Business, Brand and Domain Name: Three Key Concepts to Distinguish

Many beginner entrepreneurs confuse business, brand and domain name. Although closely linked in the life of a company, these three concepts follow very different legal and technical logics. Understanding their specificities helps avoid costly mistakes, secure your project and build a strong professional identity.

The Business: the Legal Entity

The business is the starting point of any economic activity. It is registered with the Commercial Register and identified by an IDE number in Switzerland. It can take different forms, for example sole proprietorship, general partnership, limited liability company (LLC/Sàrl) or public limited company (SA). Each legal form has its own rules, advantages and constraints, notably regarding minimum capital, liability and taxation.

In the case of a sole proprietorship or a general partnership, the entrepreneur is personally liable: the business and the person are one. Conversely, in an LLC or SA, the company has its own legal personality. It holds its rights and obligations and is liable for debts on its capital and not on the personal assets of the shareholders.

The Brand: Your Commercial Identity

The brand is the distinctive sign that identifies your products or services. It can be a name, a logo, a slogan or even a specific design. Unlike the business, the brand does not exist automatically: it must be registered with the IPI in Switzerland or the EUIPO for European protection. Once registered, it grants exclusive rights in the selected product or service classes and protects against use by third parties.

Registering a brand offers several advantages: securing your commercial identity, reassuring investors, increasing the intangible value of the company and avoiding costly legal disputes. It is important to understand that one company may own several brands and that the same brand may be licensed to different companies.

The Domain Name: Your Address on the Internet

The domain name is your address on the Internet, for example digitaladmin.ch. It is reserved through a registrar such as Infomaniak, OVH or Gandi. A domain name gives you online visibility but does not have the same legal value as a trademark: owning a domain gives you no exclusive right over the name if it is protected by a trademark.

It is therefore essential to check the availability of both the domain name and the trademark before launching your project. In case of dispute, the owner of a registered trademark may recover a domain even if you reserved it first.

Why It Matters to Distinguish These Three Concepts

Many entrepreneurs register a domain name and think they are “protected”. This is a common mistake. The domain is only an address. Protection arises from trademark registration. Likewise, creating a business does not automatically grant you rights over a trademark or a domain. These three levels are complementary:

The Business: holds legal rights and obligations.
The Brand: protects your commercial identity and image.
The Domain Name: makes your brand visible online and facilitates communication.

Concrete Example

Imagine you create “ABC Consulting LLC”. Your company is registered in the Commercial Register under this name. You register the trademark “ABC” for consulting services, which gives you legal protection. Then you reserve the domain name abc-consulting.ch for your website. You thus have a complete and coherent structure: a legal company, a protected brand and a clear, easy-to-remember web address.

Tax and Social Consequences

The legal status of the business affects how your income is taxed and subject to social contributions. As a natural person, all profits are considered income and subject to social charges (AVS, AI, APG). This means that even if you leave the money in the company account, it is taxed as personal income.

Conversely, as a legal entity, the director receives a salary subject to social contributions and the remaining profits can be distributed as dividends, generally with lower social charges but subject to income tax at the shareholder level. This mechanism leads to the famous double taxation: corporate tax on profits and then personal tax on dividends.

How Digital Admin Can Support You

At Digital Admin, we support entrepreneurs at every stage. We advise you on the choice of the legal form suited to your project, help you open your bank accounts, prepare your articles of association and register with the various administrations (RC, AVS, VAT). Our web application then allows you to manage your quotes, orders, invoices and VAT with automated tracking. Our built-in AI assistant answers your administrative and accounting questions to save time and avoid mistakes.

Conclusion

A business is a legal entity that carries your obligations. A brand is an intellectual property right that protects your commercial identity. A domain name is your address on the Internet. Three different but inseparable concepts to build a solid and sustainable activity. By understanding their specificities and aligning them from the start, you secure your project and give your clients a professional and consistent image.

💡 Tip: Before launching your business, check the availability of the legal form, the trademark and the domain name. Anticipating these elements saves time and builds credibility.