Letting your domain name expire might sound like a small issue, but trust me, it can quickly become a massive headache. It’s not just about losing your website—it’s about losing money, SEO rankings, and control over your brand’s online identity. Here’s why you should never let this happen to you.
Why Losing Your Domain Name is a Big Deal
When your domain expires, your website goes down. Annoying, right? But it gets worse. That domain can get snatched up by opportunistic buyers who know its value—and they won’t hesitate to sell it back to you for thousands. We’ve seen businesses get hit with demands for $20,000, even $50,000.
And this isn’t just something that happens to small businesses. Even big companies have let their domains slip, and trust me, it’s ugly when it happens.
How Expired Domains Destroy Your SEO
You might think it’s no big deal, just get a new domain, right? Wrong. All the SEO value your website has built up over the years is tied to that domain name. If you lose it, your rankings plummet. You’re basically starting from scratch.
Rebuilding SEO authority takes time—months or even years. Every day your site isn’t performing means potential customers are slipping away.
The Real Costs of Losing a Domain
It’s not just the cost of buying your domain back (which can be insane). You’ve got to factor in the time and effort to fix everything: updating your marketing materials, reconfiguring your DNS settings, setting up new email addresses, and getting your site back online. It’s a mess, and if you’re an established shop, the cost of lost business can easily be in the hundreds of thousands.
Don’t let something as simple as an expired domain name wipe out years of hard work.
How to Keep Your Domain Secure
First, go log into your domain name registrar RIGHT NOW and make sure the email address on file is correct. This will allow the domain registrar to alert you when it is about to expire. If you don’t remember where you registered it go to whois.com and you can find that information there.
Next, make sure the domain is set to auto-renew and that the credit card on file is still good and not about to expire.
Next, when you register or renew your domain name, do it for the longest length of time available, which is usually 10 years.
Finally, set reminders on your calendar to go in and check all of this annually
Don’t Let It Happen to You
Losing your domain is avoidable. A little preparation now can save you thousands of dollars—and a ton of frustration—down the road. Your domain is the foundation of your online presence, so protect it like the valuable asset it is.
Need help with your auto repair shop’s marketing? We’ve got you covered at Shop Marketing Pros. Schedule a discovery call today, and let’s make sure your business stays protected online.
