But last night (111409 @ 8:30PDT) I had about 20 minutes to kill so for fun I ran my collection of previously unavailable domain names through the GoDaddy Bulk Checker. Whenever I check for a name I add it to my list of unavailables and then about once a month check them. Occasionally something will become available. Usually by that time I can’t even remember why I was checking the name to begin with, but last night I hit pay dirt and for about 40 minutes I was domaining like it was 1999! Fascinating how you can rationalize… I knew it was an anomaly to be finding these sorts of names available but I found  myself thinking, “Well you’ve certainly let a lot of stuff drop lately, maybe these weren’t measuring up and got dropped.” Or even… “Maybe some major domainer died and his domains just dropped! And I just happened to be on GoDaddy the day they fell.” Funny! I mean, they weren’t THAT great, and of the 5000 I checked, only about a dozen were available.

Here’s what I bought, the numbers are the number of Google search results, in quotes is for exact match:
NEGATIVESCANNER.COM 105,000 for “negative scanner”
NEGATIVESCANNERS.COM    234,000 for “negative scanners”
SKIRTSFORMEN.COM  438,000 for “skirts for men”
SOLARCAMPINGLIGHTS.COM 1,190,000 for “solar camping lights”
SOLARCLOTHES.COM    12,100 for “solar clothes” -dryer 16,500 for “solar clothing”
COMPUTERRECOVERY.COM 82,100,000 for computer recovery. 66,300 for “computer recovery”
TINKERER.COM
TABLETTE.COM 2,900,000 for “tablette”
TABLETTES.COM 2,430,000 for “tablettes”
ATTITUDETSHIRTS.COM 88,700 for “attitude shirt”
SHOETOSS.COM
CATSCANNERS.COM 80,100 for “cat scanners”

Here’s what the receipt looks like.

Sure enough, about an hour after I received the order confirmation email I got the bad news (x12).

Dear John Humphrey,

The following domain name has failed to be registered:

TINKERER.COM

Error: TINKERER.COM:  cannot register – already registered

We will evaluate this error and retry the registration if appropriate.

If we are unable to successfully register the domain name, your account will be credited accordingly. Please allow one business day for the refund to be processed.

It was a real rush to register those names. Not for the feint of heart though. All in all I probably spent a couple of hours crunching names in the GoDaddy bulk checker. It wasn’t a complete waste of time because there were actually a few on my list that WERE available. FOLDABLEELECTRICSCOOTER.COM & FOLDABLEELECTRICSCOOTERS.COM and I’m happy about that.

It would be nice if GoDaddy would acknowledge their responsibility for the error with at least a token gesture – a free domain name or two for example, but I won’t keep my fingers crossed.

If you want to know what it was actually like to be domaining in 1999, check out my Eric Borgos interview.

.

The transfer cannot be processed because the registry will not allow the domain to be transferred at this time. Most registries do not allow a domain to be transferred for a 60 day period after registration or prior transfer. This will be reprocessed automatically when the domain is eligible for transfer.

Excellent! It would appear that GoDaddy has come up with an elegant solution, simply do not initiate the transfer process until the domain is eligible. Thank You GoDaddy!

Update 073009: Got me again! Almost. I got the generic ‘update your ICANN info’ email from a registrar where a domain I’d won in auction was registered. Thing is, I thought I’d transferred the domain to GoDaddy months ago. (Helps to keep copies of my receipts… ) Yes I’d purchased a domain transfer back in January. I had one email notifying me that the transfer had failed.  But that’s it. No doubt I let it sit because, GoDaddy used to re-try the transfers later on. Anyway, I got on the phone and a very helpful support guy found the transaction, refunded my money and re-instated the transfer. He thought the refund SHOULD have been automatic. I’ve since re-confirmed with a supervisor that FAILED TRANSFER ORDER REFUNDS NEED TO BE  PROCESSED MANUALLY.

Just a heads up on what in my opinion is an annoying bug in the GoDaddy domain transfer process. Your domain transfer (this is a product you purchase from GoDaddy for $6.99) will expire after 30 days unless the transfer completes. You will be informed via email that the transfer didn’t go through. But you will not (as of 062609) be informed that GoDaddy has dropped your domain transfer and that it is no longer in your account. You will not get an email notifying you that your transfer has been dropped. YOU WILL NOT AUTOMATICALLY GET A REFUND. So for example, if you win a deleting name through SnapNames (or whoever), and wish to transfer the name to GoDaddy, DO NOT INITIATE THE TRANSFER BEFORE 30 DAYS HAS PASSED. Because the domain cannot transfer for 60 days (ICANN rule) you run the risk of throwing away your money, or, as in my case, an hour on the phone at your expense to GoDaddy support getting your refund (I was told to call, too complicated for email).
I was told by a supervisor that expiration of a transfer after 30 days is stated in the Domain Name Transfer agreement you have the option of reading at Checkout. And so it is.

2. Failed or Rejected Transfer Requests

Go Daddy may elect to accept or reject Your domain name transfer application for any reason at its sole discretion. Rejections may include, but are not limited to: The current Registrar rejected the transfer; The original registration took place less than sixty (60) days prior to the transfer request; The domain name has been placed in a locked status by either the Registry or by the losing registrar; The domain was transferred to Go Daddy less than sixty (60) days prior to the transfer request; The domain name expired but was not renewed; The domain name expired and was renewed during the forty-five (45) day grace period and the forty-five (45) day grace period has not yet passed; The Domain Name Registrant was changed less than sixty (60) days prior to the transfer request; Any pending bankruptcy of the current domain name holder; Any dispute over the identity of the domain name holder; Any situation described in the Dispute Policy; or Transfer orders over thirty (30) days old.

I was also told by the supervisor that refunds are at the descretion of GoDaddy but that they almost always do.

I guess the reason this is so frustrating is because I remember when GoDaddy would attempt to make the transfer UNTIL THE TRANSFER COMPLETED, i.e I could initiate the transfer after acquiring a domain and after entering the authorization codes, forget about it. Eventually, some 60+ days later, I would get an email confirming the transfer. Anyhow, that is no longer the situation.

Not just to whine. By and large GoDaddy works for me. In this situation though I would recommend:

1. Make mention of the transfer having to complete within 30 days at the point of purchase – not buried away in the legal agreement
2. The email that states a failure to transfer just prior to the passing of 30 days should offer a method to either re-initiate the transfer, or obtain a refund.

But why is it that in 2009, we, YOUR CUSTOMERS, are STILL perceived to be annoying, have-to-deal-with-them, sources of aggravation. The experience I had with GoDaddy, or rather, the feedback I had to provide as a result of my experience, IS EXACTLY WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE YOUR COMPANY THRIVE!. Customer service is the new black. This is what it looks like….

SouthBySouthWest 031409 Zappos.com CEO Tony Hsieh keynote audio (right click to downlaod) click triangle to listen.

Perhaps in the telling of some stories I’ll help a few people just starting out. Perhaps I’ll attract a mentor or at least some sage advice. Or maybe in the writing thereof, it will become apparent to me that I have no business trying to be a domainer- that I’m just not cut out for it.

Are you also in the newbie phase of your domaining career? I invite guest posts from anyone with a story to tell. If you see a post that inspires a comment, please consider writing a post instead. I promise minimal (but some) editorial oversight.