For your business4 min read

What is a domain name and do you really need one?

A domain name is your website address — yourbusiness.com. Here's what it is, why it matters, how much it costs, and whether you need one right away.

Step-by-step

What a domain name actually is

A domain name is the address people type into a browser to reach your website — like adviita.com or johnsplumbing.co.uk. Without a custom domain, your website sits on the platform's domain — yoursite.wix.com or yourname.adviita.com. A custom domain is just a shorter, more memorable address that you own. Technically, it points to the same website — it's just a label that's yours rather than theirs.

The difference between a domain and hosting

Hosting is the service that stores your website files and makes them accessible on the internet. A domain is the address that points to those files. They're separate things that work together. Most website builders (Adviita, Wix, Squarespace) include hosting in their plans. You typically buy a domain separately from a registrar — GoDaddy, Namecheap, Google Domains, or Cloudflare — and then connect it to your website builder. Think of hosting as the building, and the domain as the street address.

How much does a domain name cost?

A .com domain costs roughly £10–£15 per year (around $12–$15 USD or ₹900–₹1,200 INR). A .co.uk domain costs about £5–£10 per year. Some registrars offer the first year heavily discounted — always check the renewal price, which is the price you'll actually pay long-term. Cloudflare Registrar and Porkbun are known for transparent, low markup pricing. GoDaddy and Namecheap often have good first-year deals that renew higher.

Do you need a domain right away?

No. You can get a real, working, shareable website on a free plan with a platform subdomain and it costs nothing. Many businesses run for months on a free subdomain link before deciding to upgrade. A custom domain matters most when: you're putting your website address on physical materials like business cards or vehicle wraps, you're serious about ranking on Google locally (custom domains rank better), or you want to look established rather than 'just starting out'.

How to choose a good domain name

Your best option is yourbusinessname.com — simple, memorable, exactly what customers expect. If that's taken, try: adding your city (londondoggrooming.com), adding your trade (janesbakery.co.uk), or using a slightly different TLD (.co.uk for UK businesses). Avoid hyphens (hard to say out loud), numbers (confusing to type), and names that are hard to spell. If your business name is long, a shorter version is fine — most people will type it rather than read it off a business card.

How to connect a domain to your Adviita site

Buy your domain from any registrar. In your Adviita dashboard, go to Settings > Domain and follow the instructions — you'll add two DNS records (usually a CNAME or A record) provided by Adviita to your registrar's DNS settings. It typically takes 15–30 minutes to propagate, and your custom domain will be live. The full step-by-step is in the custom domain guide.

Tips & best practices

▸Buy your domain before someone else does — especially if your business name is distinctive. Domains are cheap to hold even if you're not using them yet.
▸Stick with .com or your country's ccTLD (.co.uk, .in, .com.au). Most customers expect one of these and will add .com automatically if they're trying to find your site.
▸Don't buy a domain from your website builder if you can avoid it — you'll have less flexibility if you ever want to move to a different platform. Buy it from an independent registrar and connect it.

Common questions

Can I use a free subdomain and still rank on Google?

Yes — free subdomain URLs can rank on Google. But custom domains tend to rank better for local search over time because they're seen as more established and authoritative. If ranking on Google is a priority, a custom domain is worth the £10–£15/year it costs.

What happens if I forget to renew my domain?

Your website and email (if you use a custom domain email) stop working. Most registrars send reminder emails before expiry. You usually have a grace period of 30–60 days to renew before the domain is released for anyone to buy. Set a calendar reminder or enable auto-renewal.

Is .com or .co.uk better for a UK business?

For a UK-only service business, .co.uk is fine and often preferred by local customers. For a business that serves international clients or might expand beyond the UK, .com is worth the slightly higher cost. If you can get both, buy both and point them both at the same website.