As someone that has worked for a domain registrar for a very long time, I’ve accumulated my fair share of domain names over the years. An idea strikes and you register a domain, then your idea ends up not working out or life gets in the way and you don’t have time to capitalize on your original idea. But, you still don’t want to let that domain name go. My small pile of domains and I totally understand.
So, what are some options to put those domains to use? I’m glad you asked.
7 ways to make your domain name work for you
Launch a website.
Accept payments.
Brand your email.
Forward it to another site.
Customize your link in bio.
Park it.
Sell it!
1. Launch a website
Hang on a minute, you might be saying. If I was going to launch a website with that dusty domain, I would’ve already done it. Who has the time? Easy, make it a landing page.
Websites don’t have to be super detailed or involved. A simple landing page can be used to point visitors to your contact information or a contact form. Or if you have a bit more time, you can build a landing page that is meant to encourage visitors to complete a specific task.
Related: Improve your conversion rates with these key landing page elements
What if you’re ready to get your original idea up and running, though? Building a business website or an ecommerce website doesn’t have to be a long and drawn-out struggle. GoDaddy Websites + Marketing is a powerful site builder that can help you build a beautiful website from a single dashboard.
Related: Tips to boost sales with Websites + Marketing
2. Accept payments
If you’re running a small in-person business and currently don’t have time for a website, Online Pay Links is a great way to use your domain for your business. Online Pay Links is a feature of GoDaddy Payments that allows you to connect your domain name to your Payments account so that you can collect payment from your customers without a website.
Interested in this option? Take a look at our help guide here.
3. Brand your email
With a domain name, you can stand out from the crowd by using your domain name to create an email address. Whether you’re trying to brand your business or if you simply can’t find a username you like on the free email services, your domain can help you stand out.
In addition, domain-based email services like Microsoft 365 offer far more robust security features than free email providers.
Related: How to use a custom domain name for email with GoDaddy
4. Forward it to another site
Do you have an active site somewhere already? Or maybe you want an easy way to point people to your Instagram account? You can forward your domain there.
With social media becoming increasingly ubiquitous, it can be difficult for people to find the right profile. A domain simplifies that process and ensures that visitors land on the correct page.
Related: Forward my GoDaddy domain
If you have multiple social media profiles that you’d like to direct people to, subdomain forwarding might be a better option.
So, for example:
facebook.example.com
instagram.example.com
linkedin.example.com
With subdomains, the options are endless.
5. Customize your link in bio
If you’re active on social media, or you run a business via your social media profile, you’re likely familiar with the concept of a link in bio. This feature allows social media users to provide a link tree for their users to other locations on the internet.
There are URL shorteners you can use for these, but you should consider using your domain name instead to solidify your branding online.
Related: Make the most of your Link in Bio with GoDaddy
6. Park it
If you’re genuinely not ready to use your domain, why not make your domain work for you? CashParking is a great option.
CashParking allows you to earn money on your parked domain names. If you park your domains with a CashParking account, our advertising partner places context-relevant advertisements on your page.
Take a look at this guide for more information on CashParking.
7. Sell it!
Maybe you’ve realized that you’re really not going to use the domain that you purchased. You could simply let it expire, or you could try selling your domain name.
Related: List your unused domains for sale quickly and easily at no cost
For a full breakdown of how to sell your domain names, check out our Help Center for more information.
Don’t let your domains sit idle
If you’ve paid for your domain name, don’t let them sit and collect dust. Make your domain names work for you.
The post Not sure what to do with your domain name? 7 ways to make it work for you appeared first on GoDaddy Blog.
