December 22, 2020
by Tim Prater

What’s in a Name?

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Prater Raines is an “accredited channel partner” (domain registrars and member) of Nominet, the .uk domain registry. We therefore receive regular news and updates from the industry. The most recent edition includes some interesting statistics of domain name registration growth this year. It’s clear that many businesses looked to move online at speed during the first, and second, UK Covid lockdowns.

Nominet,  who is the the tech company responsible for the .UK domain registry report that;

“Whilst some sectors have undoubtedly felt the negative impact of the pandemic, our research showed a spike in domain registrations early on. As the wider economic impact hit, for the first time in eight years April saw record numbers of newly registered domains (147,706) as well as a 12% (15,946) increase compared to registrations over the previous month in March.

“Categorising new registrations by the words appearing in domain names indicated that registrations related to fashion, exercise and delivery services increased the most. Those for delivery services soared by 78% compared to pre-lockdown – reflecting many businesses quickly adapting their business model to survive a rapidly changing consumer landscape.”

“Since August, we have seen growth in the registration figures with a 27% increase in November compared to 2019. Registrations during some weeks in lockdown exceeded 30% year on year growth. This suggests that businesses continue to focus on their online presence in the uncertainty that lockdowns brings. Take a look in more detail at our .UK domain name stats and the UK Domain report on the rise of the side hustle.”

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