Go Daddy: More Than Just Hype?
June 6, 2010 by Tim Hicks
Filed under Domain Names, Hosting
Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years, you have probably heard of GoDaddy.com and their Internet services. Yep, they’re the ones with the risque Superbowl commercials and the outspoken CEO (Bob Parsons). If you’re considering registering your own domain or hosting your own website, you’ve probably wondered if there is more to them than just hype. Well, that’s why this article is here.
Over the years, I have purchased just about every product that Go Daddy offers. I’ve registered over 40 domain names, hosted sites with them, built sites with their tools, purchased SSL certificates and just about everything else. Heck, I was even a reseller of their services (via their Wild West Domains subsidiary). You could say that I’m fairly familiar with their product line. So here is my opinion of Go Daddy.
If you are looking for a good place to register a domain name at a reasonable price, Go Daddy is a good choice. Their prices are reasonable and their online controls are easy to navigate. In short, you don’t have to be a life-long techie or have an advanced degree in computer science to figure it out.
There is one drawback, however. Go Daddy has a very restrictive TOS that allows them to shut down your domain if someone complains that you are spamming them. Now, I don’t advocate sending UCE (unsolicited commercial email) but I can see how this policy could cause legitimate marketers some problems. After all, it’s not unheard of for people to forget they signed up for your list and then report you (wrongly) as a spammer. Suddenly, you could fine your site shut down and yourself out of business. Now, I must say that I have never had this happen to me. All of my dealings with Go Daddy have always been pleasant and professional. Having said that, I will continue by saying that I have heard stories of this scenario playing out for others. Of course, there could be more to it than these former customers are saying. The bottom line is, “be careful.” None of this is a concern, however, if you’re not planning to use your site for marketing purposes.
How about the hosting? Well, I’m glad you asked. Personally, I’m not a big fan of their hosting service. It’s cheap, but not very robust. For the same price, or perhaps a little more, you can find better hosting elsewhere. Personally, I recommend BlueHost for web hosting services.
In conclusion, I guess what I’m getting at is that I would recommend using Go Daddy for domain services and SSL certificates, but I would look elsewhere for hosting services.
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