You have chosen your business name, and you may even have had the sign designed. Then you sat down to look for a domain name for your website and saw the message: this name is taken. Perhaps you have even traded under that name for years.
This is far more common than people think. A domain name is your website's address on the internet (for example yourcompany.com). Every address can belong to only one owner in the world. When a business owner tells me the domain name is already taken, my first advice is not to panic. In this article I explain what to look at first, what your options are and what to avoid.
First, look at the state of the domain name
A name being taken does not mean it is being used. Type the address into your browser and see what opens. There are three possibilities:
- A working website: Another business or person uses the address. Often it is an unrelated business.
- An empty page or a "for sale" note: The address is registered but unused. Some people collect addresses to resell them.
- Nothing opens: The address sits in someone's account without a website. It may be close to expiring, or its owner may have forgotten it.
This check tells you two things: whether contacting the owner is worth it, and whether the owner is a competitor. If someone in your industry and city works under a similar name, insisting on that address would confuse customers. Then another route is wiser.
Option 1: A different ending
The last part of an address is the ending: .com, .net, .org and so on. Most businesses in the US use .com, in the UK .co.uk or .com, and others use an ending of their own country. If the name is taken with .com, another ending may be free.
Be careful, though. Addresses with the same name and a different ending can confuse customers. One person types yourcompany.com, another yourcompany.net. If another business runs the .com version of your name, your emails and customers may drift to that address. Consider this option only if you are sure the other address does not work in your field.
Option 2: A short addition
This is often the most useful route: add a short, meaningful word to the name. The addition can be:
- A city or district: for a dental practice in Leeds, yourcompany-leeds or yourcompanyleeds.
- Your trade: yourcompanydental or yourcompanylaw.
The addition should be short, easy to read and easy to say over the phone. If you hesitate when you read out an address from your business card, the addition is too much. Try it: say the address aloud to a friend and ask them to write it down.
Option 3: Using a hyphen, but carefully
The hyphen (your-company.com) is the first idea most people have, but it has drawbacks.
| Situation | Problem |
|---|---|
| Saying it aloud | You have to say "your hyphen company" |
| Typing it | The customer forgets the hyphen and lands on another site |
| Similarity | If the version without the hyphen belongs to someone else, you feed their traffic |
| Appearance | Long hyphenated addresses can look careless to some customers |
The biggest risk is the third row. If your customer types the address without the hyphen, they reach another company's site. Consider a hyphen only when nothing else is left, and only if the version without it is not used by someone working in your field.
A buying offer and the legal route
Making an offer
If the owner is known, or the address is listed for sale, you can make an offer. Things to keep in mind:
- The owner often holds the address deliberately, so the first reply may be guarded.
- Do not reveal in your first message how badly you want it. An intermediary can keep your identity and budget out of view.
- If you agree, transfer the domain in a safe way. There should be some protection between payment and transfer. Ask the person building your site or a lawyer which method suits you.
Decide your upper limit in advance.
If you have a trademark
If the name is your registered trademark and someone else took it in bad faith, to mislead your customers or to sell it to you, that is a legal matter. But it would not be right for me to give a verdict: the outcome depends on details such as your registration, how the name is used and when it was taken. Speak to a lawyer who specializes in trademarks and domain names. They can tell you whether your case is strong and how the process would work.
One hint: if you have not registered your trademark, your position may be weaker.
Avoid names that are easy to misspell
Some business owners consider taking a similar free name, with a letter swapped or missing. I do not recommend it:
- Customers may misspell it and end up somewhere other than your address.
- If the name is a misspelling of a well-known brand, legal problems can follow.
- On the phone and on business cards you will have to say "it's spelled with this letter" every time.
A good address is short, plain, easy to type and easy to say.
Frequently asked questions
If someone else took my name, is that automatically unfair?
Not always. It depends on how and why the name was taken and on your trademark situation. Only a lawyer can assess that.
Should I keep track of the expiry date when I register a domain?
Yes. Domain names are registered for a period, and if it runs out the address may stop being yours. Note the renewal date in your own calendar and register the domain in your own name.
Is taking another ending enough?
It may work for you, but if someone uses the other address, customers will be confused. First check who owns it.
Which ending should I choose?
For a business serving local customers, an ending from your own country or .com is usually familiar. If you sell abroad, .com may suit better. Describe your business to the person building your site and decide together.
Conclusion
If the domain name you wanted is taken, it is not the end. First look at the state of the address, then consider the simplest solutions such as a short addition or a different ending. Buying and the legal route are longer and less certain. If you are planning a new website, let us choose the name together. You can read more on my website design page.