After 14 years of on/off relationship with GoDaddy, it’s game over and I’m in the process of moving out every single one of my 250+ domains there.
GoDaddy failed miserably to acknowledge and satisfy a simple customer request, preferring to keep $14 instead of retaining a customer.
The GoDaddy customer representative and their supervisor who denied to refund the fourteen bucks on a matter of principle, can now watch as I move my entire domain portfolio elsewhere. In the process, based on my experience as a customer, I advise others to do the same.
A little bit of background info on this clusterfuck of a decision by GoDaddy.
GoDaddy auctions sells domains that have expired, making it sound as if one can get the domains on the spot. It makes sense: money in exchange for a product or service – NOT a promissory note.
Instead, I was told that I have to wait 5 to 7 days, just in case the current owners renew it. Sorry, but that’s not what I was shown on the landing page, which said “Buy this domain now.”
The particular domain matched a viral video that I have absolutely no use for, a week from yesterday. That’s the way the Internet works: things happen now, or not at all.
In this case, things won’t be happening for GoDaddy. I’m already transferring domains out, and I will never look back. GoDaddy can keep yet another lousy report on their record, instead of a customer who spent thousands of dollars on domain names over the years.
I’ll admit I have always considered it odd that marketplaces (Godaddy Auctions, Namejet and others) auction domain names that the prior registrant still has rights to. It would seem more logical to just have a policy of not auctioning the name until a bidder can buy it for sure. At Godaddy I believe I have had two or three taken back and at Namejet only one. It is annoying but domaining is still the Wild West. One other complaint I have about buying expired domains at Godaddy vs. say a domain in pending delete status that you backorder – you lose the forty five days or so on the registration. I have mentioned this previously but lost the battle. Regardless, I have probably 98% of my portfolio at Godaddy with no plans to move. They do considerable marketing and Godaddy Auctions and Premium Listings are regular sales channels.
Go Daddy sucks. I have been saying this for years.
They have now become the new Network Solutions.
And you know what happens next?
Everybody jumps ship.
Leonard – It’s a matter of principle: selling something on the pretext it’ll be made available “NOW” all while you deliver it in a future date, that varies: I was told 5-7 days, and an email said 2 weeks! Really? I could have spent $1k or more only to find out I can’t get the product I paid for. No, GoDaddy is being deceptive and I will do no more business with them.
Who is the winning registrar? Why did you pick them?
kd – Currently moving out domains to Name.com and Uniregistry. Two companies with scruples!
Congrats Acro!
I left godaddy years ago, and that was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made for my domain investments.
Personally, I thought Bob Parsons was a jerk who I didn’t want to enrich.
Also, I believed that a godaddy phone rep saw a domain in my cart once during a support call and registered it themselves. Seriously, ten minutes after the call it was registered to a person I was able to verify as a godaddy employee (social media). Point is when I called godaddy and wanted them to investigate on behold of my client (yes, this was for a client = major embarrassment for me) they were utterly dismissive. They refused to even entertain the possibility, refused to escalate me orto review the documents I had prepared (screen shots, dates/times, etc).
I was livid. My clent actually seemed less upset then myself, and they just moved on to another name.
Shortly there after I started moving all my own and all my clients away from godaddy.
I have never used godaddy since, and anyone who I talk to about domains (lots of folks, I cant shut up about the internet 🙂 I tell them to steer well clear of godaddy, that they are predatory – and specialize in seperatimg novice users from their money.
I then tell people that actuall good faith service is worth a few extra bucks a year if the domain is worth anything.
If godaddy discount codes keep you in business as a domianeer, then perhaps you should reevaluate your approach.
I then tell people that I use dynadot.com and gandi.net for almost all mydomains.
I do agree that their customer service has gone down the tubes, it used to be their saving grace (along with coupons) But the way they geo restrict many coupons means i am wasting my time with them quite often.
Godaddy have also put an end to discount codes for renewing domains – so I am letting more names drop than I normally would, and will soon be switching registrars too.
Was this a premium listing, or an auction? Haven’t the Buy It Now clearance auctions always been like that? I typically have to wait between 5-10 days, depending on it’s a $12 name, or a $5 one.
Nadia – It was a buy it now domain, parked with GoDaddy content and a “BUY THIS DOMAIN NOW” banner plastered across. When they don’t acknowledge the issue and insist that I have to wait versus refunding the domain that I cannot use a week from now, that means I am just a number – not a customer to them.
Hey they don’t have time for you or anyone, maybe they have been trying to support the food shortage by being so kind to elephants.
This is serious! I have ‘several’ domain names with GoDaddy. Yes, I’ve had issues, especially with won auctions. Moving out? Not just yet. GoDaddy, this is a serious matter! Remember: “The voice of man is the voice of God”. Waiting & watching.
Good going Theo! You did the right thing. They’re going down the tubes, and you made the right move by jumping ship.
I might add that you are in a further position to exact revenge by filing a chargeback for the $14. I did that to Godaddy not too long ago and won the dispute. That way, you don’t just get your money, but you also get the satisfaction of having them hit with a penalty by their CC processing company.
Well I think your experience is nothing compared to what I faced on a leading auction platform. As with godaddy, its much better than what it is elsewhere, atleast they informed you that you need to wait for 5-7 days and made themselves sure of the domain ownership rather than facing issues later on. Here is how my experience with a leading auction platform goes. I had won a domain auction through this company. Made the payment instantly. Next day the domain was transferred to my account. And I though wow so good that they transfer the domain instantly. GD makes me wait for a week for this. I got my visiting card printed, started developing the site, got the twitter handle, launched the site and then came a surprise email after almost 2 months. We are moving the domain to the original owner because he has renewed the domain! Come on – does it take 2 months for someone to realize that they did not renew the domain? I even opened a cases with ICANN on this issue but nothing was done. Hence, I think precaution is better than cure, and more often I stick to GD as I am sure atleast the domain will remain with me rather than find the domain transferred to someone else and making a huge loss overall.
when you buy a domain at godaddy auction there is a 12 day wait for an expiring auction domain and a 5 day wait for a domain that was not bid on as an expiring auction.
the 12 and 5 day wait are approx
i have been buying on godaddy auctions for years and it has always been this way.
by refusing to do business with go daddy you are also missing out on the domain club, renewals for $8 and change also the many decent names that come up for expiring auction
sounds like bitting off your nose to spite your face
Their customer service has gone WAY down hill. I have written 2 articles about it lately.
1. They got rid of email support and the chat “replacement” just plain sucks.
http://www.clicknowmarketing.com/domains/godaddy-ends-email-support/
2. They straight up lied to my client, admitted they had it all on tape but they would still not honor it due to a “system glitch”. I had to jump through so many hoops to get my client what was promised. And the kicker is Godaddy called my client and offered him all of this!
http://www.clicknowmarketing.com/godaddy-lied-to-my-client/
Oh yeah, and then they tried to cover it up on social media, but I posted the proof on my blog.
“by refusing to do business with go daddy you are also missing out on the domain club, renewals for $8 and change also the many decent names that come up for expiring auction”
Thank god. I can get $8 on 10 different registrars and I am sure there are more.
Expiring auctions at Go Daddy are a joke these days. Non paying buyers with insane bids. If you like to pay end users prices after bidding against non paying bidders then go ahead.