CIRA's migration to the EPP platform, which occurred almost 1 year ago in October of 2010, made some significant changes to how the .CA domain is handled in many regards. Since many customers still have questions about these changes, we thought it would be worthwhile to have a look at how most registrants were affected by the switch:

•    CIRA logins and passwords - These have been abolished and are no longer used to confirm or reject any type of process

•    .CA Registrar Transfers - These are now submitted in the exact same fashion as .COM, .NET and other domain extensions; by unlocking the domain at the current registrar and obtaining the authorization code. However, unlike other transfers that can take a week to complete, .CA transfers will complete in real time if the authorization code is correct and the domain is unlocked. As always, an additional year is added to the domain's term as a result of the transfer. Learn more about Registrar Transfers.

•    .CA Registrant Transfers - These can be submitted through the Webnames.ca website free of charge now, since they no longer extend the domain's term by an additional year. If the domain's current registrant and future registrant reside within the same Webnames.ca account, no paperwork is necessary. However, if the domain is being transferred to a new account as well, there is a form that must be completed and signed off by the current and future registrants. Learn more about Registrant Transfers.

•    The 60 Day Rule - A completely new rule for .CA's. Domains now go on a 60 day "lockdown" upon new registration, registrar transfer, or registrant transfer. This prevents any .CA domain from going through an additional registrar or registrant transfer for 60 days after such an event. For new registrations, there is an additional 5 days holding period, bringing the total to 65.

•    The domain "lifecycle" has changed significantly. Domains are no longer suspended by CIRA upon expiry, and are instead "auto-renewed". 35 days into this "auto-renew grace" period, Webnames.ca sends CIRA a deletion request for said domain, which is done in the event that the domain is not renewed by the registrant. The domain is then placed in "redemption" for a period of 30 days (domain is renewable), followed by a "pending delete" stage of 5 days (domain is NOT renewable). After that, the domain goes to TBR (To Be Released), and these domains are released by CIRA every Wednesday. You can Pre-Register your favourite TBR domains with Webnames.ca

•    CIRA Privacy - CIRA still supports their own free privacy services for registrants who are individuals. Where previously this could be changed by logging into one's CIRA account, this service can now only be modified by contacting your registrar of record.

Have any other questions about these updates? We are always here to help. Call Customer Support at 1-866-221-7878 for more information.

We are excited to announce that  Webnames.ca has launched a new and improved Shopping Cart!

Our streamlined new cart will make shopping faster and simpler. Some of its benefits include:

• Simplified domain registration and shopping (we've reduced the number of steps by half!)
• Ability to change terms, quantities and set auto-renewal options for both domains and services directly in the cart
• Apply global updates to all domains in the cart
• Add compatible services such as email and SSL directly in the shopping cart
• Enhanced bulk capacity - register hundreds of domains at one time with improved bulk handling
• Automatic crediting for unused time when you upgrade or change services
• Easily upgrade, downgrade or update the billing cycle of your service(s)
• Easier Registrant management  
• Realtime status updates for domain and service provisioning shown directly on the purchase confirmation screen

And remember we still offer:

• Some of the most flexible payment options around, including major credit cards, invoice, online banking and cheque, as well as pre-paid account credits for "money-free" purchasing

We Welcome Your Feedback

We're looking forward to a smooth transition, but if you experience any bumps or hiccups with our new system, we definitely want to hear about it!

Because one of our core values is to "always be improving" we welcome your feedback about our new cart, whether it's big or small, positive or critical. Webnames.ca is committed to continuously reviewing our processes to maximize efficiency, productivity and quality. We will do our best to resolve any issues you experience as promptly as possible as well as incorporate your suggestions for improvement.

And of course, if you require assistance using our new cart or have questions about the new features, simply call us directly.

Please send your comments to support@webnames.ca, or,
Call us toll free 1 866 470 6820 to share your feedback with a customer support representative.

Webnames.ca listens to customer feedback and is always striving to be better at what we do and help you manage your online presence effectively. Below are answers to some frequently asked questions that keep coming up in conversations with you.

Too Many Passwords in General?  Try Password Safe

Password Safe is free online, which we've mentioned in previous posts, I am mentioning it again because customers keep telling me about the difficulties they're having managing multiple passwords  It allows you to store all your passwords securely.  All you really need to remember is the password for the tool itself.  Once logged into Password Safe, you can access all the details you stored by name.  It even has a feature that will auto populate the fields so you don't need to type them.

Managing your Webnames.ca Services Passwords

Email - If you ever forget the password to your Webnames.ca Emails, there is a place in the Webmail settings where you can enter another email address.  The next time you forget your email password, you can go to Pronto Webmail and click "Forgot your Password?", your password will then be sent to the alternate email account you specified.

Webhosting - If you forget the password to your Webhosting, there is now an option on your Webhosting Tab in your Webnames.ca account, that will re-send the password.

If you want help setting this up, call us!  We're more than happy to guide you through it over the phone. 1--866-221-7878.

How Many Websites Do I need?

With Webnames.ca Webhosting, you can have one hosting plan, with several domains that are forwarded to it.  For example, if yummybonbons.ca is hosted, and yummybonbons.com points to the .ca, the domains can all be forwarded to the home page or even to different sub-folders.  Webnames.ca forwarder also allows you to grip the domain, which will keep the domain name showing in the address bar instead of the destination sub-folder (yummybonbons.ca can be forwarded to sweetsweetcandy.com/FR/, when gripping is used the address bar will show http://yummybonbons.ca so in effect, you can have a website under both names.  **Note that some websites require features that are only available with specific plans.

With Webnames.ca Web Builder you can only have one website per plan. Some customers have mistakenly purchased our GOLD Web Builder for extra pages, their intent being to have half of their website in French (with Web Builder having the language built in, you can only choose French or English, not both).  If you are looking to have a bilingual site, I suggest getting two separate domains and a smaller Web Builder plan, it will not only cost less, but also be clearer for both your English and French speaking customers. 

When You Outgrow Web Builder

Webnames.ca Business Standard Hosting: For a lot of individuals, organizations and small businesses Web Builder is a great website solution; we realize however that sometime people want more flexibility and are eager to learn how to manage their own websites, taking advantage of the vast resources and tutorials available online.

If this is your case, we've been reccommedning Webnames.ca Business Standard Hosting with a fresh install of WordPress.  If you get decide to purchase that hosting package we will install WordPress for you free of charge.  After WordPress has been installed it is up to you to manage it. For ideas, how-to's and cupport, you can check out the extensive WordPress forums. http://wordpress.org/support/

For more information about the above Webnames.ca services, try our comprehensive FAQ section. If your question isn't answered there, don't hesitate to call us at 1-866-221-7878.

Sometimes I seem to do the same things over and over again.  I frequently find myself awash in an ocean of information, and then I think, "GET ORGANIZED!"  Here are a few good tools that are FREE, and extremely useful in my managing my daily online activities.

Password Safe

I have so many passwords to keep track of! Working in the domain industry, I have even more than ever before.  I don't want to lose any and can't possibly remember them all, so I've got to have a system to keep all of them organized and safely available.  Password Safe is a great tool - you can store all your usernames and passwords, along with notes if you need any, and a link to the login page.  You will have one main login for Password Safe, which in turn gives you access to all the other logins you've stored. 

I recommend backing up Password Safe on a USB flash drive, or in your web based email client,  that way you can rest easy if ever your whole computer dies or something.

Password Safe - http://passwordsafe.sourceforge.net/

Texter

Texter is a text substitution application that was recommended to me by my colleague and it pleasantly surprised me with its utility. It allows you to  define text substitution hotstrings that, when triggered, will replace hotstring with a larger piece of text. By entering your most commonly-typed snippets of text into Texter, you can save countless keystrokes in the course of the day.

I now enter all the text I find myself typing repeating throughout my day into Texter. At first I don't think I have much to enter in it, but as I go along I use it routinely.  I can enter greetings for example. For things I explain by email repeatedly, Texter is awesome. I can access Texter to copy and paste the content, but even cooler are the hotstrings. I can set a lengthy greeting with a word like 'hello' which becomes a hotstring.  This means I just type in 'hello' and it gets replaces with my full greeting.  What a time saver! Texter can also be stored on a USB flash drive, allowing you to take it with you.

Texter - http://lifehacker.com/238306/lifehacker-code-texter-windows

GIMP Portable

I often want to edit my photos, fix the contrast or saturation, optimize them for the web or for emailing to friends, however I don't work in graphic design so I just can't justify the cost of an expensive photo editor. Well, that's fine ... I have discovered GIMP!

GIMP is a FREE image editor, and there are two versions; one is portable and doesn't even need to be installed, it can sit on your USB flash drive.  GIMP is very powerful, and I think it important to share with you; even with prior Photoshop experience I was still overwhelmed by all the features of GIMP.  So here is a tip: search on Google for GIMP tutorials, they are a life saver!

GIMP Portable: http://portableapps.com/apps/graphics_pictures/gimp_portable

GIMP Full Version): http://www.gimp.org/

Don't forget to check out the GIMP Tutorials: http://www.gimp.org/tutorials/

 

The above three tools have been constants in my life for years.  They help me to stay organized and get things done without having to scramble around like a madman.  Zen is maintained.  "Ooooommmmmmm!" 

Do you know that I have missed parties because I am not on Facebook?!  I don't get the invite and nobody thinks to email me or, heaven forbid, pick up the phone and call me to tell me about it.

If people are spending their time working and connecting within Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn etc.,  is the expectation that they want to be contacted via those mediums as well?

Do I want Air Canada to have my Twitter name and they can DM about my point status?  I view Twitter on my mobile phone and I am on the road a lot. This could be very handy.

What happens when I use an aggregator like Flock for all my social media?  Could I give Air Canada my Flock account and they can update me and it passes into any number of application streams that I am watching?

I feel that all of these are very real possibilities, but I bet your "Create an Account" process is not up to the task.  Sure it can take a first name, last name, email address, phone number and that old dinosaur, a fax number, but does it take anything new?

Here at Webnames.ca, one of the problems we have is that people don't update their phone numbers or addresses when they move. Not only do we get a lot of returned snail mail, we also get bounce backs on email addresses that no longer work.

We are in the process of redoing our shopping cart and account creation and have the opportunity to create new fields to capture social media account names as well as people's .TEL names. 

We won't be ready to contact you by Twitter/FaceBook/Insert Brand New Social Media Site Name Here this year, but we want to let you tell us what your preference is on how to be contacted in the future.

For those who think Web 2.0 is just a bandwagon that people jump on and off, that may be true.  Today's Twitter might be tomorrows'  Friendster but I guarantee you that something new will take its place and you better be ready to capture that information.

A company can risk alienating a target market or demographic by refusing to engage with them in their preferred way.  I know I am always outraged when sites won't take a credit card and only take PayPal.  They just lost a customer.  Don't you lose one too.

Image: e-clips marketing blog

 

When starting a new business or launching a new product one must consider the registration, and use of trademarks, service marks, copyrights and patents as part of the process, yet there is often much confusion as to what one needs and how to use them correctly.* 

 The International Trademark Association (INTA) [http://www.inta.org] is a not-for-profit membership association "dedicated to the advancement and observation of trademark rights."  Their website is a great place to start searching for information regarding Trademarks and their usage.We have compiled for you a brief overview of the "INTA" FAQ covering some of the more common questions people have regarding Trademarks and their use.

What is a Trademark?

A trademark is any word (Poison), name (Giorgio Armani), symbol or device (the Pillsbury Doughboy), slogan (Got Milk?), package design (Coca-Cola bottle) or combination of these that serves to identify and distinguishes a specific product from others in the market place or in trade. Even a sound (NBC chimes), color combination, smell or hologram can be a trademark under some circumstances. The term trademark is often used interchangeably to identify a trademark or service mark.**

What do the Symbols ®, ™, and SM mean?

A ™ is usually used to indicate an unregistered trademark. It is an informal notification that there is a public claim as a trademark. 

A SM represents a service mark, which is normally used on the advertising of a service.  It is used in this way because, unlike trademarks, there is normally no packaging to put the mark on. 

The ® (commonly pronounced "R-in-a-circle" or "Circle-R") is a warning notice to advise the public that the mark is registered and their use provides legal benefits. This notice can be used only with registered marks. Use of a ® with any unregistered trademark may result in claims of fraud. Several other countries also use the ® symbol to indicate that a trademark or service mark is registered in their respective systems.**

How Do I Use Trademarks Online Properly?

The guidelines for the use of trademarks online are generally the same as those for using trademarks in print.**

Should I register the domain names that match my Trademarks?

As a Trademark owner there are certain obligations to protect your Trademark against unauthorized use.  By registering the domain names that match your Trademarks you are protecting your Trademark and preventing the potential loss of profits and damage to your brand. 

There are many rules and regulations surrounding Trademarks and they are different from country to country, so it is important to be educated and to select a Trademark agent, Lawyer and domain registrar like Webnames.ca to ensure you have the best coverage and protection for your brands, products and services.  For more information on Trademarks visit the inta.org website. 

* Information taken from INTA: www.inta.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=14&Itemid=37&getcontent=4

** Information taken from INTA FAQ: www.inta.org/index.php?option=com_simplefaq&task=display&Itemid=0&catid=284&page=1&getcontent=5#FAQ67

CIRA has issued a phishing attack warning to advise .CA domain name holders of a phishing scam designed to collect personal information including Canadian Social Insurance Numbers. The e-mails were made to appear to be coming from the Canada Revenue Agency, but with "CIRA" listed in the "from" address line.

This is a targeted phishing attack. CIRA is advising Internet users not to respond to these e-mails.

The full text of the alert can be found on the following CIRA links:

English

Francais

As registered trademark holders, protecting and maintaining one's trademarks can seem like a daunting task, especially when it comes to the domain name market. Just when you thought you had all your domains covered along comes another new domain name extension for you to worry about. 

Although it is often not possible to register every trademark you own in every domain name extension, it is always a good idea to ensure you protect your trademarks in the most popular domain extensions as well as any new extensions that may benefit you, and your trademarks in new and innovative ways. The soon to be launched .TEL domain is not an exception to this rule.

There are a number of things that make .TEL different from other domain names currently available.  One of these differences and probably the most compelling to trademark holders is that. TEL domains are not website based. This means it will be difficult for a person visiting a .TEL domain name to be sure that the information they are looking at is the actual company, organization or individual they are looking for based on the name they enter.

For example, let's say my company holds the trademark for a product called "YumYums" and I didn't register the corresponding .TEL domain (eg. yumyums.tel). Along comes my competitor or worse, someone who wishes to divert my customers, and they register yumyums.tel.  Now when a new or returning customer tries to contact or find my company by entering yumyums.tel in their browser or mobile device, he could be exposed to information that will divert him elsewhere. Uh oh! Not only have I confused, or worse, lost my customer, my "YumYums" brand has also been compromised.

As you can see from this example the potential for business loss, or worse, sensitive information being captured due to intentional "phishing" is significant.  This is not to say .TEL domains are somehow less secure, but in today's world businesses and organizations can never be too cautious and should follow best practices to protect their brands and trademarks. 

In addition to protecting your official trademarks as .TEL domains, businesses and organizations should consider registering other terms and words as .TEL domains that relate to your business,  products and marks to funnel potential customers to your .TEL page and contact information. 

Think of .TEL as your personal white/yellow pages listing on the Internet. A .TEL domain can be accessed by anyone, anytime globally. Because your contact information is conveniently stored in your .TEL domain's DNS, you can update and control your contact information whenever you need to.  You won't need to worry any longer about changes you have made to your contact details being out of date in hard copy directories -  your customers will always have the latest information you supply directly to your .TEL page. 

The .TEL domains truly stand to revolutionize the way we share our contact details with the world.  Sure, the pricing for a .TEL Sunrise (Trademark) submission may seem high in comparison to other domain launches, but your trademarks are invaluable. Being pro-active in the protection of your trademark can save you time and money in the long run. 

Instead of chasing down .TEL domains in violation of your trademark after the fact, use your time, energy and money to ensure your .TEL domains are protected from the get-go. By protecting your trademarks, you are also protecting your most valuable resources - your clients, your brands and products and your reputation.  So don't let me .TEL you why you should register your trademarks as .TEL domains, visit www.webnames.ca to learn more about how this new domain will revolutionize the way we keep in touch.

-------------------------------------------

Click here for more information on .TEL                   

It’s is that time of year again. Many of us have made resolutions, some of which we’ll stick to and some, well, let’s just say began with the best of intentions. 

In the spirit of starting fresh, I have compiled a list of 5 domain related resolutions you or your business can follow to help you get your portfolio in order during 2008.  

1. The first and most important resolution is to get organized. Do a comprehensive review of all the domains you currently have registered. Make note of what registrar they are with and if there are any domains not accounted for and or needing to be registered.

2. Once you know exactly what domains you own and where they are registered, consider consolidating all of them under one registrar. Webnames.ca is always happy to help you with Registrar transfers or account consolidations.  Remember when you transfer your domains you also get a one year renewal included in the transfer price so not only are you consolidating you are ensuring you have your domains for an extra year.

3. Register any domains you have been thinking about that that relate to and protect your brands, products, services and trademarks.  By registering domains that reflect your brands you are protecting yourself and your customers.  It is a good idea to register your most important names in each of the most common domain extensions to ensure maximum coverage.

4. Take advantage of security features that protect your domain names, websites and accounts.  Webnames.ca now offers Account lock which allows you to control which IP address(es) can access your Webnames.ca account. The feature adds a layer of protection to your account and domains by ensuring only authorized IP addresses have access to your domains.  We also offer a range of SSL certificates at very competitive pricing.  For more information on these products and services visit our website www.webnames.ca or contact your account rep.

5. Optimize your domains!  Now that you have them organized, registered, and protected your domains, think about optimizing them by using services like hosting, domain forwarding, advanced DNS or even parking pages.  For example if your main site is based on the .COM version of your domain name and you also own the .CA, INFO, .ORG and .BIZ versions you can use free domain forwarding to point these domains back to your .COM website to maximize traffic to your site.

So with these 5 resolutions you should find managing your domains in 2008 to be a snap.  And remember Webnames.ca is here to help, so don’t hesitate to contact us for advice or support managing your domain portfolio.

The other day a colleague in Webnames.ca Customer Support took a phone call from an individual enquiring about a tire change. After explaining that Webnames.ca was a domain registrar, the caller seemed confused and quickly ended the phone call. My colleague then related the story to the rest of the group.

A short time later, the same individual called our Customer Support a second time, once again asking for a tire change. It was at this point we realized that the caller thought we would be able to provide him this information because we are an Internet service company. In his mind, our business was like a human search engine – a place where he could find information available on the Internet.  

It may seem hard to believe, but we receive calls like this regularly. While the exchanges cause us to chuckle, it shows how many people have no idea how the Internet works. These callers have the impression that people are standing by to provide the information the Internet supplies through websites and search engines.  Some callers believe customer/technical support representatives who work for Internet businesses should know everything related to technology and think we are incompetent when we claim we cannot answer all their questions or make things run exactly as the customer would intend.

Truth is, things are always changing when it comes to Internet related businesses - it’s an ongoing effort to keep up with changing technologies and often not plausible to follow “all” the latest trends.  I must say however, I am impressed by our company’s willingness to ponder new ideas and how welcoming it has been to the Support team’s suggestions about bettering customer experience.  That said, my colleague took the time to find a website related to tire changes and found this caller the contact information he needed. 

In summary we do not own the Internet … but we can help people create their Internet identities. And as a bonus, we do sometimes do a little research and help people along the way. As our business and offerings grow, so does our knowledge of what our customers are really looking for.  

If you want to learn more about how the Internet works, this series of articles on HowStuffWorks.com is a great place to start. - Andre  

Dear Readers,

When it comes to registering domain names companies and organizations often struggle to cover all their trademarks, brands, product names, concepts and variations without: a) missing some, or b) registering domain names that are not as relevant as originally thought.

For companies seeking to protect their intellectual property online, I have put together three simple steps that can help you maintain an accurate and relevant domain name portfolio and reduce opportunities for name squatting.

Step One - Ensure you purchase domains before launching new products, projects or services. As you know, domain names can be purchased within minutes therefore it is important that companies register domain names before announcing new products, projects and services to prevent others from registering relevant or related domain names. It is important to register the .ca, and .com - and if you have the budget, the .net and .org - as they are the dominant domain extensions for  Canada and North America. With momentum increasing around mobile Internet use, I would also consider securing the .mobi domain.

Step Two - Consider registering variant domain names. For example if someone is not familiar with the exact name of one of your product, service or project but is looking for it online how would they look for it? What are the keywords one would use in search engine etc. Overtime, these domain names will drive additional traffic to your website and product pages.

Step Three - The third suggestion is very straight forward: register misspelled domain names. Names that are trickier to spell and/or type can lead your customers to the wrong websites. Some of these websites are called phishing websites and can be harmful to visitors.

So the next time your organization plans to register domain names around a new project or product launch, strike up a brainstorming session and apply the three points above and I am sure the resultant name suggestions will be valuable. Thank you for reading and feel free to share your comments and suggestions with us, Nick

While reading Seth Godin's blog, I came across one of the best examples of customer service that I have seen in awhile. Zappos is a US company, that sells shoes and handbags online. A customer had such an extraordinary experience with the company, she wrote about it on her blog, in an post titled "I Heart Zappos".

A Zappos customer had bought several pairs of shoes for her mother, some of them didn't fit, so she notified the company she would be returning the shoes. Her mother was subsequently hospitalized and passed away shortly after, and when a Zappos representative emailed her to find out why the shoes had not yet arrived, she told them that her mother had passed away and she would send the shoes back as soon as she was able to. The Zappos representative told her not to worry, and arranged for UPS to come pick up the shoes rather than her having to take them to the courier's office to be shipped (their standard company policy). While that was already a wonderful step, the customer opened her door a few days later to a gorgeous bouquet of flowers, from - you guessed it - Zappos.

The woman was understandably incredibly touched, and wrote a blog entry telling her story and thanking Zappos for their thoughtfulness, and amazing above and beyond customer service. While this happened back in July, the story has been building and especially making the rounds on the Internet the last couple of days. Zappos is getting some amazing publicity from a wonderful act of customer service, and they should accordingly praise their thoughtful staff member. If this is part of their corporate culture, Zappos is a fantastic company that deserves the praise being lauded at them. For a company whose entire business is online like Zappos, building relationships can be difficult, but if you encourage your employees to put customers first, you can generate strong customer loyalty.

Last updated September 2009

It certainly won't land you on the first page of Google if your website has poor content and is not well optimized for search engines, but registering and/or renewing your domain name for a longer term might help your SEO. 

How? Credible websites have certain things in common, for example their domain names tend to be registered for longer terms - 2, 5, 10 years - indicating a commitment to their online identity and business.

In an effort to weed out spammers from legitimate websites, it's suspected that Google and other search engines look for indicators of legitimacy gleaned from analyzing common traits of so-called 'good' websites, ie. websites that bring value to the Internet. 

Domain registration information is readily accessible - therefore it is easy for a search engine such as Google to find out how long you have registered your domain.

 According to a 2005 patent filed by Google,

"Certain signals may be used to distinguish between illegitimate and legitimate domains. For example, domains can be renewed up to a period of 10 years. Valuable (legitimate) domains are often paid for several years in advance, while doorway (illegitimate) domains rarely are used for more than a year. Therefore, the date when a domain expires in the future can be used as a factor in predicting the legitimacy of a domain and, thus, the documents associated therewith."

Click here to see the original patent application

The quote places a greater value on domains registered for longer terms, viewing them as more legitimate than those set to expire after one year. 

With spammers registering one year disposable domains at low cost registrars, it makes sense that search engines would consider the length/age of a domain registration. Anyone who has submitted a website to Google knows it takes time to build up respectable page rank on relevant keywords and terms. Spam websites tend to be short lived, resultantly a website's age and domain registration could be considered as indicators of credibility.

To be fair, there has been quite a lot of debate among SEO experts as to whether or not a longer registration term is worthwhile, however most seem to agree it can't hurt and might even help. John Glick, a former member of the Yahoo search team, is on the record as saying "there is a minor benefit to domains with longer registrations. It shows that the site is planning on being around a while."

More recently, SearchEngineLand.com editor Mark McGee put it very reasonably -  "My gut feeling, based on what the Googlers have said, is that if you build a great web site that attracts lots of people, lots of links, lots of attention, etc., it won't matter if your domain is only registered for one year. But if you build an iffy web site with iffy content and questionable links ... a one-year registration just might matter."

While it's not going to make or break your SEO game, our take is this: if you plan on being around for a while, why wouldn't you secure your name for longer? It will save you money, save you from renewing yearly (or worse yet, forgetting to renew) and might even boost your SEO ever so slightly.

Further Reading on the Topic:

SEO & Length of Domain Registration - Does It Matter?  - VerticalLeap SEO Services

Does Registering A Domain Name for 10 Years Help Search Ranking? - Search Engine Roundtable

Search Ranking Factors Study 2009, Site-Wide (non-link based) Ranking Factors - SEOmoz.org

Google Says Domain Registrations Don't Affect SEO, Or Do They? - SearchEngineLand.com  

I recently read an article about my favorite places to visit - the Walt Disney theme parks - and what they do to encourage customer loyalty. Disney promotes two types of interactions called “Magical Moments” and “Take 5’s”. Magical Moments are planned events or promotions that create a special experience for the guest. Take 5’s can be either proactive or reactive interactions and represent an opportunity to do something extra or special for a visitor. But how do you create a meaningful customer service culture and customer loyalty in an organization where face-to-face interaction is incredibly rare?

Webnames.ca, like a growing number of businesses today, is almost entirely Internet based, and the vast majority of our customer interaction takes place online, by phone, email and snail mail. For online businesses finding ways to provide Magical Moments and Take 5’s can take some creativity. So where does one start?

First you need to provide a great work environment so your staff is passionate about your products, because this enthusiasm carries over into customer interactions. The next step is to create a storefront that welcomes customers to your world. Once you have the customer on your website you need to provide superior products and services at competitive rates. Many business stop once they have accomplished the above, and for some it may be sufficient; but for businesses that want to excel at customer service and provide the “Magic Moments” and “Take 5’s” that foster loyalty, these steps are just the beginning.

Some of the ways Webnames.ca has tried to provide these “Magical Moments” to our customers is through promotions, discounts, Referral Programs, our blog, newsletters, customized account reviews and bundle packages. For our “Take 5’s”, we allow any staff member to offer extra services, credits and even discounts based on the customers needs at the time of contact. By empowering individual staff members to make on-the-spot decisions, we are able to personalize our customer interactions and provide custom solutions specific to their needs. This is at the heart of the Disney philosophy at their theme parks - give each and every customer a magical experience and they will return year after year because they walk away with a good feeling. It's more challenging for an online business to create winning experiences with customers than traditional brick and mortar stores, however when they do they are rewarded with customer loyalty.

In today’s competitive market place, advertising and pricing are not the only way to promote your business. Finding new and innovative ways to build customer loyalty is an integral part of the business model. I hope you will be inspired to find new ways to provide your own “Magic Moments” and “Take 5’s” for your customers.

Fall is a busy time for domain name renewals and transfers as businesses get their house in order for the coming year. If you are working towards consolidating your domain portfolio, below are answers to our most frequently transfer questions for .com, .org, and .net domain names.

1. How long does it take to transfer my .com, .org, .net domain to Webnames.ca? Answer: Once submitted and confirmed by the administrative contact, it takes approximately 5 to 7 days to complete a transfer.  Transfers of .ca domains can take as little as one day. Note: .ca domain transfers can complete 1-2 days pending admin contact confirmation.

2. What if the administrative contact email is not active? Answer: ICANN requires the administrative contact listed on the WHOIS record of the domain name to confirm the transfer; therefore, if the administrative contact address is no longer active, you must first update your current email with the original registrar.

3. Once I have removed the Registrar Lock on my domain, how long do I have to wait to transfer it? Answer: Registrar Lock takes 12 to 24 hours to show-up as removed, only when this occurs is the domain name transferable.

4. How long do I have to wait to transfer my domain name if it was recently registered? Answer: For a newly registered domain name you need to wait at least 60 days before transferring. For a domain name recently transferred to a new registrar, you will have to wait at least 30 days to transfer to different registrar.

5. My transfer failed, even though the admin contact confirmed it with Webnames.ca, why? Answer: Your transfer likely failed for one of two reasons: your current registrar either denied the request or did not release the domain to Webnames.ca in time causing the transfer to time out. Contact your current registrar and enquire why the transfer out failed to occur.

6. Your systems require I submit an AUTHCODE for my .ORG, .BIZ and .INFO at the time of transfer. What is an AUTHCODE and where do I find it? Answer: An AUTHCODE is a security feature for .ORG, .BIZ and .INFO domain extensions which prevent the unlawful transfer of your domain name. AUTHCODE's are typically alpha-numeric code, and are unique to each domain name. AUTHCODE's are sometimes called EPP Keys or AUTH KEYS. To get the AUTHCODE for your domain names contact your current registrar.

7. Something has gone wrong with my transfer and I need to contact my current registrar, is this something Webnames.ca can do for me? Answer: Unfortunately Webnames.ca can not contact your current registrar on your behalf. For security purposes, domain registrars only provide information to the domain's Administrative Contact.

8. My Transfer failed; do I need to resubmit it all over again? Answer: Yes, if you have received a notice stating that your transfer has failed and been refunded, you will need to re-submit the transfer as you did originally.

9. When my domain name transfers will my DNS be affected? Answer: No your DNS settings will remain the same as they were at your previous registrar, however please note if your previous registrar was your hosting company they may cancel your hosting once the domain name is moved from them. In this case you may wish to consider purchasing Webnames.ca hosting.

10. Will the one year renewal be automatically applied to my domain name? Answer: Yes the one year renewal that is included with all Registrar transfers is added by the registry when the domain is transferred to Webnames.ca (your new registrar).

11. Before transferring my domain name I renewed it at my previous registrar. Now that the domain name has been transferred over, I've noticed the expiration date does not reflect the renewal from my previous registrar plus the one year from the transfer. What do I do? Answer: Contact your pre-transfer registrar and find out if they applied the renewal you paid for to your domain name. The registry automatically adds an additional year during the transfer process, therefore there is no chance your domain did not receive this extension. Consequently, any missing years were most likely not applied by your previous registrar, in which case you are owed a refund.

12. Can additional years beyond the standard one be added during the transfer process? Answer: Unfortunately only one year can be added during the transfer, however you can always renew the domain name for additional years once it has successfully transferred over.

13. How many emails can an Administrative Contact expect to confirm during the transfer process? Answer: The administrative contact will receive an email from Webnames.ca (the new registrar) to confirm the transfer. The administrative contact may or may not also receive an email from their current registrar.

Remember, if you are transferring 5 or more domains names to Webnames.ca, contact Nicholas from Webnames.ca Corporate Services toll free at 1-866-470-6820 xtn. 113 to discuss preferred pricing and receive help managing the transfer process. All domain transfers include a free one-year extension of the registration term.