Domain name is an essential aspect of establishing your identity and presence in the internet sphere, thus, it is very important for you to understand how they work and be able to maintain and manage them if you want to remain consistent online.
When it comes to domain maintenance or management, two important aspects we cannot overlook is the domain name expiration and renewal.
That is why I am writing this article to help you discover the ins and outs of domain name expiration and renewal and provide you with the effective tips that will help you to keep your domain always up and running in the internet space.
So without any further ado, let us get started with this article by individually looking at the definition of domain name expiration and renewal respectively.
What is domain name expiration?
Domain name expiration is typically the time which the existing period for the domain provided by the domain provider or host comes to an end. This period usually lasts between one to ten years.
And to maintain ownership of the domain, the owner must renew it again by making another payment, and this takes us to the definition of a domain expiration.
What is domain name renewal?
Domain name renewal is a recurring payment made by a domain owner after the domain name expires. And if he is unable to pay the fees after the domain expires will cease to exist, and so we say it has expired.
What happens when a domain name expires?
When a domain name expires, the domain is actually shut down by the domain provider or hosting company, and a grace period of one month is given to enable the domain owner sort himself out and make the renewal.
But if the domain owner is unable to make the renewal after the grace period, the website will be taken down and all the data and content deleted.
This act will then go on to destroy the reputation and credibilityof the brand as well as the loss of the visitors or customers who will no longer be able to access the website.
If there is any revenue the individual or brand was making from the website, they willall be lost in the process.
However, after a period of almost one year, the domain name will be made available again, and other individuals, brands or even cyber criminals may cease that opportunity to purchase the domain name.
It is worth noting that there are cyber criminalswho are making it a point of duty to access credible domains and look out for when they may go offline so they could keep track of it’s next availability to purchase and gain control of it.
Once they succeed in doing so,they can then use the domain to defraud innocent people who gained one favour or another from the domain when it was existing.
For this reason, you must ensure you always have the funds upfront that will enable you renew your domain whenever it expires.
How to renew a domain name.
To renew a domain name, you must start by keeping track of the period it is going to expire, and pay the renewal fees on time when the invoice is generated to avoid your domain being taken down.
However, if the domain expires you still have another one month grace period to make the renewal before all your files and data will be deleted, and that’s when you will lost your domain entirely.
But recently, many hosting providers have added apenalty fee to enable you renew your domain for another one month period, but the problem is that the penalty fees is very expensive.
I had the experience earlier this yearwhen oneof my domains, taculia9ja.com expired and I did not keep track of the renewal period since I was too busy at the time to renew it.
Before I discovered the grace period was already gone and the domain which was supposed to be renewed with 20,000 Naira became 120,000 Naira with the penalty fees.
Of course I wouldn’t spend such amount on the domain which I had suspended publishing articles during that time, so I rather choose to wait until the domain is available again to purchase it back.
Best practices to prevent your domain name from expiring.
The best practices to prevent your domain name from expiring are:
- Always set reminderson your phone or calendar to keep track of when your domain name is going to expire.
- Several registrars and host usually generate renewal invoice amonth before the expiry, so always utilize this opportunity to make your payments earlier.
- Set your domain name to auto-renewal and credit your registrar or hosting account, and when the time is due theyare going to autmatically deduct the fees and keep your domain up and running.
- Register your domain name for multiple years, say 5 to10 years and keep making upfront payment to avoid your domain making it to it’s expiry date.
Conclusion.
Understanding domain name expiration and renewal is very crucial if you want to be consistent online.
Therefore, try as much as possible to follow the tips I have provided in this article if you want your domain to remain active online all the time.