Backordering domains
Backordering at a registrar versus bidding at auctions
Backordering a domain from a domain name registrar is less than useless and a complete waste of your money. You are almost guaranteed never to receive the domain if it has any perceived value. PERIOD.
The way to go about obtaining possession of an expiring domain is to do a whois seach for the domain, find where it is currently registered, and make a bid in the ensuing auction at the place where that registrar farms out their domains for auction. Place your bid as soon as the domain expires. That way, you also avoid all the drop-catch shenanigans.
If the domain has entered pending delete status, the best way to get the domain is to bid for it at all dropcatchers. It will be delete on the sixth day after entering pending delete, and at this point, all dropcatchers that have a bid on the domain will be trying to get it.
Backordering in this article refers to backordering at a registrar, not backordering at a drop-catcher or expired domain auction house, who may also use the same terminology. Always order your expiring domain name from an expired domain name auction house partnered with the underlying registrar for that domain. It's your best chance of acquiring your name.
Domain registrar auction partners
Major auction / dropcatcher sites:
- NameJet.com
- Pool.com
- Snapnames.com
Some of the popular registrars and their preferred auction partners:
- Bulk Register -> Snapnames
- Enom -> NameJet
- Directi -> Snapnames
- DomainSite -> Snapnames
- Dotster -> Snapnames
- GoDaddy -> TDNAM *
- It'sYourDomain -> Snapnames
- MelbourneIT -> None
- Moniker-> SnapNames
- NetSol ->NameJet
- Network Solutions -> NameJet
- Public Domain Registry -> SnapNames
- Register -> SnapNames
- Schlund+Partner -> None
- Tucows -> Afternic
- WildWestDomains -> TDNAM *
* The Domain Name AfterMarket (a GoDaddy company)
A lot of good things to be said for pool.com. You must be prepared to enter a blind auction once they have acquired the domain, so it may not be cheap. Dropcatching is an art that pool.com have mastered. However, it's better to buy it at auction BEFORE the domain is actually dropped from the registrar.
See also
- Domain names
- Domain name registrar
- The dos and don'ts of domain registration
- How to choose a domain name
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