A custom domain is the first thing that turns a hobby blog into a real brand. In this complete guide you will learn what a domain name is, how to choose the right one, where to buy it (including Tunisian providers that accept local payment methods), how to connect it to a Blogger blog, and how to get it indexed on Google, step by step.
Table of Contents
What Is a Domain Name and Why Does It Matter?
A domain name is the human-readable address of your website, for example example.com. Behind the scenes, every website lives on a server with a numeric IP address. The domain is simply an easy name that points to that address, so visitors don't have to memorize numbers.
Why it matters:
- Trust and credibility:
yourbrand.comlooks far more professional thanyourbrand.blogspot.com. - Branding: a short, memorable name stays in people's minds and is easy to share.
- SEO: a domain you own lets you build authority in the long run, and you can move to a new host without losing your address or rankings.
- Professional email: you can create addresses like
contact@yourbrand.com. - Ownership: the address belongs to you, not to a free platform.
How to Choose the Right Domain Name
- Keep it short and easy to spell. Ideally 6–14 characters. If you have to spell it out loud, it's too complicated.
- Make it memorable and brandable. A unique brand name beats a long keyword-stuffed name.
- Avoid hyphens and numbers. They are easy to forget and easy to mistype.
- Pick the right extension (TLD).
.comis the most trusted worldwide. Use.tnif you target a Tunisian audience. Other options include.net,.organd.io. - Check trademarks and social handles. Make sure the name isn't already taken by another brand and that matching usernames are free on social networks.
- Compare renewal prices. Many registrars offer a cheap first year, then charge more on renewal.
- Enable WHOIS privacy (usually free) to hide your personal details from public records.
Tip!
Keywords in a domain are not a magic ranking factor. Google rewards quality content and a trusted brand much more than an exact-match name.
Where to Buy a Domain Name
Tunisian providers (local payment methods and .tn domains)
These providers let you pay with Tunisian payment methods and also register .tn domains:
Good to know!
Registering a .tn domain as an individual (natural person) does not require a commercial register, as long as you use it for personal purposes. Companies and commercial activities may need extra documents, so confirm the current requirements with the registrar before you order.
Best international providers
Namecheap regularly offers promo codes at checkout. At the time of writing, this is the code available for a new .com registration:
Warning!
Promotions change often. Confirm that the code is still valid and check the renewal price before you pay.
What Is DNS and How Does It Work?
DNS (Domain Name System) is the internet's phonebook. When someone types your domain into a browser, DNS translates it into the IP address or server where your site lives. This information is stored in DNS records inside the control panel of the company where you bought your domain.
| Record | What it does |
|---|---|
A | Points a domain name to an IPv4 address. |
AAAA | Points a domain name to an IPv6 address. |
CNAME | Points a name to another name (for example www to ghs.google.com). |
TXT | Holds text, often used to verify ownership. |
MX | Routes email to your mail provider. |
In general, after buying a domain you take the DNS values given by the platform that hosts your blog or store, and enter them in the DNS settings of the company where you bought the domain. Changes can take from a few minutes up to 48 hours to spread worldwide (DNS propagation).
How to Connect Your Domain to Blogger
Here is a complete example of connecting a domain bought from Namecheap to a Blogger blog.
Step 1: Add the custom domain in Blogger
- In Blogger, open Settings, find Custom domain, and enter your domain in the form
www.yourdomain.com, then save. - Blogger will show an error that includes two CNAME records. Copy the Name and the Destination of each record and don't close the page.
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Step 2: Add the CNAME records in Namecheap
- In Namecheap go to Domain List → Manage → Advanced DNS.
- Delete the default parking records, especially the
wwwrecord that points to the parking page. - Add the two CNAME records shown below.
- Go back to Blogger and click Save again. Activation can take from a few minutes to 48 hours.
| Type | Host | Value |
|---|---|---|
| CNAME | www | |
| CNAME | The first long string given by Blogger | The second string given by Blogger (ends with .googlehosted.com) |
How to Make Your Domain Work Without www on Blogger
By default, visitors who type yourdomain.com (without www) will see an error unless you add extra records. Blogger serves your blog from www.yourdomain.com, and the bare domain (called the apex or root domain) is redirected to it.
Step 1: Turn on the redirect in Blogger
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- Open your Blogger dashboard and go to Settings.
- Scroll to the Publishing section and make sure your custom domain is listed.
- Enable Redirect yourdomain.com to www.yourdomain.com.
- Enable HTTPS availability.
- Enable HTTPS redirect so every visitor is automatically sent to the secure version.
Step 2: Add four A records in your domain's DNS panel
So the bare domain knows where to send visitors, add four A records in the DNS settings of your domain provider. Log in to your provider, open DNS Management, and add these records (use @ as the host, or leave it empty depending on your provider). Click any IP to copy it:
| Type | Host / Name | Value / Points to (click to copy) |
|---|---|---|
| A | @ (or leave empty) | |
| A | @ (or leave empty) | |
| A | @ (or leave empty) | |
| A | @ (or leave empty) |
Optional: to also support IPv6, Google lists four AAAA records for the root domain: 2001:4860:4802:32::15, 2001:4860:4802:34::15, 2001:4860:4802:36::15 and 2001:4860:4802:38::15.
How to Remove ?m=1 From Blogger URLs
Blogger often appends ?m=1 to the end of links when a page is opened on a mobile phone. It creates duplicate-looking URLs. A small JavaScript snippet cleans the address as soon as the page loads, without affecting performance or indexing.
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- Go to your Blogger dashboard → Theme.
- Click the arrow next to Customize and choose Edit HTML.
- Search for the closing
</body>tag (press Ctrl + F inside the editor). - Paste the code below right above
</body>. - Click Save at the top of the screen.
<!-- Remove ?m=1 from Blogger URLs -->
<script>//<![CDATA[
var uri = window.location.toString();
if (uri.indexOf("?m=1") > 0) {
var clean_uri = uri.substring(0, uri.indexOf("?m=1"));
window.history.replaceState({}, document.title, clean_uri);
}
if (uri.indexOf("?=m1") > 0) {
var clean_uri = uri.substring(0, uri.indexOf("?=m1"));
window.history.replaceState({}, document.title, clean_uri);
}
//]]></script>How to Get Your Site Indexed on Google
Indexing is the first step that lets Google discover your blog. Without it, your pages will never appear in search results.
1. Connect your blog to Google Search Console
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Create an account on Google Search Console, add your site and verify ownership. You will see two property types:
| Type | What it covers | What to enter |
|---|---|---|
| Domain (recommended) | The whole domain: all subdomains, http and https, with and without www. | yourdomain.com only (no www or https). |
| URL prefix | Only the exact URL version you type. | A full URL such as https://www.yourdomain.com/. |
2. Verify ownership with a CNAME record
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- For verification, choose CNAME instead of TXT.
- Copy the CNAME record.
- In your DNS panel, put the first long part in Host and the second part (ending in
.googlehosted.com) in Value. - Return to Search Console and click Verify.
3. Submit your sitemap
A sitemap tells Google about all your posts and pages so it can crawl and index them. In Search Console open Sitemaps and submit these two addresses (replace the domain with yours):
- for posts
- for static pages
4. Adjust Blogger's crawling and indexing settings
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- Enable custom robots.txt: turn it on and add the file below.
- Enable custom robots header tags: turn it on and set the values shown in the table.
User-agent: Mediapartners-Google
Disallow:
User-agent: *
Disallow: /search
Allow: /
Sitemap: https://www.yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml
Sitemap: https://www.yourdomain.com/sitemap-pages.xml.png)
| Page type | Setting |
|---|---|
| Home page tags | all |
| Archive and search page tags | noindex |
| Post and page tags | all |
5. Request indexing for important pages
Paste a new post's URL into the URL Inspection tool in Search Console and click Request indexing. Also consider adding your site to Bing Webmaster Tools for extra reach.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take for a domain to start working?
Usually from a few minutes to a few hours, but DNS changes can take up to 48 hours to propagate worldwide.
Do I need a commercial register to get a .tn domain?
Not if you register it as an individual for personal use. Companies and commercial activities may need additional documents, so confirm with the registrar.
Will I lose my old blogspot.com links after adding a custom domain?
No. Blogger automatically redirects the old blogspot.com address to your new custom domain. Add the new domain to Search Console to keep tracking your performance.
Should I choose Domain or URL prefix in Search Console?
Domain is usually the best choice because it covers every version of your site (www, non-www, http and https) in one property.
Is it better to use .com or .tn?
Use .tn if your audience is mainly in Tunisia, and .com if you target an international audience or want the most recognized extension.
Conclusion
Choosing a good domain, buying it from a trusted provider, connecting it correctly to Blogger and submitting it to Google Search Console are the foundations of a blog that can grow over time. Follow the steps above in order, give DNS some time to propagate, and then focus on publishing great content.
