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DSAD Friday: Expired Domains and a Story about Registrar Nimbleness

DSAD Friday: Expired Domains and a Story about Registrar Nimbleness

Shane Cultra
June 06, 2025

I thought I would share a story about the process of getting a problem I had fixed. There are several types of registrars in our industry, and they’re all known for something. I don’t mean to put words in anyone’s mouth, but I think most would agree.

GoDaddy is the Daddy. They’re a huge company and things move more slowly. Everything is always heading in the right direction, but getting things fixed on a larger level takes time.

Dynadot is the most nimble registrar in our industry. Heavily weighted on engineering. If something needs to be fixed or is seen as a great add, they fly through it and often have it done in 24 hours. Most of the industry uses Dyna as a measure of speed and agility.

Namecheap—always trying new things. Cutting edge on many fronts. They’re definitely rule breakers, which can lead to great things and things you have to keep an eye on. I don’t mean legal issues here—just that they have a true startup mentality.

I was running through my names and noticed 543.xyz didn’t resolve. I usually start with, “What am I doing wrong?” I checked DNS—it was good. Cleared my cache—nothing. Incognito—nothing. Three browsers—nothing. Wife’s computer on the same network—still nothing. So I reached out to an account rep. Everything worked fine on GoDaddy’s side. It was like taking your car to a mechanic and the problem doesn’t show up for them. So I put up the question on X: “Does this resolve for you?”

The results were twofold. For half, it did. For half, it didn’t. Some people gaslighted me and told me I was doing something wrong. They suggested doing all the things I had already tried. A few readers had great input—just use a DNS checker and see how it resolves in various cities around the world. Lo and behold, it did and didn’t resolve, randomly, across the globe. NY—no. Chicago—yes. Middle of IL—no. It depended on location. So I reached out to GoDaddy, and their response surprised me.

“We see the issue and looked into it. Something broke during another fix and we’re on it—it should be fixed soon.” Not their exact words, but close. By the end of the night, it resolved everywhere. I can guarantee it wasn’t just me. I just happened to be the one who noticed. For some, it was always up, so they had no reason to check if it was down in London.

It’s a huge deal, considering we’re trying to sell names—and a dead page could lose a buyer. So I think I made domain investors hundreds of thousands of dollars by getting this fixed 😂 You’re welcome.

A Few Links

ChatGPT integrations are growing so fast you’ll be able to connect it to everything

This is just the start of lawsuits of sites suing LLMs for scraping their data

GEO a new term for Generative Engine Optimazation. May not replace but probably equal to SEO in time

Ever heard of a Black Iceberg

This is a little scary. You will be able to test and pick and choose your embreyos by IQ and physical attibutes

Quote of the Day: “As a company grows, everything needs to scale, and speed is often the first casualty.”— Ben Horowitz

Domain of the Day: ImproveFlexibility.com THIS one of the most important things you can do for your body and health

Please Note: The list below contains affiliate links and/or names that have been posted for a fee. It is how we pay for our time since it is a free site. More details at bottom of page. Can go to any of the auctions by adding the names at the end like this one