Several years ago we had a client who had previously worked with web designer who set up their company’s domain name.
At the time, it didn’t seem like such a big deal, and the client trusted the designer completely.
Without going into too much detail, the relationship turned sour. And because the client hadn’t registered the domain themselves, the web design company was the legal owner of the domain. The client was clean out of luck.
While nine out of ten times allowing a third party to register your domain is not an issue, it’s always better to be safe than sorry.
Why Do I Need to Register a Domain?
The domain name is the bread and butter of your website.
The process is relatively easy and straightforward.
- Create an account on an ICANN-certified registrar such as GoDaddy or NameCheap.
- Find a domain name that’s currently not registered, add it to your shopping cart and checkout.
- Enter your contact information, including your name, phone number, and street address.
- Once you are finished, the domain will be under your control.
The easiest way to prevent domain name ownership issues is to register under your own name. As long as you are the listed registrant and your contact information is up-to-date, you will maintain all legal rights to the domain.
Most people stop at just one domain name, but you should consider more.
Protect Your Brand.
Why should you consider more domain names?
Registering a variety of domain names relevant to your business will improve your online presence. It will also protect from other businesses or “hijackers” diluting your company’s presence or restrict your online access.
Use Them for Special Landing Pages.
Say you create a Facebook ad and want to link it to a special landing page with an offer code or opt-in form. You can use one of your domain names to create a landing page without having to build out an extra, temporary page on your main site.
Extra domains are great for promotions or special offers.
Plan for the Future Growth of Your Business.
Extra domains will support future growth.
If you expand into international markets or open new locations, you can use your handy domains to create new sites.
For example, a local attorney’s office may expand into other states and want to create new, location-specific sites rather than building off of the original site.
Common Misspellings in the Search? Not a Problem!
Whenever we create pay-per-click campaigns, we tend to include common misspellings or popular keywords. This way, we can be sure to catch all users looking for our services — the same principle applies to web domains.
Planning for misspellings will allow you to redirect users to your page, rather than losing them in the search process.
Your Business Will Come Up in More Search Results.
When your website has more domains linked to it, you’ll be much easier to find on search engines. There’s more than one way to Rome; and with multiple domains, your customers will have more opportunities to find you!
Protect Against Competitors.
Registering more domains will limit your competitors’ ability to create similar domain names, diluting your online presence.
If all of this sounds confusing or you just wish someone would handle it for you, get in touch!
