If you've ever used GoDaddy, you know how confusing it can be to actually make it out alive with your purchase. This is because the GoDaddy checkout sequence is designed like one of those money sorting machines where each level has different holes to sort and catch every single item that passes through it.
Klewes' guide also has a list of promo codes you can try for additional discounts, although we have no idea if any of them are still valid (but a little Googling should turn up fresh ones if necessary).
]]>I'd have to say Lunarpages [www.lunarpages.com] is the best. I've used lots of different hosting providers, and not only are they a great value, they also have great support. Email support usually takes less than a day, and they also have toll free tech support (but be prepared to wait for as long as an hour).
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I don't know why Consumerist would post a "how to" for such an awful compand with awful service. Intentionally misleading, cluttered interface, hard to navigate, and confusing.
And after you register that domain and decide you actually want a site, their management tools are no better.
I'm a web designer and use either Hostway or Pair for myself and recommend them to all of my clients. Excellent customer service. No, not as cheap as Go Daddy (the Wal Mart of domain registry if you ask me). But a million times better and offering inexpensive plans with real support numbers to reach real service agents in real american cities.
I used to have them, and like the guide suggests, it was like getting smacked in the face every time I went to their site.
I recommend BlueHost. Domain AND hosting for a low price, AND great customer support! I have 3 sites with them, and I couldn't be happier.
]]>I'll advocate doing some online research to figure out the best place to register your domain. There are plenty of good and reputable choices, including GoDaddy and NameCheap. The links to GoDaddy horror stories should be part of your research.
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Come to think of it, I was one of the first people put on the a quota system (because I was one of the senior guys on second shift), so I might have been the first person fired for not meeting the quota.
Anyway: Everything rphoneix says is true. Sales quotas for tech support reps. Which I guarantee sucks for both people in the conversation: "Your domain name isn't working. No problem, we can get that fixed in two days. Would you like to protect your internet identity by registering a .ws domain?" Still makes my head hurt to think about that one....
]]>@Bob: I use 1and1 for hosting and domains too, and have always been happy with their prices and customer service. Highly recommended.
]]>What the hell is up with the advertising? Even if it's not paid for... what the hell is this?! What are you thinking?
Get this garbage off here.
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@Darkstar: Gandi. Best domain registrar ever. I register all my domains through them.
I usually use anonymous@example.com.
]]>Cheap too but price fluctuates with the value of the Euro.
]]>That's how I learned that basically if any big corp decides they don't like you, they can make up whatever complaint they want to GoDaddy, irrespective of whether they really have a legal case or not, and GoDaddy will unregister your site.
I sent GoDaddy an email after that incident. They did not respond and I followed up on my threat. I'm no longer their client.
I'm disappointed that Consumerist would post a guide to buy services from such an anti-customer corporation. It's not like they are the only registrar out there.
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They do domain names and web hosting. They are cheap and don't bug me.
]]>If you need a guide to use a site's checkout, then you probably shouldn't be ordering from them.
]]>I used to work for GoDaddy. I personally would stay away from them for a couple of reasons. First, they have awful customer service. The call center people have sales quotas, so they are only marginally there to help you. GoDaddy uses domains as a loss leader to get you to buy applications. Their applications are really pretty bad for the most part. The only reason I would use them would be if I was buying hundreds or thousands of domains, if that is your business they are probably worth the hassle. Having said all of that, I have not worked for them for years, so it is possible they have gotten better.
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Godaddy has cheap SSL certificates too, but buying them is a real challenge as well.
First time I did it it took me through the usual pages of useless add-ons, then took my credit card info, then said "Thank you for your purchase" and that was it. I'm like NOW WHAT? No further instructions given.
Turns out I had to go to certificate manager, create yet another account there, find my basket with ssl certs credits or something like that in it, choose to use one, then go through the normal hassle of generating a CSR (the latter not being godaddy's fault)
I've never needed some kind of guide for how to avoid getting screwed. I've registered four domains with them, one of which I transferred from GoDaddy, and everything's been reasonably clear and scam-free.
]]>Just use your common sense and look at everything on the page that looks like it might be a trap. They really do have decent prices.
]]>I kept my $30,000 and replaced my aging car instead.
]]>I wonder, aren't there decent places to register domain names? (I don't own one, but I likely will in a year or so, thus I have no experience dealing with this stuff yet)
]]>This isn't rocket science. I can't believe how much time this guy wasted doing this.
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