Your radio domain name ought to be catchy, short, and brandable by making it very unique and relevant.
Domain names not only identify & help users find your radio website, but they have other uses & functions.
From selecting the domain extension (or suffix) to the best practices, here is all you need to know about radio domain names.
Let's get started.
1. Domain Names - The Basics
It's amazing how certain things are taken for granted. Take your street address, which allows packages sent from afar to arrive right at your doorstep. No street address...or any form of directions...chaos would ensue.
The website domain name — for instance "cloudradio.com" — helped you find this blog post. That’s because it acts like a street address that tells your web browser & network the exact route to the server hosting our website.
Remember, websites are HTML & other web files physically stored on actual computers.
The domain name also serves as an identifier. For instance, our domain name tells you the name of our company.
IP address
On the internet, devices are not identified by actual names but with numerical labels called IP addresses.
For instance, when you enter the domain name of any website on the website address bar, it is translated to an IP Address by something called a Domain Name Server.
Did you know that you can access Google.com by entering the following IP Address: 172.217.12.142 in the address bar?
Where can I get a domain name for my radio website?
Before building your radio website, you'll need to purchase your domain name. You need to choose an unique name that's not currently in use.
Domain names are sold by domain name registrars. They are tasked with managing the reservation of domain names. Once you register a particular name as belonging to you, no one else can assume ownership of it.
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) accredits legitimate domain name registrars.
Some of the popular registrars include:
- Domain.com
- NameCheap
- GoDaddy
- HostGator
For instance, here is a quick illustration that entails finding & reserving a domain name:
When you click "search," you'll know if the particular name is available.
Once you purchase your domain name, it is not yours forever. The registrar might cancel your use of the name for a wide range of reasons, particularly if you're using it for something illegal.
Registrars are the real owners of the domain name because they can control it at your expense. It makes it all the more important to go with credible registrars.
What's more, domain names are renewed every year for a fee. Failing to pay the renewal fee might lead to losing access to the name.
2. Radio Domain Name Extensions & Five Best Practices
Each domain name has a suffix (last part). For instance, the suffix of our domain name is ".io"
The most common extension is “.com.” You might have also encountered country code top-level domains such as “.au” (Australia), “.fr” (France), or “.uk” (United Kingdom).
Most radio stations have preferred the .com extension. Some of the reasons why it's preferred include:
- People reason it is easier to remember. As long as the user knows your radio name, the might enter [radio name].com into the browser address bar when finding you.
- They are popular, suitable for any kind of website, and might be easy to sell.
- You can even change your core business and still retain the domain name.
Specific domain extensions for radio websites
FM - It will instantly brand or identify your website as belonging to a radio station.*
Live - Most radio station websites host online stream players that will stream audio content live 24/7. It might also drive people to your website by telling them that you're streaming live content.*
Show - This extension may work particularly well if you're promoting a popular radio show that runs on your station.*
Media - It's not as popular for radio station websites but it's used by artists, designers, media specialists, magazines, and other media.*
org - If you plan on creating a public radio, the .org might be most suited for your cause.*
Five Best practices when choosing a domain name
- Go for a domain name that's easy to brand. It should be unique & very memorable. You should use it as your social media name.
- Choose a domain name that is short with about 6 to 14 characters.
- Users must find it easy to type, spell, and pronounce.
- It's best to avoid having numbers or hyphens as it makes it harder to write.
- Have a long-term view. For instance, if you're name is XYZRadio.com when you start offering podcasts or TV streams, you might be forced to change it.
3. dotRadio domain - Definition & How to get it
What is ".radio?"
Radio stations, internet or terrestrial, got a huge break once the .radio domain extension was introduced.
This new top-level domain has since been used by many new stations, radio professionals, ham radio operators, radio agencies, and organizations concerned with the advancement of radio.
Where to get the .radio extension?
It's easy to obtain your .radio extension.
Just visit register.radio. But there are other authorized resellers. Here is the list of accredited .radio registrars:
- ENTORNO Digital
- portsgroup
- Doman Discount 24
- Webnames.ca
- Named.net
- Ascio