From a niche term to a headline-grabbing phenomenon, the blockchain’s come a long way in recent years. Blockchain-enabled assets like cryptocurrencies and NFTs help businesses wax and wane, making and breaking digital fortunes and generating front-page news along the way. However, in 2024, a new blockchain solution draws increasing interest across a range of industries: Web3 domains.
Web3 domains combine technical capabilities and ecommerce use cases. They’re already interesting enough to win over some big names from the Fortune 100 list, so they’re worth your time too. Understanding this emerging platform, along with its technological underpinnings and its potential for your business, informs your strategy for 2024.
What are Web3 domains?
Businesses lease traditional domains from established registries, but Web3 uses a whole different structure to build new domains and digital assets.
You can now register a domain on the blockchain, expanding your online presence in a new frontier and unlocking Web3’s technical capabilities along the way. In Web3, businesses decentralize a domain from relying on authorities and service providers like ICANN, taking greater ownership of their assets, their data, and their online presence. Brands create their own virtual ecosystems, integrating cutting-edge marketing and Web3 capabilities including NFTs and more.
Examples include Nike, who recently launched a .swoosh Web3 platform for users to explore and interact with.
Essentially, Web3 domains open another digital landscape for businesses to represent themselves, build a brand, and share goods and services. Huge organizations across different sectors explore these landscapes, from clothing and retail to automotive and financial services brands.
What opportunities do they offer businesses?
Web3 domains present two key use cases: Firstly, defensive registrations, that prevent scammers from impersonating their brand and stealing their IP. Secondly, technological innovations like NFTs and more help businesses future-proof their branding with Web3. Beyond NFTs, Web3 provides plenty of integrated features, including decentralized apps (dApps), blockchain verification, and cryptocurrency wallets.
Smart contracts represent another such feature, and in fact, they’re one of the reasons that developers created Web3 in the first place. Comprised of short lines of code, smart contracts incorporate agreements and transactions straight into the blockchain. This creates secure, reliable, and efficient contractual agreements with a wide range of business applications. Companies already use them for financial services, property, and even pharmaceutical logistics, as suppliers source and trace life-saving medicine to consumers in need.
Check out a full Web3 domains guide to learn more about their technical capabilities and developing commercial applications.
Ultimately, Web3’s forward-thinking structure helps blockchain domains embrace the latest technologies, from NFTs to VR, from cryptocurrencies to the metaverse, and more.
How to get a Web3 domain?
Registering a Web3 domain is just as straightforward as a conventional domain, requiring a short application process before you’re up and running. However, you still have to work with a registry, configure your blockchain account settings, and set up the DNS for your domain.
Finding the best Web3 domain strategy also involves researching your market and your end-goals, and choosing which domain string, and which Web3 extension, works best for you and your team.
Conclusions: Building your domain strategy this year
Internet gimmicks come and go, but some digital platforms are built to last. When it comes to Web3 domains, the interest and traffic around them commands attention, not least for businesses to represent themselves on the blockchain before scammers impersonate their brand. Beyond that, the technical possibilities, including smart, dynamic, and secure assets, from contracts to currencies, make Web3 domains one to watch for 2024.
If you want to keep the conversation going, and discover the best path for your business in the world of Web3, then reach out to the team right here.
