Domain names are money. Good domain names are powerful. Like Tony Montana said: “First, you get the yayo. Then, you get the money. Then, you register miamiyayo.com and sell it and buy some women. ” Something like that, anyway.

Anyway, so what if you have a domain name, and it expires? If for some reason, - let’s say apathy, or changing your email address, or overactive spam filters or otherwise - you weren’t able to respond to the 30 warning emails and 5 snailmail letters that were sent to “123 Street St” (listed on your domain registration details) then it expires, and it has entered the limbo of soon-to-be-deleted domains.

The limbo period - 75 days in the life of an expired domain.

Day 1 - Day 30 = “EXPIRED” status. The domain is undelegated, so no-one will be able to get to your site or email you. If you owned the expired domain, and have contact with the registar, just get in contact with them and request a renewal, or transfer to another domain manager or registrar, which should count as a renewal. There may be an additional charge for this.

Day 31 - Day 70 = “REDEMPTIONPERIOD” status. Re-registring the domain will cost you extra, and it will take up to 30 days to redelegate back to you.

Day 70 - Day 75 = “PendingDELETED” status. Welcome to the “Drop zone”. This is like, seriously guy, your last chance. This is the period where all the servers that run the internet are getting ready to forget you ever owned the domain, and it’s gonna go back up on the market. On the last day between 11am and 2pm US Pacific time , the name will totally “drop” and will be available for registration by anybody.

There’s even a blog here that points out the good ones that are about to drop: Expired Domains blog

“Can’t I just re-register it after it’s dropped?”

Maybe. But seeing as there are domain name daytrading hotshots living in serviced apartments in Caribbean tax-haven hideaways just waiting for pretty young domains like yours to be shunted back out into the market, it’s risky. If your domain is even remotely valuable to someone, meaning it contains 1 to 3 words in English, then there’s a risk that someone is going to get it before this even happens. The thing you have to ask yourself is: Do you feel lucky, punk?

To be absolutely sure, you need to secure it in those THREE HOURS on “drop day”.

Re-registering domains in the 3-hour “drop” period

There are a few companies that make their business to snatch domains during the domain drop period. They run large server networks that send multiple registration requests to the expired domain’s registrar during the drop period. Basically, they hammer the registration server to make sure they pick up the domain first. Similar to eBay sniping, but with a bigger gun, and nobody else is allowed to shoot.

The big “drop period snatching” players you can use in the 5 day PendingDeleted period are:

• Snap Names
• Pool.com
• NameJet

To use a service, first register, then “back-order” the domain to indicate you want it, and pay USD$60 or so via credit card. Then, during the “Drop” period, if they manage to secure the domain, you either get it right away or if it was contested by someone else at the same service, bid an extra amount for it in an auction.

Mike Davidson has a good review of his experience using Pool.com here: http://www.mikeindustries.com/blog/archive/2005/03/how-to-snatch-an-expiring-domain

Use multiple services, if you’re really desparate

If your domain is even vaguely attractive, chances are someone else is going to be using a snatching service to go after it too. So you will need to be ready to bid for it against them. For extra anxiety, you don’t know which of the three big snatching services ill get the domain and hold the auction, so you might want to register your back-order at all three. Sucks, huh?

Smart domain name auction tips

Stay tuned, I’m about to go through this whole terrifying ordeal on behalf of a forgetful client who lost their brand online. I will continue this [now] two-part series when I’m done.