To .au or not .au, that is the question!
Some recent changes to Australian-based domain names have been causing a bit of a ‘stir’ in recent months, prompting me to whip up a quick article. Hopefully, this will give you the info, insights and recommendations to make an informed decision.
First up, what is it?
.auDA, the body in charge of Australian domain names, in all of its wisdom, has decided to offer a new domain name extension, being .au. For example, wolfiq.au vs wolfiq.com.au. These new domains can be purchased by anyone with a connection to Australia, regardless of whether they have an Australian business or not. The official launch date was 24 March 2022.
Why would I choose .au over .com.au?
Good question. Besides being shorter in length, there is no obvious advantage for business owners. The .au domains will look more succinct in marketing materials. However, they come with the inherent risk of our targeted audiences not being familiar with this new format. They may automatically default to typing in .com.au (I know I’m guilty of doing this!).
So what’s all of the fuss about then?
The fuss is coming from brand protection. Let’s say I have a website domain such as heathsofficecleaning.com.au, and one of my competitors wants to muscle in our brand, reputation and market share. After 20 September, they could theoretically register heathsofficecleaning.au, create a website, maybe some social media pages and Google Ads and do their best to intercept our enquires and effectively platform from our good standing in the market. Sure, we would have some grounds for legal recourse, but who has the time or $$$ to deal with that?
What do we recommend?
This hurts. It really does, but, in short, I say buy the new name to avoid potential issues down the track. A small investment now will act as insurance against future issues. I suspect a small subset of evil ‘web guys’ out there will start to buy up any domain names of existing businesses that are available. They will then hold these names at ransom and offer to sell them back to the business owners for an inflated price. The primary law around domain names is possession; if you own it, you basically have all of the rights.
How do we make sure we are protected?
There are two options:
Option 1, ‘DIY’
Head to an approved domain name registrar and go through the process below yourself.
Option 2, ‘Yes, please’
Allow us to do the heavy lifting for you and get it right the first time. Here’s our process:
- Confirm your business’s eligibility to buy the .au versions of your domain name(s).
- Collect your authorisation codes from the auDA registry.
- Apply for the new domain names.
- Once registered, set up the new domain names and redirect them to your primary domain name, such as wolfiq.com.au.
Our fee for this process is $100 + $27.50/year for the annual renewals of the .au domain name.
Some recent changes to Australian-based domain names have been causing a bit of a ‘stir’ in recent months, prompting me to whip up a quick article. Hopefully, this will give you the info, insights and recommendations to make an informed decision.
First up, what is it?
.auDA, the body in charge of Australian domain names, in all of its wisdom, has decided to offer a new domain name extension, being .au. For example, wolfiq.au vs wolfiq.com.au. These new domains can be purchased by anyone with a connection to Australia, regardless of whether they have an Australian business or not. The official launch date was 24 March 2022.
Why would I choose .au over .com.au?
Good question. Besides being shorter in length, there is no obvious advantage for business owners. The .au domains will look more succinct in marketing materials. However, they come with the inherent risk of our targeted audiences not being familiar with this new format. They may automatically default to typing in .com.au (I know I’m guilty of doing this!).
So what’s all of the fuss about then?
The fuss is coming from brand protection. Let’s say I have a website domain such as heathsofficecleaning.com.au, and one of my competitors wants to muscle in our brand, reputation and market share. After 20 September, they could theoretically register heathsofficecleaning.au, create a website, maybe some social media pages and Google Ads and do their best to intercept our enquires and effectively platform from our good standing in the market. Sure, we would have some grounds for legal recourse, but who has the time or $$$ to deal with that?
What do we recommend?
This hurts. It really does, but, in short, I say buy the new name to avoid potential issues down the track. A small investment now will act as insurance against future issues. I suspect a small subset of evil ‘web guys’ out there will start to buy up any domain names of existing businesses that are available. They will then hold these names at ransom and offer to sell them back to the business owners for an inflated price. The primary law around domain names is possession; if you own it, you basically have all of the rights.
How do we make sure we are protected?
There are two options:
Option 1, ‘DIY’
Head to an approved domain name registrar and go through the process below yourself.
Option 2, ‘Yes, please’
Allow us to do the heavy lifting for you and get it right the first time. Here’s our process:
- Confirm your business’s eligibility to buy the .au versions of your domain name(s).
- Collect your authorisation codes from the auDA registry.
- Apply for the new domain names.
- Once registered, set up the new domain names and redirect them to your primary domain name, such as wolfiq.com.au.
Our fee for this process is $100 + $27.50/year for the annual renewals of the .au domain name.
To get started, simply complete the form below:
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Regardless of who completes this setup, I highly recommend you secure your .au domain to avoid issues down the track. This needs to be done by 20 September 2022.
Any questions, feel free to reach out to us at support@wolfiq.com.au or to call 1300 072 134.
