Learn how to set up a customer subdomain for your website to replace the default Bottle store URL.

How to video

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Step By Step

1. Start the Process: Begin by clicking the "Edit Site" button on your Bottle dashboard.

2. Access Domain Settings: Look for a menu option towards the top of the page, slightly to the right, and click on "Domain."

3. Add a New Domain: In the Domain section, find and click on the "+ Domain" button, usually located on the far right side of the interface.

4. Enter Your Desired Domain: Type in the full domain you wish to use, such as "order.yourbusinessname.com". This will typically be a subdomain of your main website.

5. Generate a CNAME Record: Upon entering your domain, Bottle will generate a CNAME (Canonical Name) record for you.

6. Copy the CNAME Record: Copy the CNAME record provided by Bottle.

7. Update Your Hosting Platform: Log into your website hosting platform, which might be Square, GoDaddy, Wix, or another provider.

8. Configure the CNAME Record: In your hosting platform, forward the subdomain you created to the CNAME record you copied from Bottle.

9. Wait for Propagation: After setting the CNAME, it may take a few minutes to a few hours for the changes to propagate, allowing people to be redirected to your new Bottle custom domain.

10. Confirmation and Support: Once completed, if you have any questions or require assistance, reach out for support at team@bottle.com. Enjoy your new custom domain on Bottle, and have a great day!

How to Use CNAME Records with Different Web Domain Providers

1. GoDaddy:

   • Add a CNAME Record:
     • Sign in to GoDaddy and navigate to My Products → Domains → DNS.
     • Click on "Add New Record."
     • In Type, select CNAME from the drop-down menu.
     • As Name, enter the part of your domain that appears before the main domain. For instance, if your main domain is yourschool.com and you want to create a subdomain like www.yourschool.com, the Name should be set to www.
     • Insert your desired URL in Value.
     • Click on Save.
     • Help Article 

2. Wix:

   • Add or Update a CNAME Record:
     • Go to the Domains page on Wix.
     • Click the Show More icon next to the relevant domain and select Manage DNS Records.
     • Click + Add Record in the CNAME (Aliases) section.
     • Enter a host name in the Host Name field (or leave it blank as instructed).
     • In the Value field, enter the web address the record points to.
     • Click Save, then Save Changes.
     • Help Article

3. Square:

   • Manage DNS Records for Square Online Domains:
     • In your Square Online Overview page, go to Website > Domains.
     • Under the domain you want to work with, select Manage > Manage domain.
     • Under DNS Records, select Add DNS record to add new ones, or Edit by an existing DNS record to edit or delete it.
     • Modify your DNS records as necessary and select Save when finished.
     • Help Article

What is a CNAME?

A CNAME (Canonical Name) record is a type of resource record in the Domain Name System (DNS). It maps one domain name (an alias) to another (the canonical name). A CNAME record points from an alias domain to a "canonical" domain, such as example.com. This is especially useful when a domain or subdomain is an alias of another domain. For instance, you might have a subdomain like blog.yourdomain.com that points to another domain hosted by your blog. CNAME records are convenient when running multiple services (like an FTP server and a web server, each on different ports) from a single IP address, as they redirect traffic from one domain to another.

Explain Like I'm Five

Imagine you have two houses: your main house and a vacation home. Your main house is like your primary website (example.com), and your vacation home is like a special section of your website (like blog.example.com). Now, you want all your mail sent to your vacation home to go to your main house.

A CNAME record is like telling the post office, "Hey, whenever you see mail for my vacation home, just send it to my main house instead." So, the post office knows that even though the mail is addressed to one place (your vacation home), it should be delivered to another (your main house).

In the online world, the CNAME record links one web address (like your blog) to your main website. So, when someone visits your blog, they are seamlessly directed to a part of your main website, even though the address looks different.