Is your website and domain name safe? I recently had a client reach out with frustrating news. They went to renew their medical license to only find out it was denied because their website was down. Their website and domain had been active for close to a decade. What happened, what caused their website to be down and their domain name gone? The company they hired to purchase their domain and build their website went out of business and did not tell them.
Losing your domain name after it expires can be disastrous for your business. An expired domain name can impact your SEO and if too much time passes, your competitor or anyone can purchase it and use to their benefit. It can also be costly if you lose all your website files and are forced to rebuild a new website.
Whether it is a domain, or an entire website lost, there are some tips to keep in mind to prevent this from happening.
1. Login credentials- Use a company owned email when setting up login and credentials that stay with you or your company. I always recommend setting up functional emails like web@ or marketing@, utilizing this email for all online platforms for your business.
2. Domain Name- If you are using an outside firm to purchase or renew your domain name with a registrar service, be sure you have it registered in your name where it belongs to you. If you’re not tech savvy, ask them to walk you through the process. The longest time frame you can set for renewal is 10 years but be sure to select auto-renewal and use your credit card.
3. Website- Find out what your designer is planning to build your website in. Many people use the template offerings that are on the market; however, once you stop service, you no longer have a website. WordPress on the other hand is an open source and makes it easy to find developers that can update and modify your website, along with moving it to another server.
4. Be in the know- Most importantly ask questions, keep login credentials in a safe place and periodically check to be sure those credentials are working.
For a great article that goes more in depth about renewing your domain, look at the link below. If you’re needing someone to assist with updating your website, navigating some of the technical “not so fun” parts to your company, or just need marketing help to grow your company, email heather@ispeakbusiness.com.
https://www.swhosting.com/en/blog/consequences-of-not-renewing-a-domain-name-and-how-to-avoid-it
