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Business Domain Names: Everything You Need to Know
Your domain name choice is important for several reasons. Here's how to ensure you choose the right domain name for your business.
Written by: Mark Fairlie, Senior AnalystUpdated Mar 27, 2025
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Table of Contents
A business domain name is like online real estate: It’s where your brand makes sales, attracts potential customers, and builds your expertise and authority.
For these reasons, choosing the right business domain name is crucial. We’ll explain more about domain names, answer frequently asked questions, and share tips and best practices to help ensure you select the best possible domain name to represent your brand.
Did You Know?
The best website builders and design services include SEO optimization tools that can help your website rank higher on search engine results pages.
What is a business domain name?
A business domain name is the unique web address for your business website; it’s what users enter into their web browser to visit your site.
A domain name replaces an IP address, which is a complex, hard-to-memorize string of numbers assigned to each website. A business domain name includes the portion unique to your business and the extension (or suffix), such as .com, .net or .org. These suffixes are known as top-level domains (TLDs).
How do you get a business domain name?
Obtaining a business domain name is a straightforward process that includes the following steps:
- Choosing a distinctive domain name for your business
- Purchasing it from a domain registrar
You can often buy a domain from your web hosting company, since website builders frequently double as domain name registrars. In fact, the initial domain registration process and website hosting steps often occur simultaneously when you launch your business website.
Tip
When you're choosing a web hosting company, consider whether it includes free domains, domain privacy protection, and email hosting via your chosen domain.
Tips for choosing a domain name
The right domain name will help customers find your business online. Here are a few tips to help you choose the right one:
- Make it short and easy to type. Crystal Grave, founder and web designer at West Cove Creative, advised keeping the user experience in mind. After all, no one wants to enter a complex string of characters. “Keep it short, simple and easy to remember,” Grave recommended.
- Keep it on-brand and memorable. Your goal is to help your customers find you online, so it’s important for your domain name to be simple and reflect your brand. “Your domain name is an investment,” said Sage Zaree, CEO of media agency Rehab Media Group. “Choose one that’s simple, memorable and reflective of your vision to set a strong foundation for your digital presence.”
- Focus on keywords. Include keywords related to your business. “If your business name is long, opt for the key part rather than the full name,” Grave recommended.
- Keep your audience in mind. Target a local audience if relevant and practical.
- Avoid trademarks or similar domain names. Before finalizing your domain, conduct a trademark search to ensure the name doesn’t infringe on existing trademarks. You want to avoid legal issues and ensure you select a unique domain name.
- Consider future growth. Joe Warnimont, a security and technical expert for HostingAdvice, pointed out that your domain name has to grow with your business. “Choose one that will remain suitable as your business grows and sounds good when people say it,” Warnimont advised.
- Be careful with spelling. Don’t be tempted to use cute misspellings, and do your best to avoid altered versions of common names. “Do your best to avoid misspellings of common names,” Warnimont cautioned.
- Test your domain name. Windy Pierre, growth marketer at domain and hosting specialists Mad-ez Domains, noted that it’s essential to test your domain name. “Test your chosen domain with potential users to ensure it resonates and is easy to recall,” Pierre advised.
- Make it official. Purchase your domain name as soon as you decide on it.
Tip
After you've registered your trademark, remember to renew it on time to inform the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that the trademark is still in active use. Also, regularly monitor the directory to detect whether any other firms have registered your trademark, and take action if they do.
Domain name generators can be helpful if you’re struggling to choose the right option. However, even the best domain-name tools can’t account for the most important considerations in distinguishing your business online: remaining authentic to your brand, products and services; and making it easy for your customers to find your website.
FYI
Business owners should choose branded email addresses over Gmail and other free options to showcase their brand and establish credibility with customers.
FAQs about business domain names
Here are answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about domain names.
No, you don't have to buy the same domain name as your registered business name. However, many experts advise doing so whenever possible, for the following reasons:
- It reinforces your brand identity. "A domain name that exactly or closely matches your business name reinforces your brand and reduces customer confusion," Pierre explained.
- It makes things simple for customers. David Janovic, founder and CEO of interior design firm RJ Living, agrees that matching business and domain names is the best option. "I think the domain name needs to match your business name because otherwise, it'll confuse your customers," Janovic explained. "We made sure the domain was free before we bought it so that we wouldn't have to make a tough decision there."
- highstreetplumbing
- highstreetplumbers
You have several options for domain extensions:
- .com: A .com domain extension is always an excellent choice. "By popularity, about 45 percent of global websites use a .com extension for businesses because it's memorable and carries authority," said Iryna Podliesna, a PR and link-building specialist at Collaborator.pro. Grave agreed that .com is the way to go whenever possible. "Hands-down, the .com domain extension is the best — it's the most familiar," Grave noted.
- Country-specific domain extensions: A country-specific domain extension could be a good option, depending on your location. For example, if your business is based in the United Kingdom, you'd use .co.uk. In our above example, this would be "highstreetplumbing.co.uk." Janovic opted for an Australian domain extension. "Since our customer base is only Australian, we decided to go with the .com.au as it helps show relevance to our customers and search engines," Janovic explained.
- .net: If you can't find a .com available for the domain name you want, your next-best option is to choose a .net extension.
- .org: If your business is a nonprofit, try for .org. This extension immediately identifies you as a nonprofit organization and brings credibility.
- Other options: Grave noted that modern companies sometimes choose .io or .co for available, on-brand names. These extensions are particularly popular among startups and tech companies.
Your domain name and its inherent target keywords may assist your SEO strategy, but probably not as much as you might expect. It's much more important to create a high-quality website with a top-rated website builder. Don't stress too much about how the domain name will affect SEO, as there are many other, more effective ways to improve it.
"Your domain name doesn't have a huge impact on SEO, so it's better to choose a domain that makes sense for your brand," explained Taylor Tufano, a digital strategist at online lead gen firm 9Sail.
Ben Duffy, a client development manager at Quirky Digital, agrees. "While an exact match might offer a slight local boost, Google now prioritizes relevance and user experience above all," Duffy noted.
In the vast majority of cases, you should avoid using hyphens and numbers in domain names. You want customers to remember and enter the domain name easily, and hyphens and numbers can make it more difficult.
Warnimont admitted that some successful websites include hyphens and numbers, but he still recommended against the practice. "It seems like a last-ditch effort to get close to a domain that's already taken, which could end up with legal trouble or a situation where users forget to type in the hyphen or number — which sends them to your competitor's website instead," Warnimont cautioned.
Grave said hyphens and numbers can cheapen the look of your domain. "Hyphens and numbers in domain names look unprofessional and are harder to remember," Grave warned. "It's best to stick with a clean, non-hyphenated version."
You should always be absolutely certain you're not registering a domain name for which someone has already submitted a trademark.
Additionally, don't buy a domain name that includes another brand's name (unless you have permission). For example, if you're planning to write golf club reviews on your website, don't buy a domain name like xyzbrandgolfclubreviews.com without the company's approval.
Consult a business lawyer if you have any questions; it's crucial to avoid copyright or trademark conflicts from the start. "Prevention is key," Gruszka-Kierczak noted. "It's much easier to avoid legal issues upfront than to deal with them after your domain is registered."
One of the more significant annoyances about buying domain names is dealing with cybersquatters, also known as domain squatters. These people purchase domain names of popular brands, individuals or trademarked names and "sit" on them, waiting to sell the name back to the rightful owner at a high profit.
You can avoid this issue by securing all of the top-level domains (such as .com, .net or a localized TLD, like .co.uk) at once when you first look to secure your business's domain name. "Register variants of your domain proactively to prevent cybersquatters from capitalizing on your brand's reputation," Pierre advised.
Now that you've bought all of those domain extensions, what are you supposed to do with them? First, select a reputable web hosting company and connect your domain names to their hosting service. You'll then launch your website and obtain a branded email address.
Using our High Street Plumbing example, let's say the main domain name is highstreetplumbing.com. But because you've bought highstreetplumbing.co.uk and highstreetplumbing.net, you have the option of "domain parking" these sites, which means tying them all to your business website's IP address.
That means if a customer is looking for High Street Plumbing and happens to type in highstreetplumbing.co.uk instead of highstreetplumbing.com, they won't get an error page. Instead, they will automatically be redirected to the main website, highstreetplumbing.com.
Domain parking helps protect your brand by preventing others from taking your domain name. It also ensures customers can easily find your business online.
This is another area where being too clever can get you in trouble. Some believe that registering a domain with a slightly misspelled competitor or brand name will win you traffic. However, experts advise against this approach. You want your domain name to be easy to remember and type, and the best way to achieve that is to keep it simple and straightforward.
"Misspelling alternatives used to be popular, but they're generally not worth the hassle today given search engines' improved ability to interpret user intent," Duffy explained.
Grave also cautioned against this practice. "A domain misspelling alternative should not be considered unless you have a strong brand backing it — otherwise, it may just confuse your users."
Janovic said domain names with misspellings are confusing and unnecessary. "If you had to go that way, it means another brand with your name is already out there," Janovic explained. "Choose something unique instead!"
While you might love to see highstreetplumbingbestlondonplumbers.com as a possible domain name, the reality is, the shorter, the better. Consider some of the top websites globally — Google, YouTube, Facebook, Amazon and Wikipedia — which are relatively short and sweet. Experts typically recommend domain names between five and 12 characters because shorter names are easier to remember, type and share. However, if a longer domain accurately reflects your brand and is easy to spell, it can still be effective.
Privacy is a significant concern when you're choosing a domain name. Anyone can perform a WHOIS search, and if WHOIS privacy protection is not enabled, all sorts of information — including home addresses, personal and business email addresses, names and phone numbers — can be displayed for anyone to see.
Some people try to get around that by registering their sites under fake names. However, that may end up violating the terms of service, and the site may be shut down. Avoid this risk by registering for WHOIS privacy protection for your domain names, especially for popular TLDs such as .com, .net and .org.
Additionally, if you need to ensure e-commerce website security for online purchases and credit card transactions, secure an SSL certificate for your domain name. An SSL certificate binds a domain name to a host name while keeping data secure between servers.
Domain name registration typically lasts between one and 10 years. Be sure to note the expiration date and renew the name before then. Any good service provider will start sending notices of pending expiration well in advance, so pay attention.
Exactly what happens after a domain name expires varies by country. Some countries include a grace period, but be sure to check before you buy. With some registries, there is a penalty if you go past the expiration date, which can become expensive once you enter the redemption period.
If you pass this point, the domain can be made available on a first-come-first-served basis, so there is no guarantee that you will get your domain name back. To avoid losing your domain, keep track of your expiration dates and set them to auto-renew if possible.
FYI
If you intend to sell to the European Union, make sure your website is GDPR compliant and helps protect customer data.
Max Freedman contributed to this article.
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Written by: Mark Fairlie, Senior Analyst
Mark Fairlie brings decades of expertise in telecommunications and telemarketing to the forefront as the former business owner of a direct marketing company. Also well-versed in a variety of other B2B topics, such as taxation, investments and cybersecurity, he now advises fellow entrepreneurs on the best business practices.
At business.com, Fairlie covers a range of technology solutions, including CRM software, email and text message marketing services, fleet management services, call center software and more.
With a background in advertising and sales, Fairlie made his mark as the former co-owner of Meridian Delta, which saw a successful transition of ownership in 2015. Through this journey, Fairlie gained invaluable hands-on experience in everything from founding a business to expanding and selling it. Since then, Fairlie has embarked on new ventures, launching a second marketing company and establishing a thriving sole proprietorship.
