Your web designer builds your website. Your domain does much more than that. It runs your email, your Microsoft 365 sign-ins and the website itself, and one bad edit can take your whole team offline. That makes your domain an IT job. It belongs with your IT management company, registered in your company’s name. Your designer still gets the website records they need. They just ask for them.
We see it all the time. A new client joins TUCU, and when we ask where their domain lives, the answer is “our web designer set that up.” Sometimes it was ten years ago. Sometimes nobody knows the login. Sometimes the designer is not in business anymore.
None of that is a knock on designers. They did what they were asked to do. The problem is that the domain does a lot more than the website.
Your Domain Has Three Jobs
- It tells the internet where to deliver your email.
- It is how your team signs in to Microsoft 365. Your email address is your username.
- It points visitors to your website.
Your designer is responsible for one of those. Your IT company is responsible for all three. When the person holding the domain only looks after one job, the other two are exposed.
Domain Registrar Vs Name Servers (DNS Records)
Most people think of their domain as one thing. It is actually two separate parts, and they can live at two different companies.
The Domain Registrar
The registrar is where your domain is bought and renewed. It holds the official record of who owns the domain. It also decides which name servers your domain uses. Whoever has the registrar login controls the domain, so this is the account that matters most.
The Name Servers
Name servers hold your DNS records. These are the settings that tell the internet where to deliver your email, how Microsoft 365 confirms the domain is yours, and where your website is hosted. Your name servers might be at your registrar, at your web host or with a service like Cloudflare.
How They Work Together
Think of the registrar as the deed to a building, and the name servers as the directory in the lobby. The directory tells visitors which suite to go to. The deed says who owns the building and who can replace the directory.
That is why a single change at the registrar is so risky. When someone points your domain at new name servers, for example during a website move, every DNS record changes at once. If the email records do not come along, email stops for everyone.
Your website can stay with your web host. The registrar account belongs with your IT company, in your company’s name.
The Importance Of Domain Management
One Website Change Can Break Everyone’s Email
A new site launch often means editing DNS records. If someone changes or deletes a record without knowing your email and Microsoft 365 depend on it, email stops. The website looks great. Nobody can send an invoice.
The Domain Is Not In Your Name
When a designer registers the domain in their own account, they may be the listed owner. Part ways, switch designers or lose touch, and getting your own domain back becomes paperwork and waiting at best.
Renewals Can Be Missed
Designers retire, change careers or get busy. If the renewal notice goes to their inbox and the card on file expires, your domain lapses, and your email goes with it.
You Cannot See Or Choose How It Is Protected
Is multifactor authentication on that account? Who else can log in? Whoever controls the domain can redirect your email. You are trusting your business to a password you have never seen.
A Quick Check You Can Do Today
Ask yourself three questions:
- Do we know who has the login for our domain account?
- Is the domain in our company’s name?
- Is multifactor authentication turned on for that account?
If any answer is “not sure,” it is worth sorting out before something breaks.
Domain Management By Your IT Provider Works Differently
Your IT company already manages your email, Microsoft 365 and security, so they know what every DNS record does and what breaks if one changes. Holding the registrar account, renewing the domain and managing your DNS records is part of the job they are paid to do.
Here is how we handle domains for our managed IT clients here at TUCU:
- Your company stays the listed owner.
- The domain sits in TUCU’s managed account, locked against unauthorized transfers and changes.
- We handle renewals, so it does not lapse. You pay the yearly renewal and there is no extra TUCU fee.
- We make DNS changes so your website, email and Microsoft 365 keep working together.
- Your designer sends us what the website needs, and we add it.
Everyone does the job they are best at. Your designer focuses on the website. We look after everything the domain touches.
Help Is Here
If your domain still lives with a designer, a former employee or a personal account, we can help you move it into safe hands as part of our fully managed IT. It sits right alongside your Microsoft 365 security and your email protection, like SPF, DKIM and DMARC that protect your emails from spam and spoofing.
Have a look at our pricing ranges, then book a discovery call or call us at (416) 292-3300.
FAQ
Do I still own my domain if my IT company manages it?
Yes. Your company stays the listed owner. Your IT company manages the account it sits in, handles renewals and keeps it locked.
Can my web designer still update my website if TUCU manages my domain?
Yes. Your designer keeps full control of the website itself. When they need a DNS record added or changed, they send the request to us and we make the change without breaking email or sign-ins.
What is the difference between a domain registrar and name servers?
The registrar is where your domain is bought and renewed, and it records who owns it. Name servers are where your DNS records live. They can be at two different companies, and moving one does not mean moving the other.
