Business Digital Assets Register
One free checklist that captures everything your business actually owns online: domains, hosting, email, branding, social accounts, the lot. So the day you hire someone to help you grow, you can hand over the keys in minutes, not weeks.
In plain English
Think of your business like a house. The domain name is the address. The hosting account is the building. Your business emails are the front doors. Your social profiles are the rooms full of stuff that customers see. Most owners have spent years filling the house, but have no real idea where the keys are kept, or who has copies.
This checklist is the keyring. One document that says: here is what we own, here is where it lives, and here is the email address that opens it.
Who actually owns your business?
Astonishingly common scene. A business owner hires an SEO or marketing consultant to grow the brand, and on day one we hit a wall. Why? Because nobody has the keys to their own digital house. Twenty-five years of doing this and the same things keep cropping up:
- The mystery registrar. Nobody knows where the domain is registered, or when it expires.
- The ghost host. The website is live but nobody knows which company is sending the bills.
- Logo limbo. The original high-resolution logo pack vanished years ago, leaving a grainy thumbnail from a five-year-old email as the only copy.
- Social lockout. A former employee set up the LinkedIn page using their personal email, and now they're gone, taking the brand's professional presence with them.
Don't let your assets become liabilities
When you don't have a clear picture of your domains, hosting, emails, branding and social accounts, you are at the mercy of any technical glitch or admin delay. It also makes the job of any new marketing or SEO consultant twice as hard, twice as slow, and twice as expensive for you to pay for.
Take back control: the digital asset vault
I've put together the Business Digital Assets Inventory and Handover Checklist as a free Google Doc. Open it, make your own copy ("File" then "Make a copy"), fill it in, save it somewhere safe. That's the whole game.
Once it's filled in, you'll know:
- What you own. Every account that exists, and which email address controls it.
- Who can access what. So when someone leaves, you can lock the door behind them properly.
- What you can hand over. When you bring in a specialist, they get everything they need on day one, not after three weeks of email tennis.
Open the checklist
We recommend the Google Sheet version. It is more detailed and splits your business into separate tabs: domains, hosting, email, social accounts, branding, and so on. The Google Doc is a simpler single-page version if a spreadsheet feels like too much.
If you've never used a Google Sheet before, here's the bit that catches people out: the tabs sit along the bottom of the spreadsheet, not the top. Once you've made your copy, click each tab in turn and fill it in. If you only fill in the first one you see, you'll miss most of the checklist.
Either link below opens a read-only copy. To start filling it in, choose File then Make a copy, which saves an editable version into your own Google Drive. No sign-up, no email capture, nothing to install.
Open as a Google Sheet (recommended) Open as a Google DocA note on security
This document is sensitive. Once you've filled it in, it's effectively a map of every door into your business. Treat it accordingly.
- Store the completed copy somewhere encrypted: the secure-notes section of your password manager, an encrypted cloud folder (Proton Drive, or a Google Drive or OneDrive folder protected by a strong account password and two-factor authentication), or an encrypted local file backed up sensibly.
- Do not paste actual passwords into the document. Passwords belong in a dedicated password manager (1Password, Bitwarden, Dashlane, NordPass: pick one). The checklist tracks which accounts exist and who has access, not the credentials themselves.
- Do not email the completed file to yourself or drop it into a team chat. Share via your password manager's sharing feature, or via a properly-permissioned folder.
Frequently asked questions
Who is the digital assets register for?
Any small or medium business owner who has a website, business email and at least one social account. Sole traders, freelancers, charities and agencies all qualify. If you have ever thought "I should know where all of this lives", you are the audience.
Should I use the Google Doc or the Google Sheet?
We recommend the Google Sheet. It's the more detailed version, with separate tabs for domains, hosting, email, social accounts, branding and the rest of your business.
If you've not used a Google Sheet before: the tabs sit along the bottom of the spreadsheet (not the top). Click each one in turn and fill it in, otherwise you'll miss most of the checklist.
The Google Doc is a simpler one-page version, useful if a spreadsheet feels like overkill or if you just want a quick read-through first.
How long does it take to fill in?
Realistically, a couple of hours spread across a few sittings. Most of the work is digging through old emails to confirm which account is registered to which address. The first pass is the slow one. Updating it later takes minutes.
Should I write passwords into the checklist?
No. The checklist is a register of what exists and who controls it, not a vault for credentials. Passwords belong in a dedicated password manager such as 1Password, Bitwarden, Dashlane or NordPass. If you find yourself wanting to type a password in, that is the cue to set up a password manager instead.
Where should I store the completed checklist?
Anywhere encrypted that the right people in your business can reach. Sensible options: the secure-notes section of your password manager, an encrypted cloud folder (Proton Drive, or a Google Drive or OneDrive folder protected by a strong account password and two-factor authentication), or an encrypted local file with a sensible backup. Do not email it to yourself or paste it into chat.
How often should I update the digital assets register?
Every time something changes: a new account, a renewal, a supplier swap, a staff change. As a baseline, put a calendar reminder in to review the whole thing once a quarter and again whenever someone joins or leaves the team. Five minutes once a quarter beats two days of detective work later.
Can I use it if I am a sole trader or freelancer?
Yes, and you probably need it more than anyone. When it is just you, every key is in your head, which means it is in exactly one place. Writing them down and storing the document securely means your business does not disappear if you do.