. Finally, try to avoid low quality TLDs like .biz or .name, the more novel or obscure though, the less likely people will get it right!

Where should I buy my domain from?

There are many many domain registrars where you can purchase a domain name - these have all been given the rights to make changes to the DNS (Domain Name Service) to register & manage domain names). Examples include sites like GoDaddy, NameCheap etc. However you may also have the choice to purchase your domain via your website platform. This option exists when your web platform is also a domain registrar. Here are the pros and cons of each approach:

Buy your domain name through a separate domain registrar

When you purchase your domain from a specific domain registrar company like Go Daddy, Namecheap or Google Domains it tends to be cheaper but means you'll be juggling more passwords & programmes. You will also have to ensure that the security certificate (SSL) set up is in place (this can cost more).

Buy your domain name through your website platform or with your hosting

If you buy via your website platform provider you get the benefit of managing multiple things in one place. If you like a simple life and are not great at managing lots of log ins and passwords this may be a good fit for you. Be mindful though - domains purchased via your website platform will usually be more expensive - although some (like Squarespace) do offer a free first year.

Note: Domain purchasing is done on a yearly basis, like a subscription, as opposed to a one off payment.

You can find out everything you need to know to buy, connect, or move your domain name to your Squarespace site here.

And did you know? You can personalise your built in Squarespace domain name for free whilst you’re working on your trial site (and beyond!) See how here.

How much does a domain cost?

The price of domain names ranges from a dollar a year for the first year of a none premium .com domain name, to thousands (maybe more) for a premium domain name such as nike.com (which is obviously not for sale but you can imagine how expensive it would be if it was!)

An average for a domain tends to be around €10-20 per year - aftermarket (resold premium domains can go for a lot more).

Be mindful when shopping around that many domain registrars will give a very low, or free choice for the first year and then increase significantly from the second year onwards. It can be useful to work out the 3 year average cost, as well as weighing up the benefits of having everything managed in one place, and of course any additional hidden costs for security SSL certificates.

Frequently asked questions about domains

What do I need to buy a domain?

To buy & register a domain, you will need to make the payment and provide a name, physical address & electronic address to fulfil the registration requirements ICANN (the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) requirements.

What happens if my preferred domain name is taken?

This is a pretty common problem given the huge number of domain names already being used. Having said that if your domain name is taken there are a few options left for you:

Check out snapnames.com to see domain names that have recently become available. New names are added all the time
Get an “after market” domain - this is where online agents contact the owner of a domain name to see if they’d be willing to sell it to you. This can be very expensive so ask yourself how important a specific domain name is to you.
Use a different top level domain such as .net instead of .com, or if you’re locally based a .co.uk or .fr or other country code TLD. With this option do be mindful of potential confusion from your visitors - there’s a reason .com tends to be the most popular - because it’s usually people’s go to if they’re unsure.

Can I have more than one domain name?

Yes! You can have as many domains as you’d like.

You can also have more than one of these pointing to the same website if you’d like. This can be particularly useful if you’ve changed business name, and want to keep your old domain name but also have a new one that aligns with your new business name.

Another approach is to have various top level domains for the same domain name - for example having the .net .com and .co.uk for the same domain. This stops a similar business having the same domain name as you with a different top level domain & confusing your audience!

What happens if my domain subscription lapses?

This is something to avoid if you can! Ordinarily your domain registrar will send you reminder emails if you have not automatically set your domain to renew, but if you miss these and your domain subscription lapses you risk that your domain is made available for purchase on the open market & purchased by someone else. This can be a big risk to your business presence. To avoid, make sure to set up automatic renewal, and set a reminder to make sure your card details are up to date.

I bought my domain with go daddy but want to manage it via Squarespace - can I?

Yes! Domain registrars usually make it pretty easy to move your domains to a different registrar. Whether this is to move it to your website host, or platform or to move all of your domains to one place to manage them together, it’s usually pretty simple, and your registrar will usually explain how in their FAQs.