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As a person that has been developing websites for a number of clients I’ve seen a difficulty in retaining those sites developed. It seems that establishing annual terms isn’t working out very well. Domain renewal comes up and perhaps the topic being pursued has lost interest or the timeliness has ran its course. A good example of this is political campaign websites.
On the hosting side of things the renewal of domain licensing is often what takes a website out of circulation.
Domain Lifecycle
Once a domain expires the services bound with it – email accounts, website content, and more are no longer accessible until the domain fees are brought current. There is a short time window available for bringing things current and the popularity of your domain can create a lineup of interested 3rd parties bidding on taking over your domain.
Sadly yes the predatory plundering of abandoned domains is common business these days. It isn’t likely that a 3rd party is interested in representing the interest the domain was initially setup for. Some predatory purchases are deliberate to subvert the original intent.
Hosting Platform Considerations
It is possible to setup a site on a hosted platform, such as WordPress.com or Blogger.com and point the purchased domain in that direction. The advantage being that should the domain expire the content isn’t lost – it reverts to availability offered to free accounts on those services.
It is worth noting that these free hosting platforms have fewer customizable features than a self-hosted account. Most of the websites I’ve assisted people with have been self-hosted due to the features desired.
Changing Fuzzytek’s Business Practice
The rates I’ve been using for development are changing from annualized to monthly. This change is going to support a better lifecycle of support for your website. It can also serve as a monthly reminder that content on the site could use additions or alterations.
it is possible to create a static website, but I’ve found living websites that provide news and updates gather more interest over time. Your ability to see the value in your website will increase.
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