What Is A Parked Domain And Why Is It Needed?
One of the first and most important steps in creating a website is choosing a domain name. A domain is an online identifier that should match the brand as closely as possible. However, getting a really good domain is not an easy task. When buying a domain name, it disappears from the database of available ones. You can bargain for an already purchased domain by offering a higher price.
Let’s say you managed to find a suitable domain name. However, you don’t have a website yet. Congratulations, you have become the owner of the parked domain. Such domain names are beneficial for both beginners and experienced webmasters. In this article, we will explain in more detail what a parked domain is, how to use it, and how to specify it in your hosting profile.
WHAT IS A PARKED DOMAIN?
A parked domain is a domain name that has already been registered but is not being used by hosting for a particular site or email. To put it simply, this is a purchased domain name that is not in use yet. It is “parked” (reserved) for future use.
Most of the well-known domains link to a specific web page. For example, the hubspot.com domain links to the home page of the HubSpot site. A parked domain links to the “parked domain” page, “but this domain” page, or an advertisement page. Oftentimes, a parked domain doesn’t link to any page. In the latter case, when clicking on the link, a page with the error “this site is unavailable” will be displayed.
A parked domain can also link to the same page as the main one. It is usually called the “alias” of the main domain name.
WHY PARKED DOMAIN NAMES?
If you don’t use a domain, why do you need one then? In fact, webmasters use parked domains for several purposes, which we will discuss below.
1. To keep your valuable domain name
A good domain name that suits a particular site is a very valuable asset. Many webmasters trying to acquire a domain name for a website faced a problem when the best options were already taken. The only way to get a good domain name is to spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars to buy it. That is why many entrepreneurs buy a domain at the early stages of an online project, long before the start of work on creating a website. Given the importance of the role played by a good domain, it should be parked and held until the site is built.
2. To redirect users to the same site through an alternate domain
As mentioned earlier, a parked domain can be used as an alternative to the main one. That is, the parked domain has the same IP address as the main one, and it leads to the same site. Companies often acquire multiple parked domains with similar names. For example, for a site with the main domain product.com, you can register several similar parked domains:
- getproduct.com
- product.org
- product.co
The domains listed above are set as aliases for the main product.com. The main goal is to ensure that a user who has incorrectly remembered the main domain will end up on the correct site. In addition, using multiple parked domains with similar names can improve the effectiveness of marketing campaigns.
Reserving aliases as alternate domain names is an effective way to prevent cybersquatting. In simple words, cybersquatting is the deliberate acquisition of various variations of the main domain name of a particular company for their subsequent sale to the same company. Since cybersquatters can use alternative domains as they see fit, this can ultimately undermine the credibility of a particular brand. Acquiring several similar domain names at once and connecting them to the site will prevent such problems from arising.
3. For subsequent resale
Since domains are in high demand, many individuals and companies make money by reselling them. However, the domains remain parked. If the ideal domain name for your business is already taken, most likely someone wants to make money by reselling it.
4. To keep the domain until the moment when it expires
If you want to close a site for one reason or another, unlink the domain name from the site’s IP address and save it until expiration. This will prevent anyone from using it until the end of the tenure.
HOW DO I PARK MY DOMAIN?
Would you like to park your domain so that someone else won’t buy it or use it as an alias? The parking process is similar to a regular reservation. First, make sure that a specific domain is available for purchase. The easiest way to check is to enter the domain you are interested in in the URL field in the browser. If a domain does not link to a specific site, chances are it is available for reservation or has already been parked by someone.
The next step is to perform a “WHOIS” search. With the help of ICANN tools, you will find out if a domain is owned by anyone, who owns it, as well as a lot of other useful information. If the perfect domain for your business is already taken, check out the different top-level domains (eg .org, .net, .co, or .io). If the domain is still available for purchase, contact your domain registrar and buy a domain.
After the purchase, the domain is considered to be parked. You can simply renew the domain owner and not use it, or you can link it to a live site (use it as a pseudonym).
How do I create an alias for a domain name?
An alias is an alias for the primary domain name that links to the same content (site) as the primary domain. For example, getproduct.com can serve as an alias for product.com. Regardless of which option the user enters into the address bar of the browser, he will be directed to the same web page. You can set aliases in the server control panel, for example, through cPanel (a popular control panel for hosting accounts on OS Linux). To create an alias via cPanel, follow these steps:
1.Log into your cPanel account.
2. In the main window, under the Domains tab, select the Aliases option.
3. In the text box under the Create New Alias tab, enter the domain alias and click the Add Domain button. As a result, a new parked domain will appear in the list of aliases. You can set up a redirect for each alias, remove any alias.
According to the cPanel hints, for the added alias to work, the new domain must refer to your hosting nameservers. If you do not provide this, the site will not load when navigating to the alias domain.
DOMAIN NAME PARKING SERVICE
Use a domain parking service to cover your domain maintenance costs. This service is free and is offered by many domain name registrars. Plus, it allows you to monetize your domain. The registrar creates an ad page for your domain to link to. The owner and the registrar share the advertising revenue among themselves.
While it is simple and convenient, parking services are not for everyone. This is because your domain will link to an ad page. Anyone who finds out about your company before you launch the site will see this page instead of the expected one. You have no right to decide how many advertisements and what content will be displayed on this page. Ultimately, your business’s reputation can suffer. While domain parking services help cover some of the costs, they should not be considered a long-term solution.
COMPARISON OF ADDON AND PARKED DOMAINS
Finally, let’s take a look at how addon and parked domain names differ from each other. Both of these options are available to cPanel users. Despite the apparent similarities at first glance, addon and parked domain names are used for different purposes.
A parked domain is any domain name that is not associated with any unique website or online service. It may not be associated with a specific page or serve as an alias for the main domain. An addon domain is used to navigate to a separate site that is not linked to other domains. By adding an addon domain to cPanel, you can manage the settings of several different sites through one control panel.
In simple words, parked domains are several variants of one domain for a specific site, while addon domains are different domains for different sites. Both the former and the latter are accessible through a single cPanel.
DO YOU HAVE AN ADDITIONAL DOMAIN? PARK IT
As you can see, there is nothing difficult about the term “parked domain“, since, in fact, this is a registered domain name that has not yet been used. This does not mean that a parked domain is useless. First, you can reserve it until your site needs it. Secondly, with its help, you will “catch” additional traffic (users who have entered a similar domain name by mistake). If you have come up with a unique domain name, and it has not yet been reserved by anyone, do not miss the opportunity – park it. And you will make a decision regarding its further use later.