Why Namespace Strategy Matters More Than Most Projects Realize
In traditional web, you register your domain before you launch. This is so obvious it goes without saying. In Web3, the equivalent step — registering your ENS and Basenames namespace — often gets skipped or deferred until after launch.
The result: your project launches with a publicly known name, someone registers that name on ENS within hours, and now you are either negotiating a buyout or building your identity on a name that is already gone.
This happens regularly. It is entirely avoidable.
The Names You Should Register Before Announcing Anything
Your primary project name
Whatever you are calling your project publicly, register it. Exact match on both ENS (.eth) and Basenames (.base.eth) if possible. The cost is negligible; the cost of a secondary market purchase later is not.
Obvious abbreviations and variants
If your project is "OpenVault Protocol", register openvault.eth, openvaultprotocol.eth, ovp.eth if it is available. Think about what your users will type, not just what is technically correct.
Your token ticker, if you have one
If you are launching a token called OVP, check whether ovp.eth is available. Token tickers are especially attractive for squatters because confused users might try to send funds to yourticker.eth.
Team member names or handles
If your founders or core contributors have public identities attached to the project, registering their handles under a project subdomain (alice.yourproject.eth) adds professional polish and prevents confusion.
Subdomains as a Scalable Identity Layer
Once you hold the parent name, you can issue subdomains without additional registration fees. This is useful for:
- Product lines —
app.yourproject.eth,api.yourproject.eth,docs.yourproject.eth - Treasury and payment addresses —
treasury.yourproject.ethpointing to your multisig - Partner or integration identifiers —
bridge.yourproject.ethpointing to a cross-chain bridge address
Subdomains can also be issued to community members. Some projects use their parent ENS name as a namespace for community identity: community-member.yourproject.eth. This requires a resolver that supports dynamic subdomain issuance, which is more technical, but it turns your ENS name into an organizational identity layer.
ENS vs. Basenames for Projects
Register both when the name is still available on both. The annual cost is under $10 for a 5+ letter name across both chains.
The practical difference is audience:
- ENS (.eth) reaches the widest Ethereum ecosystem — MetaMask, OpenSea, Uniswap, Farcaster, cross-chain
- Basenames (.base.eth) reaches the Coinbase and Base-native ecosystem — Coinbase Wallet, Base Account, Base-native DeFi
If your project lives entirely on Base, Basenames is your primary identity and ENS is insurance. If your project spans multiple chains or has a significant mainnet presence, ENS takes priority.
Timing
Register the day you pick your name. Not the day you launch, not the day you announce. The moment you commit to a project name, that is when you register the namespace.
This approach eliminates the main risk entirely. Squatters cannot register a name you already hold.
If you are in stealth mode and worried about the registration being visible on-chain: ENS and Basenames registrations are public, but a registration under a new project name that has not been announced yet is not likely to trigger targeted squatting. The window of vulnerability is between announcement and registration, not between registration and announcement.
Check What Is Available Right Now
Before deciding on a final project name, run all your candidates through a bulk availability check. Names that are taken might look available on paper; names that are available might get taken while you deliberate.
This tool checks ENS and Basenames simultaneously for any list of names you enter. Use it before you finalize your naming decisions.