How to choose a good domain name for your business

Your domain is your website's address: yourbusiness.com. That is why it pays to choose a domain carefully. It is cheap, takes five minutes to register and yet it is one of the hardest decisions to change later. It goes on your business cards, your Google profile, your social media and your email.

These are the keys to choosing it well.

What to look for when you choose a domain

• Short and easy to say. Imagine saying it over the phone: if you have to spell it out, it is too complicated.
• No hyphens or numbers, unless they are part of the business name.
• Close to your trading name. If you are called Serene Clinic, sereneclinic.com beats bestclinicinmanchester.com.
• Future-proof. If you do physiotherapy today but may add pilates tomorrow, do not box yourself in with a name that is too narrow.

.com, country domain or something else?

• Country domains (.co.uk, .de, .fr, .es…) tell people you are local to that country, and there are often more names available. Ideal if your clients are there.
• .com is the most recognised worldwide. Good if you work across borders or plan to.
• New extensions (.online, .studio, .shop…) can be original, but many people struggle to remember them and some have expensive renewals.

If you can, register both your country domain and the .com and make one redirect to the other. Nobody can take your name and you do not lose people who type the other one.

What it costs

A .com or most country domains cost around €10–15 a year. Be wary of "first year for €1" offers: look at the renewal price, which is what you will pay from then on.

Whose name it is in: the most important part

The domain must be in your name and in an account you control. It is common for a designer or agency to register it "to save you the hassle" and, years later, the business cannot move or recover it. If you change provider or the relationship sours, your address is in someone else's hands.

That is why at Nueva Página you register the domain yourself: I guide you through it and it stays in your name, whatever happens.

Where to register it

Any well-known registrar will do. Look at:

• The renewal price, not the first-year price.
• Whether you can manage the DNS (the settings that connect the domain to your website and email).
• That they do not charge extra for privacy of your details in the public registry.

Common mistakes when people choose a domain

• Choosing a very long keyword domain ("cheapwebdesignmanchester.com") thinking it helps on Google. Today it barely matters and it looks less trustworthy.
• Forgetting to renew: turn on auto-renewal.
• Having email with one provider and the domain with another without knowing what each does.

Once you have a domain, next comes the website. To see what it would cost, try the cost calculator.

Choose a domain for several countries or languages

If all your clients are in one country, its own extension is a safe bet. However, if you also work abroad, .com is usually the better starting point, because it is recognised everywhere. In addition, one website with several languages on the same domain (yourbusiness.com and yourbusiness.com/es/) usually does better on Google than several separate websites.

Domain registrars are accredited by ICANN, the organisation that coordinates domain names worldwide, so check that yours is. Once you have chosen, the next question is where the website lives: see what is web hosting. What matters most is that the domain is in your name from day one.

Frequently asked questions

Can I change my domain later?

Yes, but it has a cost: redirect the old one to the new one, update cards, profiles and email, and give Google time to catch up.

Does a domain include email?

Not necessarily. The domain lets you have email with your name ([email protected]), but the mailbox is set up separately or forwarded to one you already have.

How do I choose a domain if my name is taken?

Try another extension, add your city or sector naturally (sereneclinicleeds.com) or a verb (booksereneclinic.com), as long as it is still easy to say.

Who pays for the domain?

At Nueva Página you register it yourself, around €10–15 a year, so it stays in your name; I guide you through it. Other costs are in how much a website costs.