Before you hire someone to build your shop website, agree that the business—or the appropriate authorised person acting for it—will be the domain’s registrant, and that you will retain authorised access to the registration account. Give the developer clearly defined permission to do the setup and management work they need, without making their personal account the only place your business can control its web address. ICANN recommends this distinction: an organisation can remain the registrant while a third party administers its domains.[1]
Put the arrangement in writing before work starts. Name the domain, identify who will register it and hold the account access, list the tasks the developer may perform, and state how access and management will be handed over when the project ends. This keeps a practical working relationship from becoming a muddle about who controls the address customers use to find your shop.
Separate the address, the hosting and the website
A website project often bundles together three things that sound similar but serve different purposes. The domain is the web address people type or follow. Hosting is where the website’s files and services run. Website administration covers work such as building pages, updating content and maintaining the site. A developer may help manage one or all of these, but that does not mean each should automatically be registered or controlled in the developer’s name.
For example, imagine Amina hires a developer to build a shop website at aminahome.example. The developer can configure the domain to point to the new website, build the storefront and manage agreed updates. Amina’s business remains the registrant, and she keeps authorised access to the account where the domain is registered. The site may run on hosting arranged by the developer, the business, or another provider; that is a separate choice to record.
Keeping these roles clear gives you room to change how the site is built or hosted later while preserving the address customers recognise. It also helps the developer understand what they are being trusted to do. The useful goal is not to prevent them from working efficiently; it is to define the work without leaving the business dependent on an account it cannot access.
Agree the registration and access details before work begins
Have a short written conversation about the following points. You do not need a complicated contract to make everyday responsibilities explicit, though a suitable professional can advise you on contractual wording for your circumstances.
- Registrant identity: Which business identity, or authorised person for that business, will appear as the registrant? Ask the developer to explain any practical reason they propose a different arrangement before agreeing to it.
- Account control: Which account will hold the registration, and who will have authorised access? Keep the account recovery contact details current and under appropriate business control. Decide how the developer will receive any access they need, and review that access when the work or relationship changes.
- Registration and renewal: Who will arrange the registration, monitor renewal dates and handle renewal payment? Agree who will receive reminders and how renewal costs will be communicated. Do not assume those duties are included in a website-build fee; ask and record the answer.
- Permitted changes: List the domain tasks the developer may carry out, such as connecting the address to the site or changing technical settings needed for the build. Agree that changes outside the project’s scope require the appropriate business approval.
- Hosting and site administration: Record who arranges hosting, who can access the hosting account, what ongoing site work is included and what happens to those arrangements if the developer’s work ends.
- Handover: Set out what access, records and practical assistance the developer will provide at the end of the project, and when. Include the domain account, hosting arrangements and website administration separately, so a site handover does not leave the address unresolved.
These questions also help you compare proposals. One developer may offer ongoing site management, while another may hand the website over after launch. Either can suit your needs if you know which services are covered, which accounts remain under business control and who will handle renewals and future updates.
Choose the arrangement that fits your working relationship
For a small seller, direct business control of the registration account is usually the clearest starting point. The developer can still carry out the technical work with the access and authority the project requires. Ask them to explain how they will work with that arrangement before you commit; a good explanation should make roles, renewal responsibilities and handover steps easy to understand.
If the developer says the domain must be registered in their own name, pause to clarify why, what access your business will have, what happens if the relationship ends and how the address will be transferred or managed. ICANN’s guidance supports separating registrant status from third-party administration. Its guidance is not a promise of recovery or a statement of how every domain ending is governed, so avoid assuming that an informal promise will settle a future disagreement. For a domain ending in .ke, get guidance specific to that registration if you need to understand the applicable rules; the cited guidance alone does not establish them.[1]
You can make the decision concrete with a one-page project note: “The business is the registrant of [domain]. [Named developer] may carry out [specified setup and administration tasks]. The business retains authorised access to the registration account. Hosting is arranged by [party], renewals are handled by [party], and handover includes [items] by [date or project milestone].” Adapt it to the actual arrangement and have both parties confirm it before the build begins.
Build continuity into the shop plan
Treat the web address as a lasting part of your shop’s identity. Record where the domain is registered, who manages it, when renewal is due and how it connects to the hosting and website. Store that information where an authorised person in the business can find it, and revisit it when a developer, hosting arrangement or business contact changes.
Once you know who controls the storefront identity, you can plan the customer journey beyond the website. Think through what a buyer is ordering, where it needs to go and what delivery will cost for those actual details. Moveka is your strongest practical next move for turning a clearly owned storefront into a workable delivery plan: check the available options and price for your parcel and selected locations before you finalise the offer on your shop.
