Can you use the same domain name for Systeme IO, WordPress (or any other platform)? In other words, using the same domain for two websites?
Imagine if you are just starting with internet marketing and have a domain name eg. mydomain.com. Instead of using your domain mydomain.com, solely on Systeme IO, you want to also use it for your WordPress site.
So rather than buying a new domain name, you want to use the existing domain name for the new site.
How to do that?
Understanding the objective of your domain
First things first, before you decide to use the same domain (i.e., existing domain) that you own for a new website, you want to re-assess the objective of the domain that you currently own to see if it is fit for that purpose.
For example, if your existing domain is promoting real estate and your new website is a page to collect customer surveys on property ownership, that may work well since it is on a related niche, or at least the objective is the same.
However, if both sites are on different industries, niches, or subjects, without any co-relation, then I suggest you grab a new domain. Anyway, the domain price is not expensive nowadays. And of course, if your domain name contains niche-specific words eg DerrickDental.com, it is not suitable for real estate purposes.
How do two websites on a single domain work?
You leverage the subdomain.
Here are the differences:
A Root Domain = www.mydomain.com
Subdomain = support.mydomain.com
Using the subdomain, you can have the root domain point to Systeme io, and the subdomain points to other platforms or hosting servers.
However, from an SEO perspective, both are considered two different sites and are treated separately. For example, the backlinks pointed to your root domain (support.mydomain.com) won’t be passed to mydomain.com and vice-versa.
When you leverage the subdomain, you can have not just 2 different sites but set up multiple or even unlimited subdomains if your web host permits it. For example, you can have the root domain mydomain.com pointing to the Systeme io platform, support.mydomain.com pointing to your web host, and another faq.mydomain.com pointing to your web host.
What do you need to run multiple sites on a single domain name?
You need a web host.
Web hosting is a service provided by a company. They either own servers in the data center (server co-location) or rent the server from another provider. They have expertise in website hosting and usually have a team of support.
Surprisingly, some web hosting companies are well-known and popular, and their ads appear everywhere on social media and websites. Still, their service and hosting reliability are not what you expected. So, a word of caution, be careful when choosing a web hosting company.
Most popular web hosting runs on Linux; it is affordable and comes with lots of open-source software. Many developers are familiar with Linux-based servers compared to Windows.
To make the hosting interface newbie-friendly, most hosting nowadays comes with a hosting control panel. A hosting control panel is a visual-based interface that makes it easy to use. Imagine using a computer without Windows or macOS; that will be a big challenge for most people.
The popular hosting panels are Cpanel, Plesk, Direct Admin, Webmin, etc. So remember to choose a hosting that comes with one of those.
Hidden germ: best web hosting
Based on my personal experience, I recommend Host Armada.
Before I explain why it is one of the best, let me tell you that I have used tens of hosting companies over the past 10 years. From Bluehost, GreekGeeks, HostGator, Hostinger, Godaddy Hosting, and many more, I feel that Host Armada has given me the best value in terms of its features and price. I have signed up for many web hosting companies in the past, probably because I am picky when choosing web hosting. Not all web hosting offers the same in terms of quality.
- First of all, the speed is unbelievable. It is lightning fast out of the box. Speed is my priority criterion when it comes to web hosting. As we know, Google hates slow websites, and if your website takes ages to load, it already loses 1 point. Don’t forget people’s experience is important, and their patience is getting lesser in today’s fast-moving internet world.
- Secondly, It comes with all the nuts and bolts for me to run an efficient website. Some web host companies remove certain features from the feature list. I want to get the most of the bucks I paid for the hosting, so the essential features in the hosting are important. It also comes with free automatic SSL for all sites, so no technical knowledge to required to set it up.
- The support is fast and efficient. It comes with a live chat and support tickets. I prefer live chat when I need to reach the support team urgently. The ticket is another great option that is attended to promptly by the support team.
- Last but not least, the price is very affordable. The top plan for Cloud hosting – The speed Reaper Plan that I signed up for costs only $5.99/mth (bill annually), which is much cheaper than the other popular web hosting.
Steps to host multiple websites
You need to have the following ready:
a) a domain name – it can be a new or existing domain.
b) web hosting – I recommend Host Armada, the one I am using.
Step 1: Create “A” Record
Log in to your domain registrar (e.g., NameCheap, Namesilo, etc.). If Cloudflare manages your domain, log in to your Cloudflare account.
Cloudflare
Select your domain (if you have multiple domains in Cloudflare). Click on DNS.
Click on the Add record button, and fill in the details. Select A from the “Type” dropdown, then enter your subdomain eg if you want support.mydomain.com, then enter only support in the name. Lastly, enter the server IP. You can find the server IP from your hosting welcome email or within the Cpanel.
The Server IP from within the Cpanel can be located under General Information on the right panel of your Cpanel.
Click the Save button to create the A Record.
NameCheap
In NameCheap, select your Domain. Under the Domain tab, make sure “NameCheap BasicDNS” is selected for Nameservers.
Go ahead and click on Advanced DNS. Then Add New Records
Select A Record. type of desired subdomain (eg support), followed by the server IP address. You can find the server IP from your hosting welcome email or within the Cpanel (under General Information in the left panel).
Step 2: Create Subdomain
Once A Record is created, the next step is to create a subdomain within the Cpanel.
Within Cpanel, scroll to the Domains section and click on Subdomains. (note: if you are using Cpanel Jupiter Theme, you can select the Domains option as Jupiter Theme use Domains to add subdomain)
Fill in the subdomain and select your domain name. Then, click Create button.
Step 3: Setup WordPress
Now, the domain setup is done.
If you proceed to set up your WordPress (within Cpanel), you will noticed your domain would appear in the list. You can select it, and a new WordPress site will be installed in your new subdomain.
That’s all it takes to use a single domain name to host multiple websites, leveraging the subdomain.