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How to Set Up a Domain Name for Your Small Business

In growing a business, small business owners need to display a cohesive branding and marketing strategy for their product or solution online. To begin to establish a digital presence, you’ll need to create a domain name that’s easily found, which will help establish your brand identity and build credibility for your small business.

 

What is a domain name?

 

A domain name is part of the web address a person uses to find your website or a page on your site by entering text associated with the numerical internet protocol (IP) address. When your IP address is created, it’s simply a string of unrelated characters, so to ensure customers can always find your business, you’ll need to create a domain name that’s easy to understand and searchable on any search engine.

 

Every website has an IP address, a unique string of numbers that helps computers connect to a web server. As IP addresses are simply numbers, that format can be complex for people to remember. A domain name is connected to the IP address so that current and future customers can simply search for a website’s domain to find the specific website.

 

Getting a domain name can help you:

 

  1. Solidify your brand identity.

  2. Establish credibility.

  3. Build marketplace authority.

  4. Stand out from your competitors.

  5. Gain ownership of your brand.

Best practices on setting up a domain name

 

When establishing your digital presence, a website is a must. But making sure you have a web address that’s short and easily remembered is crucial in your strategy to stand out online. A domain for a small business is the first thing people see, and it can mold their perception of your website, product, and business. A carefully chosen domain name may increase customer interest and drive traffic, but a poorly chosen name might have the opposite result.
 

Here are some best practices for choosing the right domain for your small business.

 

1. Decide on a keyword that’s relevant to your small business.

 

A keyword is a word that describes the content on your page best. When determining a domain name, you want to choose a keyword that best defines the product, solution, or educational information you want others to find and leads them to your website. Think of a brandable .com domain with a short, easy-to-think-of keyword relevant to your small business needs to add to your domain name. Also, note common misspellings of your keyword. Don’t spend too much time trying to create the perfect name with your keyword—aim for good, not great.

 

2. Try to find a domain name with a non-.com extension.

 

It can be expensive and challenging to purchase a domain with a .com extension. If the possibility arrives, you might have to save a lot of money to purchase a premium domain name with a .com extension. Other possible extension options for your website are .us, .org., .net, and .info.

 

3. Invest in effective SEO efforts.

 

To transform your domain name into a high-value asset with minimal effort, invest in SEO keywords and phrases to help people find your page. The right set of industry-specific keywords will help your website rank higher on a search engine result page (SERP) organically.

 

While you may have used one or two keywords within your URL, you’ll need to choose and use multiple keywords or phrases on pages of your website to rank your site on SERPs, so users are able to search for a specific term and land on your page. If you use the wrong keyword or phrases, your content won’t match what that audience is looking for (nor will you attract the audience you want), and you’ll fail to rank on any SERP.

 

4. Optimize your webpages.

 

When creating your website, determine which type of content will engage your audience the most—from blogs, to long-form copy, to catchy headlines with short-form body copy. Make sure the content is well written, features high-quality photography and videos, and uses strategically placed keywords throughout the content within your homepage, headers, title tags, meta tags, and the new pages’ Uniform Resource Locator (URL). These are the things search engines crawl, index, and rank, which impacts how readily future customers are able to find and access your website.

 

To understand how to build your domain name, you need to learn the different types of extensions and how they’ll affect your URL.

 

Different types of domain name extensions

 

While overwhelmingly popular, there are more domain extensions than just .com. All extensions offer something different. And though some aren’t available to you unless you’re running a particular type of website, you can choose between four different types of domain name extensions.

 

1. Top-level domain

 

Top-level domains (TLDs) are the most common domain name extensions. When choosing a TLD, ensure it aligns with or enhances your overall domain and brand. A lot of TLDs are vanity extensions—be sure it’s something that works for you, not just that it’s available. Some examples of TLDs are:

 

  • com: Stands for “commercial” but used for all types of sites
  • org: Developed for non-profits
  • net: For institutions participating in in-network systems
  • edu: Specifically for educational organizations
  • gov: Restricted to government use of federal agencies and their staff only
  • mil: Specifically developed for the U.S. military

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2. Generic top-level domain

Generic top-level domains (GTLDs) work as a top-level domain category in the Domain Name System (DNS). Generic refers to the type of use cases. Serving more as a definition than a type of domain, it’s a variation of a TLD. GTLDs consist of four subcategories:

 

  • Generic: Domains used for general purposes
  • Generic restricted: Domains used for specific purposes
  • Infrastructure: Domains used to help with the DNS infrastructure
  • Sponsored: Domains used by businesses within specific industries

 

3. Country code top-level domain

 

Country code top-level domains (ccTLD) are domains tied to countries. Each country has its own ccTLD, and while a ccTLD can be helpful to signal to your visitors which site location they’re visiting, it’s not necessary to use the domain dedicated to your country. Some domain extensions examples are:

 

  • us: United States
  • uk: United Kingdom
  • jp: Japan
  • ca: Canada
  • hk: Hong Kong

 

4.  Subdomain
 

As the domain system is a tree, all other domains sit underneath the TLDs. As a result, each domain can have its own subdomain. The subdomain lives before the root-level domain and is used to help create different webpages for a website. The root-level domain is a combination of a second-level domain (SLD) and a TLD. For example, within the URL blog.microsoft.com, “microsoft.com” is the root-level and “blog” is the subdomain.

 

How to register a domain name

 

After choosing a name, deciding on an extension, and purchasing a domain for your small business, you’ll need to register your domain name. Registering your domain name solidifies your brand, making it easier for customers to find you and ensuring your branding and marketing are building a reputable online presence. Since no two domain names are exactly alike, you’ll know that your name, product, and branding are consistent everywhere.

 

You’ll have to pay to register your domain name with a registrar, a company that registers domain names. The primary roles of the domain registrar are to:

 

  • Make sure there are no duplicate names.
  • Match specific domain names with the DNS.
  • Coordinate claims on different domain names.

Domain name prices range from tens to thousands of dollars. The cost for your domain name will depend on:

 

  • The demand for your chosen name.
  • Your TLD domain extension.
  • The domain registrar you’re purchasing from.
  • If your domain name was previously purchased.
  • Your payment schedule.
  • Any add-ons.

You don’t own the domain name but reserve its usage for a specified time. And it’s not simply a one-time fee—typically, you’ll sign a long-term lease to own the domain for the first year, and then you’ll be able to renew your registration annually. The domain for a small business can be repurchased multiple times, so you need to be diligent on re-registering your domain when your subscription ends.

 

Purchasing a domain is different than where your website is hosted. Your domain name serves as the address for your website, but hosting is where all of your files are stored.

 

Setting up a website for a small business

 

You’re almost ready for your website to go live. Purchasing hosting is your next step after purchasing your domain name. Web hosting is a service from companies that sell or lease server space to store files, making your website accessible. Every hosting provider has its own list of pricing plans, where many variables impact the final cost, including:

 

  • The type of hosting you’ll need, ranging from shared hosting, virtual private server, dedicated, WordPress, and cloud.
  • How much will each type of hosting cost.
  • Any add-on costs.

Don’t forget: you’ll also need to design your website—or have one designed for you. Whether you use a template-based option or opt for a custom build, you’ll need a solution that tackles all of your needs and supports your strategy. However, if you decide to build your website yourself, don’t wait until it’s perfect to launch it. Because competition is tough for small businesses, it’s more important to have a live website ready for potential customers rather than no website at all. You’ll have time to refine your build and add more content later.
 

Launch your small business website with Microsoft 365

 

You want to be sure your customers can find you wherever you are—and having the right domain ensures that. Once customers are able to find your site, you need to provide the best experience possible through you and your team’s collaboration, security against cyberthreats, and the ability to be empowered to put their best foot forward.

 

Reimagine your work strategy and help your small business’s productivity with Microsoft 365. As a cost-effective solution that connects employees, safeguards business data, and streamlines operations, Microsoft 365 has the tools you’ll need to manage your business, reduce costs, and grow with you and your small business.

 

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Business Insights and Ideas does not constitute professional tax or financial advice. You should contact your own tax or financial professional to discuss your situation.

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