Don't register with PowerPipe.com. They were fine, as any registrar is, but when it came down to transferring one of my domains... well it was a nightmare. 4 emails, one reply basically saying sorry because they were moving to a larger whatever... thats it. My issue was time-sensitive, if you can't email don't run a business, if you can't send an email out forwarning about delayed contact don't go into business. Long story short, i lost my domain and can't even do a whois on it... i have no idea where it is....

STuart

Sorry to hear you had a sour experience with them. I have handled a few domains with them and have been satisfied. One of the top guys (or perhaps the top guy) even called me on a Saturday morning to let me know of a pending issue.

Mark

Well I wish I had received a call... an email... something. Who knows maybe they were going through a tough time, but 4 emails? I don't know... Signing up customers are about 20% of the work where customer service makes up the rest... horrible.

Stuart

Hello friend,

For next time, I advise you to register your domain with an actual domain registrar. It's even much better if the domain registrar has been accredited by ICANN. You can trust them.

Since ICANN has got some strict rules and regulations, and not every domain registrar can be accredited by them.

Hope you'll get back your domain.

Thanks headmaster,

yeah I found out that powerpipe was a reseller or something after I used them to grab my domain. NOt that there is anything wrong with that, but seeing as I lost something quite important to me I will be godaddy'ing it from now on.

Stuart

Originally posted by HeadMaster
For next time, I advise you to register your domain with an actual domain registrar. It's even much better if the domain registrar has been accredited by ICANN. You can trust them.

Since ICANN has got some strict rules and regulations, and not every domain registrar can be accredited by them.
I'm not trying to defend PowerPipe, here, or anything like that. I don't really know much about them... except I think they're an eNom reseller, no?

At any rate, I'm not sure it's fair to suggest that the only way one may be assured of ethical and responsible treatment in the domain name registration arena is to only do business with ICANN-approved registrars. There are hundreds or perhaps even thousands of domain name resellers in these forums -- the vast majority of them, I dare say, would never have allowed Stuart to suffer the loss he suffered had he been their customer.

The problem is that the domain reseller market is populated with many who believe that the only way to compete is to have the lowest price. And since many of their competitors are selling domains for just pennies more than their wholesale cost, well-intentioned and otherwise honest (and honorable) resellers find themselves doing a lot of business (a high volume), but with very little profit (low margin).

And if there's one thing that domain name registrars and their resellers are learning the hard way these days it's that you cannot make-up for lost margin with volume. Harvard University business students have been hearing that for, literally, three centuries. And the concept is taught in nearly every other business school on earth. It is tragic, in my opinion, that so many otherwise good companies in this business have not learned this simplest of business maxims.

When you do a high volume of low-margin business, all you really end-up with is the same amount of work as if you had a high-volume of business with a high margin, but without any money to fund it. PowerPipe, like so many registrars who are slashing their margins in order to get high volumes of quick (but nevertheless unprofitable) business are doing nothing but ensuring that eventually they will require more people to support the business than their meager profits will allow them to fund. It all works out well at first, but it's very much like those juglers we used to see on the old Ed Sullivan show who spun plates on tall, thin, semi-flexible sticks: Try spinning enough of them at once without getting a little help to keep 'em going, and sooner or later plates start hitting the floor. And once that happens it's just about impossible to recover.

I believe the people at PowerPipe are not dishonorable; that they would not have intentionally hurt Stuart or knowingly done anything to cause him to lose his domain. But when they slash the price so much that they can't keep-up with the business they have, then they end-up inadvertently hurting good customers like Stuart without really meaning to.

There are many, many domain resellers in these forums who will not slash their profitability to the point where it won't pay for the staff needed to support their business. All that Stuart or anyone reading this thread would have to do to reduce the likelihood of an eventuality such as he suffered is intentionally refuse to do business with people whose fundamental business plan is so obviously flawed that it can't provide basic profitability in the long-term. Of course that means paying a higher price. But is it not still true that you get what you pay for?

Selling domain names to the general public (which, by nature, is not considered "expert" and will, therefore, require its fair share of technical support and, of course, adequate personnel to provide it) for only $1.04 more than its wholesale cost -- as PowerPipe is doing -- is a formula for failure... if not in the short-term, then in the long-term. And PowerPipe clearly failed Stuart in this case -- and apparently because it just couldn't find the time to respond to him and his needs properly.

But that does not mean than most other resellers would have behaved that way also. And it's just not fair, HeadMaster, to suggest that they would; and that the only way to ensure that it could not happen again is to deal only with ICANN-approved registrars. I know of several ICANN-approved registrars that are infinitely less ethical than PowerPipe ever even considered being. ICANN-approval, by itself, is not -- not by a long shot -- an assurance of reliability or a predictor of honorable behavior.

Next time, Stuart (and others reading this), perform a bit of due diligence beforehand and determine not just who's reputable, but also who seems to be charging enough to make a fair and honest profit so they'll be around to help you if you need it. And there are hundreds or even thousands of domain resellers in these forums who fit that description -- nary a one of them ICANN-approved.

You are more than right DesElms.. I am aware that resellers aren't bad and I thank you for your defense of them because this thread could have turned some away from credible resellers.

I think its always a plus to be accredited though, couldn't hurt at the very least.

You know I had no issues with Powerpipe.com until now, they were recommened by a host that was recommended by this very forum so I thought I could trust them (plus they had a great price)... the main reason I came here was not to bring powerpipe down (not that I could) but to make them aware (perhaps indirectly) that not answering emails is not good business.

I am a tad pissed because the domain I lost was the number one site in the world for a particular sports player and some big news has been happening the last week.... spilled milk, spilled milk...

Stuart

Originally posted by sabas11
I am a tad pissed because the domain I lost was the number one site in the world for a particular sports player and some big news has been happening the last week.... spilled milk, spilled milk...
Part of my consulting business is helping people with unusual domain ownership, dispute and recovery issues. In fact, the more unusual, the better! Of course, since I can't use these forums for drumming-up business for myself, what I'm about to offer I must offer you for free...

...but if you PM me and tell me what the domain is, I'll at least do (for free) the sort of preliminary legwork that I usually do when I first take-on a client and we need to begin by figuring out what the domain's official status is.

Believe it or not, there's a very good chance that we can get it back. You should not despair just yet.

sabas11 - Did someone else already register the domain?

I suggest you PM DesElms. I've contacted him privately to ask him for advice on a domain I own. He provided very relevant information that helped me. And his recommendations were useful. :)

Good luck and I hope you get your domain back.

Jessica

No I don't think so, I lost the domain about a month ago and when I try to do a whois on it, it responds that the domain is not listed in the database! hmmmm...?

you've been PM.ed DasElms, thanks so much!

STuart

Try doing a WHOIS again.. Use these services:

betterwhois.com
uwhois.com

If isn't listed on the database, go to a registrar and type your domain there. It could be available for registration again! :) HURRY!

I'm sure DesElms will give you some very good advice too! :)

Jessica