There are over 1.6 billion websites on the Internet today.

This means that if you’re ready to create a personal or business website, you need to do everything you can to make it easy for your target market to find you online.

You can use your domain name for that purpose. Once your website is up and running, you may want to create sub-domains to further organize your website. You may even be interested in addon domains, which allow you to have more than one website.

But what exactly do all of those terms mean, and why do they matter?

That’s what this post is here to help you learn.

We’ll also fill you in on where you can go to find a domain name registrar, a website host you can trust, and much more.

What Is a Web Domain Name?

First, let’s make sure you understand what a standard website domain name is.

Every website on the Internet has a specific IP address — a string of numbers and dots like 204.92.1124, for example.

However, not only are IP addresses pretty much impossible to remember (imagine having to memorize the IP address of every website you visit each day!), but they’re also long and tedious to type in.

That’s why IP addresses are replaced with domain names — the actual name of your website address. www.google.com is a complete web domain name. So is www.machighway.com.

Your domain name can be a part of your branding strategy, and often it’s simply the name of your company. The right domain name should be catchy, easy to remember, and different from that of your competitors.

Of course, with so many websites out there, your desired domain name may have already been taken by another business. You’ll need to check with a domain name registrar to see if it’s available, and if so, you can claim it.

When you’re coming up with your initial domain name, you’ll also need to consider the suffix, also called the top-level domain or the domain extension.

The most popular top-level domain is “.com,” but you can also choose options like, “.org,” “.edu,” “.biz,” and “.gov.” 

Parked Domains

Before we cover the difference between domain and subdomain websites, let’s quickly talk about parked domains.

Think of these as kind of domain name aliases.

It’s not its own unique website. Instead, it sends visitors to your primary domain name in your cPanel account (AKA, your main and most important website).

This is helpful when you want to buy multiple domain names but still want them to send users to the same website. Many companies also buy parked domains that redirect users to the correct website because of common misspellings when trying to find the main domain name.

What’s a Subdomain?

So, how are domains and subdomains different?

Your website likely has lots of content on it. You have menu options and try to make your site as easy to navigate as is possible, but you want to use subdomains to help you to organize it even better.

Subdomains are unique domain names that organize parts of your website into their own separate webpages.

For example, let’s say your main domain name is www.ilovefishing.com.

Your website has a blog, and to go directly to the blog, users would type in the blog subdomain address “www.blog.ilovefishing.com.” If you had a store on your website, an appropriate subdomain name would be “www.store.ilovefishing.com” or “www.shop.ilovefishing.com.” 

Subdomains can help to improve your overall SEO score.

This is because search engines see them as separate websites that aren’t related to the main domain name. Subdomains can also make it much easier for you to target a niche segment of your market.

You can also organize your website content through a subdirectory. These aren’t separate websites, but they make it easier for users to find specific pages. Subdirectories go at the end of your domain name.

So, they might be things like “www.ilovefishing.com/blog” or “www.ilovefishing.com/forum.” 

What Is an Addon Domain?

Finally, let’s talk about addon domains.

Unlike subdomains and subdirectories, which are part of a larger primary domain name, an addon domain is a new and unique website that you can still handle in the same control panel as all your other domain names.

Maybe, in addition to www.ilovefishing.com, you also want to create a site about hiking, www.ilovehiking.com.

You can control both websites from the same place/panel, but they’re not the same website. Users can’t see that they’re being routed through your fishing website to get to your hiking one, and you’ll still be able to create email accounts and subdomains through your addon domain.

Addon domains make your life much easier.

This is because you don’t have to log onto tons of different accounts in cPanel to update and manage multiple websites.

The files of your addon domains will also be on the same server as your primary domain.

Need Help with Domain Name Registration, Addon Domains, and More?

So, now that you have a better understanding of addon domains, subdomains, and more, you’re ready to bring your website to life.

The only thing standing in your way?

You still need a website hosting company you can trust.

That’s where we come in. In addition to helping you register your domain name, we also offer a variety of hosting options that will help you to get your website up and running.

Reach out to us today to learn more!

Then, get ready to watch your website — and your business — grow.