How to choose and register a domain name for a small business

A domain is a small, one-off decision that's surprisingly annoying to unwind once customers, print materials and search rankings have all settled around it. A few minutes of care up front avoids most of the regret.

What actually matters when picking one

• Match the actual trading name. A domain that doesn't match what's on the shopfront or the invoice creates a small doubt every time someone types it in.
• Keep it short and easy to say out loud. If it has to be spelled out over the phone, it's already lost something.
• Avoid hyphens and numbers where a plain version is available — they're easy to mistype and easy to mishear.
• Say it before you buy it. Read the domain aloud, with no spaces, to check it doesn't accidentally spell something else once the words run together.

Which extension to use

.co.uk is the clearer, more expected choice for a business that only trades in the UK, and it's often available even when the matching .com is already taken by someone unrelated elsewhere in the world. .com makes more sense for a business expecting customers outside the UK, or one that wants the single most globally recognised extension. Avoid unfamiliar extensions purely because they're cheap — a customer trusts what looks like a normal web address.

Buy it in the business's name, not yours

If someone else — a freelancer, a relative, an agency — is buying it on the business's behalf, the registrant details must still be the business's own. A domain registered under someone else's account is a domain the business cannot renew, move, or point at a different host without that person's active cooperation, indefinitely. See our guide on going from a folder of code to a live site for exactly where this decision sits in the wider process.

Registering it

Traps that are expensive to undo

• Letting it lapse. An expired domain typically enters a grace period and can then be released for anyone to register — including someone who noticed it lapsed and wants it specifically.
• Registering it to the wrong person. Covered above, and the single most common regret.
• Choosing a name too close to a trademarked one. Worth a quick search of existing trademarks in the same trade before committing, especially for anything beyond a purely local business.
• Buying every extension "just in case." Reasonable for a business with real brand value to protect; unnecessary cost for most small local businesses starting out.