WHAT IS A
DOMAIN NAME?

A domain name locates an organization or entity on the Internet. Everything on the Internet works because it has an address to link you to. Much like how your telephone works with a phone number and the mail is delivered to the address written on the envelope. Similarly, there is an address associated with your computer and server where a website is sited and where you set your email address. These addresses that get internet traffic to go to are called IP addresses. An IP address is a series of digits and sometimes letters with decimal points or colons. It is for our computers and smart phones to read to locate the server where a website is located.

It is not easy for a human to read and remember an IP address! Imagine trying to remember and type 101.92.53.056 in your browser to reach a particular website? And repeating several numeric combinations just to reach other websites? Most people's brains just don't store numbers that way!

A worded address would make it easier to remember and relate to. An example would be www.prettygarden.sg, which would make more sense to a person. A domain name is simply the front-end display for the IP address.

WHY DO
YOU NEED A
DOMAIN NAME?



A domain name leads clients or potential clients to your website. It is therefore important to choose an appropriate name.

A domain name also helps put a professional touch to your emails, as opposed to free email names. Due to heavy subscription to free email providers such as gmail or hotmail, your chosen name is seldom available. Most often, alternative names are suggested with numbers at the end of your original choice. For example, [email protected] is suggested as [email protected] is already used. When such an email address is used for business purposes, it does not give a professional image.

Some of the considerations when choosing a domain name are :
~ A catchy and meaningful name that your user is able to relate to your business or activity. An example would be prettygarment.com.sg as a name that can relate a user to a clothing brand or shop.
~ Short domain names are easier to remember.
~ Your domain name can be your branding and marketing tool. It should be easy to remember and not easily confused or misspelt. Would you be able to remember how to spell and type correctly with names like dusseldorfoldtowntour.com.sg?

Multiple variations are recommended to ensure your name is not duplicated and to avoid customer confusion if another entity or competitor uses a domain name similar to yours. The variations to consider could be :
~ Variation of names such as assist.com.sg, assisting.com.sg
~ Variation in suffixes such as prettygarment.com.sg and prettygarment.sg

A new trend is using special meaning single character or numbers for domain name. SGNIC offers a list of .sg premium names such as single alphabet like "A.sg", numbers of "8", "101", "77777", or single-character Chinese domain names.

WHAT IS THE
ROLE OF
A DOMAIN NAME?

A domain name is an online address

A domain name is the identification used on the Internet to locate your website or email address. The name most often reflects your business type, and its location on the Internet if it is using a local country based suffix like ".sg" meaning Singapore.

A domain name is business entity's online trademark/identity

A domain name is considered your online brand identity. If your company's name is Mr Thumb handyman, you might want your domain name to be mrthumb.com.sg.

A domain name is one of the most significant means of branding. Often, business entities make the mistake of conceptualizing their entire go-to-market strategy but neglect or delay the registration of their domain name to the last minute. If their desired domain name has already been taken up, unfavorable compromises may need to be made with alternative names or in worst case scenarios, to adopt a second choice name for the website of the entity. This might have a long term impact when clients and associates are confused with an unmatched domain name of the company. It is therefore important that domain names play a significant role in the public relations and promotional aspects of a company, as well as its overall corporate identity.

A domain name identifies the entity to the country when a country-level extension is used

Country level extensions would help to point out the locality of country the entity is based in. With that kind of recognition, it helps to boost the confidence in the origin of the entity and its products. When a user sees rattanfurniture.com.sg and rattanfurniture.com, it is highly probable that the earlier domain name will lead to an entity that has a presence in Singapore. The latter domain name, on the other hand, could be a foreign located service that is not available in Singapore.

A domain name helps to improve click-through rates (CTR)

Domain names that match your target keywords do offer some benefits in search engine optimization. For example, more people are likely to click on your website link if it matches their search subject. So, instead of just keywords, you should choose names that are also relevant to your business. An example is 'towservice.com.sg' for a car towing service.

WHO NEEDS A
DOMAIN NAME?

Usually, a domain name is used to locate a website and email. A website can be used for promoting and providing information about a business, or for interaction and sharing of information within interest groups, between social circles of various types and even for students.

For business entities, it is undeniably crucial for corporate information, products and service listings, event sign-ups, orders, bookings and requests. Because of the Internet's high penetration, wide reach and speed, many business have also harnessed it to grow their e-commerce services and build their customer base.

Based on the Infocomm Annual Survey* on a focus group of 5,000 Singapore residents, in 2012, there were more than 90% of residents with access to the Internet. More than 50% of residents with Internet access made an online purchase in 2012. Based on the upward trend for the last 10 years, the percentage of online shoppers is expected to grow.


* Annual Survey on Infocomm Usage in Households and by Individuals for 2012

WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF DOMAIN NAMES?





There are several types of domain names. The most common and generic ones are the Top Level Domains (TLD) such as .com, .net, .org. Each of these TLDs has its own specific purpose of use such as .com being for businesses, .org for organisations, and .net for Internet providers. These generic TLDs are sometimes referred to as gTLDs.

Each country also has its own TLD which is known as a ccTLD (Country-Code Top Level Domain). These ccTLDs are represented in two-letter combinations. Some examples include .sg for Singapore, .my for Malaysia, .jp for Japan, and many more. Some ccTLDs have registration restrictions, but some others can be registered by almost anyone in the world. There are also Internationalised TLDs or IDNs which are TLDs for multilingual Internet that use different language scripts, beyond letters (a to z), digits (0 to 9) and hyphen (-). Examples of such are Arabic, Russian, Chinese, Tamil etc.

When a domain name is required, the usual TLDs people think of are .com or .org etc. Many people are surprised to find out that there are other extensions available including specific-purpose ones such as .mobi for mobile websites.

The latest development in domain names is the New gTLD programme. This programme allows qualified applicants to apply and manage specific TLDs in their own business names, city names, interest or hobby. Examples are .kerryhotels, .osaka, .fish etc.

More discussion can be found in the later section under ".SG Domain Name".

WHO IS IN CHARGE OF DOMAIN NAMES?

The whole system that allows domain name resolution is overseen by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). ICANN is a privately operated, not-for-profit corporation formed in the late 1990s. Operating under ICANN is the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) which coordinates the various global resources for the resolution of IP addresses.

For the ccTLDs, they are managed by the respective appointed Registries for each country. The registry will manage the central directory that holds the information pertaining to each domain name under the country code. The central directory is for computers on the internet to look-up the necessary information to find your website. The registries will also administer the rules of registration of domain names under the country code.

In Singapore, the country code ".sg", is administered by the Singapore Network Information Centre (SGNIC). All processes related to domain registration through accredited registrars are overseen by SGNIC.

HOW DO YOU
CHOOSE AND
REGISTER A
DOMAIN NAME?

In Singapore, individuals, organizations or business entities who are interested in obtaining a domain name could approach SGNIC's accredited registrars to do so.

Guidelines to choosing a good domain name:
1. Your domain name should relate to the name of your business entity, business activity, and the product or brand name.
2. Short domain names are easier to remember.
3. Good domain names can be a combination of meaningful and descriptive words e.g. "officefurniture.sg".
4. Your domain name can be your branding and marketing tool. It should be easy to remember and not easily confused or misspelt.
Select the extension or suffixes that best suits your business type or usage. If you qualify, you may choose the third level extension such as edu.sg for educational institution, or org.sg for non-profit organization registered with the Registry of Societies in Singapore.
Determine how long you would like to keep your domain name. Please note that the minimum period of registration is one year, and the length of renewal after registration varies according to the rules of the ccTLDs or TLDs. For .sg names the maximum term of renewal is for 2 years at the time of registration.
To register a .sg name, approach an SGNIC accredited registrar with your request.. The registrar will be able to guide you in the relevant procedures and processes. Alternatively you may run your chosen name through the WHOIS check (a database of domain names already registered and details of its registration) for its availability. In the event that your desired domain name has been taken by another entity or person depending on extension, you could consider trying another name.