Getting a business online comes with a small dictionary of new words: domain, hosting, DNS, SSL. They're often explained in technical terms that make simple things sound complicated. This guide explains the one that matters most to get right, your domain name, in plain language.
A domain is your address
A domain name is your business's address on the internet: mokoenaplumbing.co.za, capetownbakery.co.za, sitehub.co.za. It's what people type to find your website, and the part after the @ in your business email address.
It helps to think of three separate things:
- The domain is the address. It tells the internet where to find you.
- The hosting is the building at that address: the computer where your website's files actually live.
- The website is what's inside the building: the pages your customers see.
You can move house (change hosting) and keep your address (your domain). That's why the domain is the part to protect most carefully. It's the one thing customers, Google and your email all depend on staying the same.
.co.za, .com or something else?
The ending of a domain (the bit after the dot) tells people something about you:
- .co.za is South Africa's business domain. It signals a South African business, and it's the most familiar ending to South African customers.
- .com is international. It suits businesses that sell or work across borders.
- Others exist too, such as .africa, .org.za for non-profits, or industry endings, but they're less familiar to most customers.
For most South African small businesses serving local customers, .co.za is the natural choice.
How to choose a good domain
Your domain will be on your website, your email, your vehicle, your invoices and your business cards for years. A few guidelines:
- Match your business name as closely as you can.
- Keep it short and easy to type on a phone.
- Make it easy to spell when you say it out loud. If you have to explain it on the phone ("that's four, the number, then 'u'"), choose something simpler.
- Avoid hyphens and numbers where possible. They're easy to forget and easy to get wrong.
- Consider adding your area or trade if your exact name is taken: mokoenaplumbingdurban.co.za.
- Check it isn't confusingly close to a well-known business or a competitor.
What happens behind the scenes
When a domain is set up, a few technical pieces are put in place. You don't need to manage them yourself, but it helps to know what they are:
- DNS is the internet's address book. It connects your domain to your website and your email.
- SSL is the padlock in the browser. It means information sent to and from your website is encrypted, and browsers warn visitors away from sites without it.
- Email settings connect your domain to your mailbox. SPF and DKIM are settings that prove emails from your domain really come from you, which helps them reach inboxes rather than spam folders.
- Google Search Console is Google's free tool that shows how your website appears in Google search. Linking your domain to it lets you see which searches you show up for.
Renewals: the part not to forget
A domain isn't bought once and owned forever. It's registered for a period and has to be renewed. If a renewal is missed, the domain can expire, your website and email stop working, and in the worst case someone else can register it. That's why it's worth having renewals handled for you, or at least a clear reminder.
What SiteHub includes when it sets up your domain
A new domain. With Website Launch, SiteHub registers a .co.za domain for your business and manages it for you, including the yearly renewal, which is covered by your annual renewal. If you'd like a different ending, such as .com or .africa, or a premium .co.za name, ask us: it can usually be done, and there may be an additional cost.
A domain you already own. If you already have a domain, you keep it. We connect it to your new website by pointing it to our servers (changing its nameservers), at no charge.
Everything set up for you:
- DNS, connecting your domain to your website and email
- SSL, the secure padlock, for your website
- One business email mailbox on your domain, such as info@yourbusiness.co.za
- SPF and DKIM, so your emails are authenticated
- Your domain linked to Google Search Console
If you ever leave SiteHub, your domain is yours to take with you. SiteHub registers and manages it on your behalf while you're with us, and if you move on, we transfer it to you.
Every SiteHub website is also built with SEO foundations as standard: page titles and descriptions, a sitemap, structured business information that tells Google who you are and where, image descriptions and a mobile-friendly design. You see a live preview of your website before you pay anything, and the calculator shows what your setup would cost.