Does Your Web Designer Own Your Domain Name?

Why do 40% business owners don’t own their domain names?
How can you protect your website from being stolen?
What are the risks of having your domain name owned by your web designer?

Your Domain Name Has a Very High Value

If you buy a house, would you want your deed recorded with your realtor’s name as the owner? Of course you wouldn’t. It’s your property. So, who owns your domain name? If you had your web address registered by your web designer, it is no different from having the deed of your house signed by a realtor instead of by you. That domain name is a valuable asset, just like your home. If you don’t own it, you may be facing big trouble down the road. At Site Revamp, every website we build is registered by the owner of the business. We wouldn’t operate in any other way. It’s your website. You own it. Here’s why that matters:

The ultimate control of any website is in the hands of the person who is the official registrant of the domain name. If you have your web designer register it, in his or her own name, you don’t own or control your own website. There are very real risks of such practice. These risks can cause very serious problems for you:

Is Your Website Being Held Hostage?

If you decide to fire your web design company, your domain name can be held hostage because it technically doesn’t belong to you or your business. You can take legal action to get it back, but most businesses can’t afford prolonged legal battles while the web designer takes your website off-line during the dispute. That could cost you even more in lost business.
What if Your Web Design Company Is Gone?

If your web designer is not reachable, you could lose your domain name and website. Should your web design agency go out of business, your domain name can be lost if it is not renewed on time. Many domain resellers grab expired domains and resell them for tens of thousands of dollars or even more. If your revenues depend on your web leads and sales, you may have no choice but to pay whatever these resellers demand.
Your Email Could Be at Risk

If you are not the owner of your domain name, you may lose all your previous and future emails along with your valuable email address. Your business email is tied to your domain. Simply put, if you lose your domain name for any reason, your email will stop working. You could lose valuable and sensitive business data and all contact with your customers.
You Risk Failure to Renew Your Domain

If your web design company or web designer forgets or deliberately fails to renew your domain name, your website will go off-line and your email accounts will stop working. Think of the damage that could cause through lost business. For example, the web design agency that was in charge of building the website for the George W. Bush’s library forgot to renew the Bush library’s domain name. A reseller grabbed the domain. The reseller had to be paid over $50,000 to return it. Imagine that happening to your company.

Safeguard the Ownership of Your Domain Name

Many web designers and web design companies register domain names in their own names for their clients without explaining the risks. Worse, some unethical contractors do so to ensure their job security. If your domain is registered in the name of your web design company, you may not be able to switch designers without going through a lot of costly pain to get your domain name back. Don’t jeopardize your business by letting it fall into the wrong hands. It’s crucial that it is registered in your name, not in someone else’s name.

You only have total control of your website if you are the domain registrant. If you are not, you should take steps now to have it transferred to you. This can be done very simply, but requires the cooperation of your current web designer or web design company. If your request for a transfer is rejected, you may need to take legal action. Contact an attorney if this is the case.

Trusted SEO Web Design Services Company – Minneapolis St. Paul, MN

At Site Revamp, everything we do is for the benefit of our clients. We NEVER register domain names for clients in our own name. Instead, we help our clients do these registrations themselves so they have full ownership. We also don’t tie clients to long-term contracts. We keep our clients by providing them with excellent service. If a new client comes to us and we find that their domain name is registered in the name of their previous designer, we can often help them get the ownership back. For all questions relating to your website, please contact us. We will also be happy to provide a free SEO and web design analysis for your existing website. Please don’t hesitate to contact us at any time.