Securing Your Domain Name

Domain names are among the most sought-after properties on the web.  Because of their value, businesses are always on the lookout for good ones that they can add to their portfolio.   As a guy who runs a website, you should be aware that domains get lost everyday when their owners fail to pay it the proper attention.  If you let your domain registrations pass without taking appropriate action, the same thing can happen to you.

Drop Catching

The process of snatching up domains that expire is called drop catching and you’ve got a whole slew of active domainers doing it day in and day out.  Those who manage to snatch previously-used domains can either put it back in the market at a higher price or take advantage of its earned trust to build their own sites.

What Happens When Your Domain Expires

Domain registrars are required to notify you that your domains will be removed from the registry 45 days after it expires.  Once the 45 days is up, you get another 30 days to reclaim the domain plus an additional 5-day grace period.  Once that is through, the property officially expires and returns to the market.

Auctioned Off

Instead of letting the name drop to the selling block where it can be bought for a nominal $10 fee, some domain registrars now auction off the expired names during the 30-day grace period.  Bidders are informed, of course, that the original owners may still renew the names at any time within the timeframe.

Be Proactive

To secure your online property, the onus is on you to remain proactive, making sure your domain registrations are kept up-to-date.  Either set all your renewals to be done at one time to simplify the process or turn on the auto-renew option for your domains.  You don’t want to put all that hard work on a domain name only to have someone snatch it right from under your nose.