Does your professional website have an .ma domain name? Should a business website necessarily have a .com extension? To this last question, many of you will answer yes! Indeed, there are still people who believe that a professional website will not survive without a .com domain name. Think again...
What about a Moroccan business website then? Well, let us answer you: .com is good, but .ma is much better! Although our answer may seem obvious, we will still elaborate on it, just for you!
A .ma domain name: a symbol of national identity
The ".ma" domain is a top-level domain (TLD) that refers to the internet space reserved for the Kingdom of Morocco. This means that the registration and use of any .ma domain name are officially managed by entities that set clear rules.
According to the Registre.ma website (centralized system for managing all operations and information related to ".ma" domain names), the ".ma" is primarily an identity point.
This clearly means that when you choose to have a web address with the .ma extension, you ipso facto affirm your membership in the Moroccan internet community.
Good to know: in December 2020, the Moroccan web had 92378 .ma domain names registered with various authorized providers.
The ".ma" Domain is part of the list of "Country Code Top-Level Domains" (CCTLD) as defined by ISO-3166.
The ".ma" Domain is administered and managed by the National Telecommunications Regulatory Agency since its redelegation by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) in 2006. The ANRT is responsible for the administrative, technical, and commercial management of ".ma" Domain Names, in accordance with Law No. 24-96 on postal and telecommunications services of August 7, 1997, as amended and supplemented by Law No. 29-06 of April 17, 2007.
.ma domain name: a wise choice for a Moroccan entrepreneur
Yes, the .ma domain name is one of the 312 active geographic domain names, also called ccTLDs (Country Code Top Level Domains). A ccTLD is simply a domain name extension related to a country.
Do you know what this implies? A domain name referring to a country is, evidently, unique or even exclusive. Need a drawing, perhaps?
The .ma Domain name refers to a Moroccan website, or at least one targeting a Moroccan clientele. Take Nindohost as an example. Google will always serve our .ma address first rather than the .com one, although the latter is older than the former. Why? Ask dear Google.
A .ma domain name: a good SEO element on the Moroccan web
Search engines, including "Mister Google," recommend that their algorithms be as close to users as possible in terms of search results. Google and others strive to enhance the user experience to the maximum. That's why any .ma domain name will necessarily appear on the first pages of results served to Moroccan users.
In fact, a well-known practice is to reserve a .ma domain name for a Moroccan website already established with a .com domain to:
- Improve the company's visibility among its prospects. However, you must ensure that your .ma URL points to your .com site: this does not happen automatically and requires a redirect;
- Protect the company's brand on the Moroccan web territory.
It's worth remembering that purchasing a domain name is subject to the old rule of "first come, first served." Don't be surprised if you find out one day that a third party has acquired a .ma domain name for your company!
Did you know that accented .ma domains also exist? We discuss this in another article.
Naming zones for the .ma domain name
Naming zones include the main extension ".ma" and descriptive extensions (which we can call "sub-extensions of the .ma domain").
The purpose of these sub-extensions is to describe a specific activity or title. Here's a list:
- co.ma: for commercial organizations.
- net.ma: for Internet service providers;
- gov.ma: for government organizations;
- ac.ma: reserved for academies and educational institutions authorized by competent authorities;
- org.ma: referring to organizations and associations;
- press.ma: reserved for press organizations authorized by competent authorities;
Please note that the descriptive extensions ".gov.ma," ".ac.ma," and ".press.ma" are not freely accessible. The applicant must fill out the .ma domain name registration application form (proof of entitlement) which requires prior review by ANRT.
Closing thoughts
Register your .ma domain today without further delay!
If you are a Moroccan or foreign entrepreneur targeting a Moroccan clientele, you should know that having a .ma domain name is a decision that isn't even up for discussion.
