A Domain name is an essential aspect of your website.
It helps people find your site on the internet and represents your business’ online identity. When a domain name expires, the process to reclaim it can be complicated and confusing.
If you don’t take action within a certain amount of time, someone else might register that domain for themselves instead. Bloggers and website owners often overlook the expiration of their domain names. When a domain expires, it is not uncommon for an owner to renew their registration without realizing that the old site will still be visible under the expired domain, leading to confusion and loss of business.
To avoid this problem, we recommend taking some time each year around your renewal date to review your domains and make any necessary changes before they expire.
READ: 11 Best Practices for Buying A Good Domain Name
In this blog post, we will discuss what you need to do when your domain name expires so that you don’t lose it!
Know about domain name expiration and grace period terms
When a particular domain is not renewed until the expiry date, it will enter the renewal period. All such domain names are put on temporary commercial parking pages that show when they expire and aren’t renewed. During this period, any website or email associated with the expired domain name would stop working.
If you renew your domain before it expires, you will maintain ownership of the domain. If you do not renew it before expiration, most registrars provide a grace period to reinstate your domain.
Typically, a domain name expires after 30 days. If you renew the domain before it expires, you can profit without paying extra fees or losing your domain name entirely.
What happens when your domain name expires?
A domain name’s expiration is no laughing matter and can cost you a few hundred dollars when the registrar determines the penalty fee.
Expired domain registration is not a joke (nor are the potential penalties determined by the registrar).
The domain name of your website is the same as the address of your business.
If you do not renew it, anyone looking for you will be unable to find you and will then assume an error has occurred or that they have typed in the wrong web address.
When a domain expires, users and customers cannot see your site—despite it being visible sometimes within the google search engine results page (SERP).
When your domain expires, it can cause problems for you and your users.
If your domain enters a grace period, the service provider may want to charge an extra fee to release or renew it. And if this goes on for long enough, someone else might be able to purchase and use the same domain name like yours before you even find out about it.
You must know that all domains are always available for backorder. That means any time someone decides to buy your domain name, they can backorder it. And, as soon as it becomes available, they can purchase it immediately or wait and be notified by email the moment your domain comes up for sale again.
READ: A Beginner’s Guide to Domain Registration
Consequences of an expired domain name
When your domain expires, your company’s website becomes unavailable. This may lead to loss of reputation and customers; your users may lose trust in your website or blog. Moreover, your users will be redirected to another domain, which is usually of a competitor. This can result in an increase in traffic for that domain.
The best solution is to avoid your domain name expiration!
How can you avoid domain name expiration?
- Renew your domain name before the expiration date by using a credit card or PayPal
- Buy back an expired domain name from a third-party reseller to avoid losing it forever!
An important note: if you decide not to renew, there is still hope for a redemption period. Your domains will go into “redemption” status within 60 days of expiry and remain available for purchase until it is renewed or released. If someone purchases the domain during this time frame, then all is not lost. You can contact BigRock for the purchased domain and reinstate ownership over your previous website address on any new hosting package that includes at least one year’s registration (but cannot be transferred). This process usually takes up to 5-15 business days.
Auto-Renewal is the best option to keep your domain from expiring
How can you avail this with your service provider?
Make sure the domain name being renewed is in your account. If you previously had a service provider set up your URL for you, they may still have access to renewing it. Transferring ownership of the domain into your own account is recommended.
Set your account with the registrar for auto-renewal to ensure that you will not run into this problem.
To renew a domain with BigRock, customers should log into their account and go through the following steps to renew.
- Click the account settings icon, and select “Renewals & Billing.” Select your domain name from the list by clicking on it. Then click the button “Auto Renew” below.
BigRock has a very similar process, which enables you to find your purchased domains, renew them, and manage your account with ease.
How to get your expired domain back before someone else claims it?
In case you did not opt for the domain name ‘auto-renewal,’ you will have to renew an expired domain.
To do that;
- Log in to your BigRock account
- Click “My Products”
- Click “Manage All”
- Under the “Domains” menu, click “Expired Domains.”
- Then select your expired business domain name.
- Next, select the desired length of registration for your domain.
- Finally, click “Finish” to complete this process of renewal.
Your website and domain are your responsibility
READ: Your Preferred Domain Name is Taken? Try These 5 Pro Tips
Your domain and website are of high value like any other asset. It is your responsibility to set up a process for the renewal of your domain name and hosting to avoid any loss in the future.
We recommend the following best practices to keep everything in check for your smooth online operations and business growth:
- Your domain name is crucial to your business, so make sure you keep it under the direct supervision of a dedicated employee, and optional access to a higher management authority
- Keep records of your domain name’s responsible contacts to protect it from being lost. If the contact responsible for managing your domain ever leaves and doesn’t provide instructions or a successor, you need to know how to find the information
Keeping your domain name updated is an important task. If you neglect to renew, there are some serious consequences that can be harmful to your business’s online reputation. Be proactive and take the necessary steps to protect your domain name before it expires. Contact BigRock’s expert team if you need help with this process or face any other issue with your website or domain name.
