The Benefits of Acquiring a Domain Name in Africa

Registering a new domain name is an exciting step in expanding your business’s online presence and creating your own personal virtual space. Whilst the online sphere is an international playing field, Africa is often overlooked and underestimated in online authority.

Registering a domain name for Africa located in Africa and abroad does not have to be limited to a .com, and the African continent’s extension .africa is the rising star proving this.

Opting to register a domain name in Africa offers a range of perks which just about every business can benefit from.

What’s In A Name?

With the digital nature of today’s world, it is essential to have an online presence and, more specifically, a focused and meaningful one. With the acquisition of online space for your business to thrive comes a domain name that creates access to a whole new world of digital and other customer markets that will set you apart from your competitors.

Domain Registration In Africa: The Benefits

Domain registration is often limited to other regions that span Europe, Asia and North America. However, registering a domain name in Africa can offer a range of benefits, and here’s why:

Domain Name Availability

It is possible that you have come up with a novel project or business that is looking for a digital identity, but the domain name equivalent has already been taken with a given extension, such as .com. This is where opting for an extension such as .africa gives you an exciting new alternative and even an advantage if you are looking to tap into the African market specifically.

Instead of forfeiting your domain of choice, you can simply opt to register it with a .africa extension. Not only does this secure the exact domain name you want, but it also opens up your business to the African continent and its market.

Increasing Your Brand Visibility

While many users on the African continent use Country Code Top-Level Domains (ccTLD), such as .za, .ng, or .ke, to name a few, .africa opens up other opportunities. This comes down to the extension applying to the whole continent of Africa and all it encompasses.

When looking at expanding into African markets and being noticed by African audiences, having a .africa extension can help increase both your credibility as a brand and your visibility. While .africa calls for broader reach and appeal, it aims to complement all the African ccTLDs and can be used in conjunction with each other. For the continent as a whole, .africa is offered as an African digital landmark putting local businesses on the map.

Improving Your Business’ Credibility

With the tendency of local audiences to prefer businesses with an established local presence, there is also a factor of trust that comes into play. By having a more localised, relatable domain, your audience is more likely to opt for your services and products as they are offered on their continent, if not in their country.

From a more technical standpoint, search engines such as Google prioritise websites with local domains for local search queries. This gives you a further advantage by having a localised domain name that not only appeals to the African continent but represents local search potential too. This helps search engines rank you better as you build online credibility and become an authoritative website and online business.

Creates Room For Business Expansion

As mentioned, there is significant potential to explore the African market and expand into it as a locally registered business or brand. By registering a domain name in Africa, you tap into new markets that could have only known about your business if they came across your local African domain.

With a local domain name, you create a local presence as you establish your brand within the African market, allowing you to build trust and a relationship with local customers engaging with your brand. This can help you hold room in African markets and further expand your customer base & reach as a business.

Ensuring The Protection Of Intellectual Property

If the only perk of an African domain name registration were to be the protection of intellectual property in the African region, that’s already a terrific reason to register a domain name in Africa. Besides all the accompanying perks, this is a major benefit as it allows you to conduct your business with the peace of mind of knowing your intellectual property is not at risk.

Registering a .africa domain name makes it unavailable for others to register, thereby complementing legal protection for your most valuable intellectual property. This could save significant costs and avoid defending infringement of the trademark associated with your domain name.

Brand Protection

Many individuals and businesses opt to purchase a domain with the sole purpose of protecting their brand. This can be with the motivation of simply securing your brand name across all regions or more strategically to protect your brand name and image from general misuse online. This allows you to protect your brand identity and control your online presence.

With the nature of cyber-squatters undergoing fraudulent actions by misleading Internet users, you protect your brand from being registered as a business to fool others. By registering a .africa domain name that is identical to your business and brand name, you hold power in preventing companies or individuals from using your name or brand within the African region.

A More Cost-Effective Option

From a price point, registering your .africa domain name is more cost-effective than its many equivalents in other regions. Registrars of African domains typically offer competitive pricing for a service that achieves the same, if not better, results for businesses when done correctly. This provides a substantial advantage for smaller businesses, such as start-ups, with limited budgets and finances to spare.

Registering your domain name in African countries may also incur lower charges as they usually have lower domain registration fees in comparison to other regions. This makes the process and outcome more appealing for entrepreneurs and start-ups to establish their online presence at a more affordable rate.

More Local SEO Opportunity

With the focus on Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and higher rankings in local search results, having a .africa domain name will make all the difference.

Say you have a business in South Africa, and your domain name has a .za extension; you’re more likely to appear in local search results of those searching for businesses in South Africa. In the long run, this creates further opportunity as more targeted traffic is driven to your website and more leads learn about your brand and its local online presence. This then leads to higher conversions and sales as more customers are acquired and retained.

The same concept goes for .africa; when looking to expand and be seen in other African countries’ search results, the .africa domain name registration offers you a competitive edge.

Registry Africa: A Little About Us

Registry Africa is an African company that provides a truly African-grown domain name management platform that enables ICANN-accredited registrars to make the .africa domain name registration process in Africa more accessible. With one convenient platform, we give access globally to the African digital landmark that is .africa and all the benefits it brings with it. It is a subsidiary of ZA Central Registry (ZACR), which is a non-profit organisation that manages a few other TLD .joburg, .capetown, and .durban, collectively known as the ZACities

.africa is an African initiative created by Africans for Africans, providing a unique identity for businesses across the continent. This unique domain extension is for individuals, businesses, and organisations looking to unlock local, regional and global potential to enter the African market.

Putting Africa On The Map

Registering a .africa domain name can offer a range of benefits, including the perks of local SEO, improving your brand’s visibility & credibility, and offering a more cost-effective option for domain name registrations. For businesses looking to expand into Africa, or even for smaller players and entrepreneurs in a given industry, registering a domain in Africa helps ensure the protection of intellectual property.

If you are a business or individual looking to establish an online presence in Africa, consider registering a domain name with the local .africa extension. Registry Africa continues to be a service provider of choice in helping businesses achieve seamless brand expansion and domain registration throughout the African continent. Whether an international or African brand, we can help you make your African mark today. To learn more, explore our website or contact us for more information.