Are you unsure whether the Shopify domain would be great for your online presence? Note that a great domain can make it easier for customers to find your products and services online. However, not all of them can help your business succeed. We made this review to help you decide between the Shopify domain and its alternatives in this post.
Shopify Domain Name: what you need to know
What is a Domain Name?
Domain names are the website addresses that you type into your browser to visit a site hosted by an ISP. It is often used interchangeably with web addresses or URLs (Uniform Resource Locators). A registrable domain name enables you to control its use and allows you to be found online.
Why should you buy a custom domain name?
Since it's easy for you to get one, it's better to have your custom domain name. It makes your brand easily recognizable by customers and helps them remember the website address. As a result, it will likely lead to more customer traffic to your site. Besides, it's easy for people to remember since the URL is short. It will be beneficial to run an e-commerce business since customers can easily find your products online.
How to choose a domain name?
There are essential questions to ask yourself when deciding on a domain name. For instance, you need a regional domain name if your business will only operate in your home country. Also, try to find out the domain names your competitors use and emulate them.
That way, your business can also get to stand out in the regional market. Before you settle on a given domain name, you want to find out if there're social media handles that support it. Through social media, your customers can easily find you.
Find something directly link to your brand name. If it's not available, find something close or link to what you are selling.
Should you buy your domain from Shopify?
According to Shopify, this has been what they recommend because it makes the whole process much easier and ensures that your customers will quickly find your store. However, if you want to use another domain name for any reason, you can also do so as long as you point it to your Shopify site.
Shopify Domain Name: Pros and Cons
Shopify offers many benefits as a platform for eCommerce businesses to build their online stores. While there are no restrictions on your Shopify domain name, some of them might not fulfill your business needs. Here is a list of pros and cons about using one from Shopify.
Pros:
- Shopify is easy to recognize by Google crawler bots and other search engines
- Better ranking on Google search result page
- Manage it directly on Shopify Dashboard
- Easy setup : no code needed
Cons:
- You cannot move the website address later, even with a full refund of your subscription fees.
- It's not possible to transfer the custom domain name you bought from Shopify to another registrar if you decide to stop using it
- It is a little challenging to set up an account with the service provider
- Quite expensive
Shopify Domain Name Alternatives
If you don't want to use Shopify's name for your online store, many alternatives can give your business the same benefits. Also, most of them do not charge you for trial periods or transfer fees. You will keep your domain name if you decide to move your site later. Here are some examples:
Godaddy
Godaddy.com is one of the most popular domain registrars online. They allow you to buy and transfer your domains with no charges on registration and transfers. Also, their features include:
- Free privacy on new domains
- Marketing tools like search engine listings and website promotion
Name Cheap
Namecheap.com is also one of the best options since it doesn't charge any upfront fees, and its support team is amiable. With this service, you will:
- Enjoy a free domain name for life if you transfer over five domains
- Get up to $2.99 off per year on all hosting plans
Ionos
Ionos.com is a new service that provides domain name registration, email hosting, and website building services to more than four million customers worldwide. This service also has the best prices for domain names, plus they offer free .me domains with no strings attached. Additionally, their features include:
- No transfer fees on all domains
- Unlimited email accounts
Google Domains
Google Domains is a domain registration service from Google. The company currently allows users to register .com and .net domains through an interface their bots crawl, which should help your store get a high search engine ranking. Also, there are no fees for transferring existing domains or registering new ones. Other features include:
- One year of Private Registration (which costs $10/year) at no additional cost
- 20% off Premium DNS ($6.99/domain per year instead of the regular price, which is $8.99/domain per year)
- Up to 50% off Sitelock Security Suite ($2.49/month instead of the regular price, which is $4.99/month)
Although using a custom domain name for your business site might be a little more complicated, you will get the following benefits:
- One of the most important advantages is that it will build brand identity and trust among your clients
- Individuals will be able to easily remember your store's name and contact details (which may help you grow your online business)
- Your website will look more professional when compared to other platforms like WordPress
Your Shopify domain name price is $14.99/year, cheaper than most alternatives if you only need the basic features. Therefore, you should consider using a Shopify domain for your online business.
If you don't want to pay for Shopify's domain names, check out the alternatives we've mentioned above. All of them will give you better prices and options than their most famous competitor!
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