After 25 years of using GoDaddy as a domain registrar on an as-needed basis, I’m not surprised by the lack of effective process logic.
Perhaps the best thing that ever happened to the biggest domain registrar in the world was the acquisition of Uniregistry; a massive domain portfolio paired with expert talent able to broker domains and to produce clean processes and code. The Uniregistry techs were known for utilizing feedback swiftly and for rolling out updates in a fast cycle fashion.
Not so much at GoDaddy, a much bigger company that appears to be unwilling to acknowledge its failing points.
But enough of this long intro and onto the main course: Acquiring expired domains via GoDaddy is a process that could be improved, quite a lot actually.
After paying $50 for an expired domain at GoDaddy plus the renewal fee that topped $22 bucks, I was told that my domain was ready to manage. I knew this wasn’t true.
The email that arrived said:
Here’s your confirmation for order number [x]. Review your receipt and get started using your products.
My “products” being a sole domain name, of course, as I had zero domains at GoDaddy at that point, hence the outrageous charges of $22.17 for a .com’s renewal. I pay retail plus some, it seems, and that’s ok.
I checked my account and there was no domain to manage or start using but I was aware of that.
It takes 5-7 days to get the domain in your account, even though the email said otherwise. If I were some end-user hoping to begin connecting my domain to an app or roll out a web site I’d be SOL for a week.
The domain arrived on the 6th day but the fact that there is no clarity in the original email shows how GoDaddy believes that it’s ok to say one thing and do another. Consistency in inconsistency, it seems.
I’ve no reason to use GoDaddy as a permanent registrar and once the 60 days pass I’ll be transferring the domain out. A reminder: if GoDaddy values your domain at $5,000 or more, you’ll be going through a manual confirmation process that adds up to 5 days to what usually takes seconds to complete.
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