News
It’s likely you’ve heard about the .au domains now available in Australia but why is there such a song and dance being made about it?
To begin with, it’s worth covering why a .au domain exists then look at why it’s a worthwhile addition to the digital presence for your business.
Other countries already have direct level domains, Canada for example uses .ca and now, Australians (businesses of course too) have access to our own direct level domain – you guessed it, it’s .au. Direct level domains are as they sound, just a more direct country code whereas in the pastAustralia has only had access to second level domains like .com.au, .gov.au or.net.au
The new addition gives businesses in Australia a shorter domain with less restrictions than the second level domain counterparts.
.au direct .domains are open to anyone with a verified connection to Australia wanting to create or manage an online presence and it’s important to register yours before another party purchases the one most fitting your business.
From March 2022 – September 2022 there was a pre-registration process whereby you could apply for your .au domain before they were officially introduced. Pre-registration was made for businesses to reserve the .au that fit their existing .com.au domain (yourdomain.com.au goes with yourdomain.au).
If you didn’t pre-register, you still may get priority on a domain that fits your business, but don’t delay before you proceed with it…
There is a chance someone else will be able to register the .au you’re after which could leave you with a situation in which you are negotiating with the new owner on a buy-back of the domain. With someone else owning your .au, you may lose valuable web traffic and visibility on search platforms.
As it stands currently, the jury is out on how the .au domain will effect your SEO, but in theory the .au will likely have a more positive implication on your SEO overtime due to the brevity of the domain and the specificity of the country code.
For example, ifsomeone searches for a finance broker in Australia the algorithm will includepreference for location and how appropriate the domain is as part of theresults it displays.
But! And, furtherto this, there is currently no requirement to have an ABN when registering the.au domain, it simply requires a “verified Australian presence”, which doesopen them up to fraudulent activities when compared with their .com.aucounterpart. As you’re likely aware, the .com.au requires an ABN and other specificsthat ensure domain owners actually operate commercial entities in Australia.
With the limitedrestrictions on the purchase of a .au, your SEO ranking COULD be negativelyimpacted if someone else registers and uses the domain for less than desirablepurposes. As we get to understand more about the impact on SEO, we’re beingcautious here … So, here’s what wesuggest is the best course of action:
1: Purchase your.au domain (if you haven’t already)
2: Redirect the .auversion of your domain to your existing domain and monitor results for whichdomain is most frequently visited.
With some timebehind you, you may choose to move everything to .au (email included), but it’simportant to cover all bases first to ensure you don’t hurt your businessbefore the results are in.
From a businessperspective, we understand the importance of a well set up web presence and theimpact it can have on getting and keeping customers.
Although IT isn’tour specialty, some of our partners and clients can help with the process ifyou need it, so feel free to contact the Attune team on 1300 866 113 or send us an email and we can point you in the right direction.
