Our guide is designed to help both SMEs and large companies with extensive domain portfolios. By following our advice, you will be able to reduce the risks associated with poor domain management that could affect your brand and your company’s reputation.
With the growing importance of the Internet, it is becoming increasingly important for your business to have an online presence. The success of your business depends on whether, how and in what form you have an online presence. Nowadays, not only do most people get their information from online sources, but a large proportion of shopping is also done online. Having an online presence is now particularly important, the most basic form of which is a company website, which makes domains essential. Domains are seen as an important marketing and business tool.
Small businesses typically register just one domain name, while larger companies may build up a portfolio of hundreds of domains. Both of these can be problematic if the domains are not managed properly. Inadequate management will not help your branding and could create more problems for your brand if you inadvertently infringe on trade marks.
Define The Company Policy
The first step in domain management is to define your internal policies! Depending on the nature and goals of your business, you may need to consider several different factors.
Your domain management policy should be aligned with your core business objectives, marketing plans and growth strategies.
Your trade marks should also be aligned with your domain management policy. Be aware of your company’s accepted, pending and planned trade mark applications!
You will also need to identify who will be responsible for domain registration and management. This person will document what domains have been registered, along with their registration dates and terms, and will secure new domains before launching new products or expanding the business into new markets. Rather than assigning this responsibility to one person, create a position within the company that is dedicated to domain management. In this way you can avoid losing access to the domains in the event of a dismissal or termination.
Consider your existing and planned products and services, their names, and, if you are entering foreign markets, their geographical location.
Define your domain redirection procedures. Plan where your domains will point with different country code TLDs and what redirections you have already implemented and plan to implement.
Have a clear position on who will own the domains registered for the company, and who will be the administrative contact and what contact details will be provided. Use this information consistently as it is essentially your WHOIS data.
Before any marketing or PR activity, make sure that the name of the brand, product or service you’re planning to launch is already registered as a domain name. This will prevent your competition from registering the domain before you and hijacking your visitors.
Define and record your legal and IT processes. They may come in handy if there are any questions or disputes regarding your domains.
Harmonise Your Domains
Collect all of the domain names registered by the company, including subsidiaries and departments. If you have a larger company, these domain names may be managed by different registrars, in which case you should transfer them to the same service provider for easier and more transparent management. When choosing a registrar, consider the number of TLDs offered and choose the one that offers the most options for future use.
If you still need domain names for the purposes described above, register them with that registrar! If you notice any discrepancies, standardise and modify WHOIS data and set up automatic renewal for your domains so that you do not lose any domain names in the future due to missed renewals.
Register a Different Version
You should always register more than one domain name. Register your company’s name, brand name(s), product name(s), tagline(s), and also domains with keywords related to your business.
You should also consider registering different versions of these domain names, including variations due to possible misspellings and misunderstandings. Register versions with and without hyphens, with and without accented characters, and singular and plural versions. This will prevent the competition from registering any of these domain names and redirecting your visitors to their websites.
Choose More Than One TLD
You should choose more than one TLD. Register your domains with different country code TLDs, one for each country whose market you want to enter. (e.g. United Kingdom – .uk, Germany – .de, Italy – .it, Romania – .ro, Austria – .at, British Indian Ocean Territory – .io, Switzerland – .ch, Czechia – .cz, Poland – .pl, Hungary – .hu, Spain – .es, France – .fr, The Netherlands – .nl) Don’t forget the most popular endings such as .com, .net, .info, .org, but you can also choose from hundreds of other TLDs that correspond to your industry or activity, such as .business, .art, .health, .team.
The Relationship Between Domain Names and Trade Marks
Domain name law is not very complicated, but there are a few things you should be aware of. Domain registration and trade mark registration are two different processes, but there are some similarities. You can register your domain name as a trade mark by filing an application with the Intellectual Property Office (IPO). But be aware that registering the domain does not mean that you own it forever. If someone has already registered a trade mark using the same word, the domain name will belong to them, too.
To avoid this, you should apply for trade mark registrations relating to your business and register your domain names as soon as possible. You can search for trade marks on the IPO website and check whether the domain name you want to register infringes an existing trade mark. To protect your own trade mark, we recommend that you use Rackhost’s domain monitor service, which will alert you when a domain containing important keywords has been registered, so that you can take the necessary steps in good time if the domain is indeed yours.
Choose The Right Domain Registrar
Choosing the right domain registrar is key. You can improve the domain management process by paying attention to certain services. When choosing a registrar. You should consider the following factors:
- Simple, easy-to-use administrative interface
- Bulk domain registration and renewal
- Number of TLDs
- Payment options
- Customer service contacts
- Availability
- Additional services
- Reliability and reviews
We hope we can help you create a simpler and more efficient domain management process and reduce the risks to your business.