Parked Domains: Reasons Why Your SME Should Own Multiple Domains

In the early days, when starting a business, many business owners jump to secure their domain name even though the website could still be several months away from launching. That’s why Domains.co.za offers FREE domain parking to all our domain customers as a value-added service. This means you can park your domain for as long as you like – even indefinitely – without needing to purchase website hosting.

If you are wondering, why anyone would get a domain name they are not using – this blog is for you. In it, we explore uses for multiple domains and provide tips to come up with alternative names to register.

RELATED: A Multi Domain Name Strategy: Why More Than One Domain Can Be Advantageous

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Parked domains are registered but inactive domain names often held for future use or brand protection.
• Owning multiple domains can protect your brand, prevent spoofing, and increase search visibility.
• Lookalike domains are a growing threat, so securing typo and alternative versions of your domain helps safeguard your brand from spoofing attacks.
• Three to ten domains is a good starting point for SMEs wanting to implement a multi-domain strategy without overcomplicating their setup.
• Parked domains can be redirected to boost website traffic and improve SEO.
• Use tools like the AI Domain Name Generator to find SEO-friendly, brandable domain names to park.
• Domain parking is FREE with Domains.co.za and doesn’t require hosting.

Parked Domains: Top 4 Reasons to Own Multiple Domains

In the past, businesses had one website and one domain. But with the rise of new generic Top-Level Domains (gTLDs) and domain spoofing, it has become wise to invest in multiple domains to protect a brand.

Nike, the well-known footwear brand, for example owns more than 4000 domains including “Letmeplay.com, Jordan.com and Justdoit.com”. While they use many for marketing purposes, the bulk of their domains are purely registered to protect the brand, which they essentially keep in park-mode.

These are the top four reasons companies should consider investing in multiple domains:

1. To protect a brand

According to a report by Bluevoyant, the amount of lookalike domains registered monthly between January 2024 and January 2025 showed an alarming increase.

Monthly lookalike case reports linked to a major American financial services company (Jan 2024–Jan 2025). (Source: BlueVoyant)

In South Africa, domain spoofing is starting to become a major concern. ZA Registry Consortium (ZARC), the registry for .co.za and other local domains, advised MyBroadband in October 2024 that they have seen an increase in domain scams.

“Cybercriminals are creating fraudulent websites that mimic well-known companies like Nike, Adidas, and Amazon,” ZARC said.

“These sites often use deceptive domain names such as nike-southafrica.co.za, giving the illusion of official South African digital portals.” (While many of these domains are redirected to the main website, a majority are parked domains. Source: MyBroadband)

Lookalike domains are usually registered by cybersquatters to make a profit by reselling the domain to the company it is mimicking at an inflated price, or by cybercriminals to launch spoofing attacks. A spoofing attack is when people are tricked into visiting fake websites that closely resemble trusted ones with the goal of stealing sensitive data. These scams usually start with a deceptive email and rely on visitors’ confidence in familiar-looking brands or platforms.

For these reasons, companies have started to register lookalike domains themselves thereby protecting their brand and brand reputation. It is also a good idea to register different extensions of the main domain as well as typos and misspellings.  

2. To resell later

In January 2012, ICANN launched the New gTLD Program, which has since seen the introduction of 1200 new gTLDs including .tech, .online and .store. The new gTLDs bring about opportunities for domain investors to grow their portfolios and for new investors to enter the arena.

Domain investing aka “domain flipping” is when a person or entity buys and manages multiple premium domains (short and brandable) to sell for profit later.

While waiting for sales, domain investors normally make use of domain parking.

ALSO READ: It is MORE than just a Domain Name – it is an Opportunity

3. To reserve an idea or future website

Have a business idea? Register the domain first. It’s a simple and cost-effective way to take the first step towards realising your greater idea, even if you have many of these ideas popping up now and again. Starting and growing your idea takes a whole lot of time, money and effort but at least you can have peace of mind knowing that you’ve secured the domain.

The same applies to future marketing campaigns or any prospective geographic expansions that may require separate websites – get the domain long before you need it.

You can make use of domain parking to reserve your ideas until the time is right.

4. To redirect to the main website

Brand protection isn’t the only reason why many companies register specific keywords related to their business or get their business name with diverse extensions. These domains are parked and then redirected to the main website to:

• help capture traffic from people searching for specific terms related to your business;
• increase the chances of your website appearing in various search results across different regions;
• funnel visitors directly to your main website, improving traffic without requiring separate content for each domain.

Don’t worry, your business doesn’t need thousands of domains; 3-10 domain names are a good starting point for most Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

Tips to Come Up with Great Website Domain Names to Park

Keen to register more domains, but unsure as to which names to get? Consider the following smart options to maximise future value, visibility, and traffic potential:

• Look for exact match domains (EMD): Think keywords your ideal customer may type into Google. For example, if you sell eco cleaning products, a domains like “ecofriendlycleaner.co.za or naturalcleaningsolutions.africa” can help you capture intent-based searches and boost organic traffic when redirected to your main site.
• Register niche-specific domains: If your business targets a specific location, audience or product line, consider names that speak directly to that. A pet store in Cape Town might register “petshop.capetown or cattoys.africa”. These parked domains may help build relevance for local or niche searches.
• Opt for branded domains: Secure variations of your brand name, with or without hyphens, abbreviations, or common misspellings. If your business is called “GreenGlow”, consider parking and redirecting domains like “greenglowcleaning.co.za, greenglow.africa, or even g-gclean.co.za”. They’ll all point back to your core brand while protecting future growth and marketing flexibility.
• Use our AI Domain Name Generator: Our free AI search tool makes it super easy to search and find suitable and available domain options. This tool favours SEO-friendly options and allows you to specify exact keywords, words you want included or left out, brandable options, short phrases, industry and category-specific words, etc. It’s like having your very own brainstorming buddy!

How to Buy a Domain, Activate Domain Parking & Redirect a Domain

How to Buy a Domain

Step 1: Find your perfect domain name

• Use our AI Domain Name Generator or type your ideas into the search bar to explore available domain names.
• When you find the one that fits, just click Add to Cart.

Step 2: Configure your order

• Click the Configure button to confirm your domain selection.
• Add extras like Whois Privacy or Web Hosting if needed.
• When you’re ready, click Proceed to Cart, review your order, and click Check Out.

Step 3: Login or create your account

• Already have an account? Simply sign in.
• If you’re new, fill in the short form to create your account in seconds.

Step 4: Complete your payment

• You’ll be securely redirected to our payment gateway to finalise your order.
• Then the domain is yours!

How to Activate Domain Parking

• If you didn’t add Web Hosting during the purchase process, your domain has been automatically parked. Now that’s convenient, isn’t it?
• Enable auto-renew to ensure you don’t lose ownership of your domain.

How to Redirect a Domain to Your Primary Website

If you have an active website on your primary domain and wish to redirect another domain to that website domain, you will first need to ensure that the parked domain’s DNS settings are configured to match your primary domain’s settings.

Do the following:

Step 1: Login to your Domains.co.za account.
Step 2: Click Manage Services, followed by Domains.
Step 3: Select the Manage drop down next to the parked domain you want to update.
Step 4: Select Manage DNS.
Step 5: Click Copy Records From and type the primary domain to copy the records from. Then, click Copy.
Step 6: Select Save Changes.
Step 7: Now, login to your cPanel account.
Step 8: Navigate to the Domains section and click on Domains.
Step 9: Click on Create a New Domain and type the park domain you want to redirect.
Step 10: Enable Share document root. This will redirect all traffic from the parked domain to your primary domain.

Domains.co.za offers FREE domain parking and domain forwarding/redirecting, helping you manage your domain names more strategically and with ease.

FAQS

Other Blogs of Interest

• Domain Transfer Lock: Domains.co.za Becomes First Registrar To Offer Free .co.za Security Feature
• Domains.co.za Introduces South Africa’s First AI Domain Name Generator
• South Africa’s 5 Most Popular Top Level Domains, and Beyond
• How To Choose The Best Domain Name: 10 Myths & Tips
• How to Park a Domain in cPanel