Domains, hosting and business email explained
Domain
Your domain is your address on the internet, such as yourbusiness.com or yourbusiness.in. You rent it every year from a registrar such as GoDaddy, Hostinger or Namecheap.
- Register it in your business's name, with an email you control.
- Turn on auto-renew. An expired domain takes your website and email down with it.
- .com and .in are the most familiar to Indian buyers.
Hosting
Hosting is where your website's files live. Options range from simple shared hosting to modern platforms that serve your site from many locations for speed.
What matters for a business website:
- Speed on mobile networks
- Security: SSL certificate (the padlock), regular updates and backups
- Uptime: the site should rarely be down
Business email
An address like you@yourbusiness.com looks more credible than a free Gmail address, especially to corporate and export buyers. Google Workspace and Zoho Mail are common choices.
Set up the DNS records your email provider asks for (SPF, DKIM and DMARC) so your emails don't land in spam.
Who should hold the logins?
The business owner, or a shared business email, never only the developer or agency. See Ownership and access.
More in Websites
- How to structure a product catalogue sheet for your websiteA column template for product data that works for websites, AI assistants and marketplaces.
- Product photo guidelines for websites and adsSizes, angles, backgrounds and file naming that make product photos load fast and sell better.
- Search engine basics for business ownersHow Google decides which websites to show, and what you can influence.
- Updating your website yourselfWhat your team can safely change, and when to ask us.
- How to verify your domain in Google Search ConsoleStep-by-step domain verification and the first things to do after verifying.