We work with a number of Jersey businesses taking their first steps in getting online – and for a new website, the domain name is still a very important marketing consideration. A question that often pops up is “should I use a local .JE or GG domain suffix?” And the first thing we respond is “well, who are your target customers?”
If the objective of your website is to reach a national or global audience, a .co.uk or .com address is the most appropriate. However, if you’re wanting your website to target and be seen as local, having a .je, .org.je or .gg could have some real benefits.
In this short blog post, we’ll take a look at the pros and cons of registering a domain with a Jersey or Guernsey suffix.
Benefits To Channel Island Domain Suffixes:
1. Local Badge of Honour
Having a .je website shows that you are based in Jersey and for many Islanders this could be a real driving point for using your products or services. Do your services provide local knowledge and expertise? Does being located in Jersey support your brand message? Are Islanders your target audience? If the answer is “Yes” to any of these, you have a strong contender for the .je domain.
2. Availability
It’s important to have a web address which is easy for people to find and remember. But good domain names get snapped up pretty swiftly, (sadly, sometimes as a dirty tactic by the competition!). Frustratingly, many of your first choices may already be owned in .co.uk or .com format. But the great news is, .je addresses are pretty abundant.
3. Search Visibility for Locals
Search engine optimisation (SEO) is one of the most powerful digital strategy strings to your Jersey bow. We want your target audiences to find you easily. Having a .je address helps search engines associate you with your geographical location of Jersey – helping to boost your local searchability!
4. Local Llama Support Team
There are some really helpful local businesses on-hand to help with your domain management queries so you can deal with a local team and not a global call centre. This can make the whole process a lot more personal and approachable.
Drawbacks to Channel Island Domain Suffixes
1. .JE And .GGs are Expensive
Much like our property prices, a Channel Island domain comes at a premium compared to the .co.uk or .com options. However, these prices aren’t huge – typically you’d be looking at an annual cost of around £25 to £75 per year depending on the domain registrar you use.
2. Search Visibility Outside of The Islands
While a local domain suffix will make your business more visible for people searching locally, it will do the reverse when people place searches outside of the Channel Islands unless they specifically add the name of the island into their search term e.g. “Web design Jersey”. You may wish to counteract this with some proactive SEO and/or potentially purchase the .co.uk or .com address and redirect to your .je site.
Can I Have Both?
Yes…well in a way. Typically when you buy multiple domains you redirect all the secondary ones to a single primary domain. Having said that if you have audiences or business venues in multiple locations, you might want to consider having different domain addresses for each and offering bespoke content for each – websites can be clever like that!
Summary
So in summary, every business is different. A local charity wanting to promote the fact that their funds support local causes might be best suited to a .je.org domain, whereas an offshore business dealing with clients located around the world would require a more globally appropriate web address.
If you need help deciding which course of action is best for your new site, no probllama – Blue Llama will help you out.
