Domain mapping: What is it and how does it work?

Domain mapping allows you to point multiple domains to a single central website or content man­age­ment system (CMS). In a CMS like WordPress, for example, this helps you organise and connect multiple domains and subpages. This way, you make it easier for visitors to access your site through memorable domains while keeping everything clearly struc­tured and under control.

What is domain mapping?

Domain mapping makes it possible to connect several domains with your main domain or content man­age­ment system (CMS). You can use domain name mapping to, for example, register in­di­vidu­al domains for different de­part­ments, product cat­egor­ies, or services and still manage them in the same WordPress in­stall­a­tion. In short, domain mapping makes it possible to have several in­de­pend­ent, dis­tinct­ive domains and manage them centrally. This makes it easier for users to navigate your web content without having to click through subpages.

How does domain mapping work?

Mapping a domain is quite easy and very con­veni­ent. One web server is as­so­ci­ated with several domains. That way, users have different ways to get to your content. This is relevant for multi-site struc­tures, in which different subpages and landing pages have their own domains but everything can be managed centrally in your CMS. In addition, you can easily add existing domains from other providers to your web presence.

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For example, WordPress makes this possible with its multi-site feature, which you can use to divide up a single WordPress in­stall­a­tion into several connected domains. That way you can create separate subpages for customer service, your company blog, an online shop or local franchise sites and unite everything under the umbrella of your main domain.

Why use domain mapping?

Domain mapping is es­pe­cially useful for companies and website operators that work with diverse sets of products, services, or topics. Mapping a domain makes it possible to connect a network of dis­tinct­ive domains and thus make it easier to claim related domain names for yourself. It also makes it easier for users to find the part of your site that they need. Since all of the separate domains link to your main domain, it makes updating and main­tain­ing your subpages sig­ni­fic­antly easier.

The ad­vant­ages and dis­ad­vant­ages of domain mapping

Ad­vant­ages

The ad­vant­ages of domain name mapping are pretty clear. If you use a CMS, you can manage all your domain main­ten­ance and updates in one place. You’ll save time and money, since all your domains are part of your ‘domain map’. With domain mapping you can also secure several domains that are relevant to your brand.

The domains won’t just sit around ‘parked’ but can be connected with your main domain. That way you can optimise your reach, reach out to new customers, and increase your traffic. It’s also possible to use domain mapping to integrate existing domains into your system without spending a lot on domain switching, WordPress migration, or host changes.

Dis­ad­vant­ages

Dis­ad­vant­ages of domain mapping can arise, for example, when working with WordPress multisite struc­tures. Without suf­fi­cient knowledge of content man­age­ment systems, domain mapping can be difficult to implement. It’s therefore necessary to become familiar with how multisite networks and domain mapping work.

Domain mapping vs domain transfer

The main dif­fer­ence between domain mapping and a complete domain transfer is also one of the main ad­vant­ages of domain mapping. If you have a contract with a service provider for your WordPress site, you won’t be able to transfer or change your WordPress domain without spending a lot of money doing so. It’s much easier to connect in­de­pend­ent domains with already mapped domains without switching your provider or server. While a domain transfer from one provider to another entails trans­fer­ring all content to a new server including the AuthCode, with domain mapping you can simply link your various domains to your main domain.

Domain mapping vs domain re­dir­ect­ing

If you want to secure catchy domains for trademark reasons or increase your reach with similar domain names, domain re­dir­ect­ing might be the thing for you. With domain re­dir­ect­ing, users will be re­dir­ec­ted to your target domain even if they didn’t ori­gin­ally search for it.

With domain mapping, on the other hand, it’s not about being re­dir­ec­ted. Instead, you’re dealing with a separate domain with its own content, which is connected to a multi-site network and links to it. Users are on the secondary domain but are shown content from the main domain. The URL in the browser doesn’t change.