What Is a Postcode Alias and How Does It Work?

A customer hears about Akebaje Inc from a friend and decides to visit. She knows the business name. She does not know its postcode. Instead of calling for directions or asking someone to send her the code, she opens the Postcode app and searches for Akebaje Inc.

The search brings up the digital postcode associated with the business location.

That is what a Postcode Alias makes possible.

A postcode alias is a memorable name linked to an existing digital postcode. It allows people to search for a business, brand, or familiar place name and find the postcode associated with that location. For a business owner, it means customers can start with something they already know: your name.

How Does a Postcode Alias Work?

A postcode alias only works because there is already a postcode underneath it. Nigeria's digital postcode is an 11-character code associated with an addressable building or location. The postcode identifies the physical place, not the person or business occupying it.

A business can then create an alias using its brand or preferred name and link that alias to the postcode of its location.

The relationship is simple:

Akebaje Inc → LA 01 A03 FK 01

Akebaje Inc is the familiar name people can search for. LA 01 A03 FK 01 is the digital postcode associated with the location.

Creating the alias does not create a second postcode or alter the original one. It simply gives people another way to find it.

Why Would a Business Need a Postcode Alias?

Most businesses do not introduce themselves with their address. They build recognition around a name.

The name appears on the sign outside the building, on receipts, social media pages, websites, and advertising. It is also what customers pass along when recommending the business to someone else. So when a customer wants to find them, “Akebaje Inc” is likely to be the first thing she searches for.

A postcode alias turns that familiarity into something useful. The customer searches for the name she knows and gets the postcode associated with the business location. It also means a business owner does not have to rely on customers remembering an 11-character code before they can find the location.

What Happens When the Business Moves?

Two years later, Akebaje Inc needs more space. The business leaves its old office and moves into a bigger building elsewhere.

Its old postcode cannot go with it.

That is because a Digital Postcode belongs to the physical location. When a business moves, the old premises keeps its postcode, and the business begins using the postcode associated with its new premises.

But one important thing has not changed. Customers still know the business as Akebaje Inc.

This is where separating the business name from the physical location becomes useful. The Alias feature is designed to help people continue finding a business by the familiar name they know even when that business relocates. The business identity can remain familiar while the postcode reflects where the business is now.

Are Postcode Aliases Only for Businesses?

No.

Businesses make the benefit easy to see, but they are not the only places people recognise by name. The Postcode app also has a General category for aliases that are not formal business names. This allows a familiar reference to be associated with a location in other use cases.

The principle remains the same. The place has an official Digital Postcode, while the alias gives people a memorable way to find it.

How Do You Create a Postcode Alias?

It depends on the kind of alias you want to create. You can create a general alias in the Postcode app, while the business postcode can be created on the postcode dashboard.

If you are getting the postcode from your current location, make sure you are physically at the location you are creating the alias for.

NIPOST will review your alias before it goes live. Once approved, people searching for the alias can use it to find the postcode associated with the location.

You can read more about it in the postcode alias creation guide.

Make the Name People Know Work Harder

The customer looking for Akebaje Inc started with the only detail she had: the business name. That's the entire idea behind a postcode alias.

Your digital postcode remains the standard reference for your location. Your alias gives people a familiar shortcut to reach it, whether you're a business owner, a church, or the caretaker of a landmark everyone already knows by name.

If people already know your business or place by name, create a Postcode Alias in the Postcode app so that name can lead them straight to you.