Kropf.com and Domain Registration(s)

When we say "YourName.com", we mean YOUR "Domain Name" in front of the ".com" so YOU have a unique Address on the World Wide Web for anyone in the world to find.

Your "Domain Name" on the Internet equates to, and may actually be more relevant than your current business name, as this is how your Internet prospects and customers will actually "dial-up" your web site.

If you haven't yet registered a domain name, you should do so as soon as possible! While having a Trademarked name may give you an ultimate judgment for an identical domain name, names in the .com, .net, and .org "Top Level Domains" are assigned in a "first-come-first-served" basis! If you find that a domain has already been illegitimately registered using your business name, or personal name, you may have recourse, however it won't be easy (or inexpensive) to make your claim for it!

Originally, there were generally three "Top Level Domains" (TLD) from which to choose: .COM, .ORG, and .NET. They stand for 'computer NETworks', 'non-commercial ORGanizations', and 'COMmercial enterprises'. In reality though, there is no screening or verification for these three such as there is with the .GOV, .EDU, and .MIL TLD's. If you are registering a business, the .COM choice is obvious. But even non-commercial ORGanizations and computer NETworks usually desire the .COM TLD, because entering the second level domain name alone (YourName) in many browsers will default to the .COM. (i.e. entering KROPF alone will contact the http://Kropf.com/ site in these browsers.) We have .ORG customers that have also registered the equivalent .COM domain to take advantage of this feature. Each domain name registered has a separate yearly registration fee of less than $20 for our hosting customers. For this low price, we ensure that your domain name(s) will NOT lapse, and we keep your contact information hidden from the aggressive telemarketers and "slammers". Remember, if the .COM domain IS available, and you don't reserve it, a competitor may register it to intercept an unwary prospect/customer of yours. This fact alone makes the less than $20 additional fee a very smart business decision.
If you're not sure if your preferred name has already been assigned, click on this link and give us at least a few names you might like reserved for your web site. We'll check availability and reply to your e-mail address (or call you if necessary). If your preferences are not available, we'll provide some other suggestions that are available.

• You are not limited to just one registered domain. We have many customers that reserve multiple domain names, all pointing to the same web site. As explained above, the preferred top-level-domain for businesses is the ".com" and this is what most browsers will default to if typing just the name like "Kropf". If you find that your preferred name has already been reserved with the .com, be aware that if you register the ".net", ".org", or even the newer ".biz", ".info", ".us", or others, many people looking for your site will often visit the ".com" site instead of yours.

  If your business name is often abbreviated, you might want to register both the abbreviated version in addition to the full name version.

• Before you go register your domain directly through some registrar such as RegisterIt, NetworkSolutions, etc., be aware that when you are listed as the contact person, your Name, Address, Phone number, and E-mail address are all publicly accessible and you are about guaranteed to be added to the telemarketer's lists, and will be wasting more time sifting through new sources of junk e-mail (commonly called "spam")!

  And we have seen many businesses unable to make Name Server (DNS) changes when required to move a web site or mail server because the original email address is no longer active.

  Instead, when we register your domain for you, only your business name is listed as the Registrant. We use our e-mail address and phone number so yours is not posted publicly for the "spammers". (We're already on the "spam" lists.)

• When your domain(s) reside with our registrar, we ensure that those domain name(s) will NOT lapse. A lapsed domain registration means your web site and email completely stops functioning! We do not require that you pay for years in advance. Our experience shows that paying for many years only wastes your money, and is only a marketing gimmick at your cost. Let us maintain your domain name(s), and we'll put that yearly charge on the same invoice with the hosting services we provide.
  
  
• If we have not registered your domain, and it does not reside with our registrar, we can transfer your domain name(s) and extend the expiration date one year for only the price of a one year renewal. You then can receive all these benefits:
  1. facilitates Kropf's ability to keep your name servers always pointing to the correct location,
  2. you don't have to keep track of rarely used account login/password,
  3. ensures that the domains are renewed (until notified otherwise) without interruption,
  4. contacts are 'c/o Kropf Computer Services, Inc.' (without paying more for 'privatized registration') so you can avoid the junk snail-mail and telemarketer calls (domains are always registered in your name so that a FAX from your organization can authorize changes),
  5. domains are guarded against unauthorized transfers,
  6. immediate notification is directed to Kropf in case of domain 'slamming' attempts,
  7. any related domains are immediately re-directed (and logged) to the preferred web site so that bookmarks and site logging are consistent,
  8. consolidated on the yearly invoice for clarity and convenience.
  
  
• We see countless web sites using a registered domain name, but then they use their ISP's domain for their business e-mail or an AOL.com account! If you already have such a web site that promotes some other business for your e-mail address more than your own domain, we can host your domain name (YourName.com) and provide you unlimited e-mail addresses @YourName.com.

  By hosting your domain, we provide the e-mail services so you receive the full benefit of the domain name you've already purchased. Even while hosting your domain for e-mail, we can point web traffic to your current web site Host if you prefer to let them continue hosting your web site.

What about letting a domain name expire?

If there is ANY possibility that you may want to continue using the currently registered domain name, it is strongly suggested that you keep the domain name renewed, even if you don't want the web site itself active. If you let the domain name expire, it may cost hundreds of dollars or more to purchase it from an entity that often purchases expired domain names. Some of these entities will point the previously expired domain to a benign advertising site. However, others point them to gambling or pornographic sites in order to blackmail a purchase by the original owner.

Therefore, it is suggested to renew the unwanted domain name for at least a year after the web site is shut down to prevent people (clicking on old links and bookmarks) from finding offensive material when they're expecting to find your previous information.

If the unwanted domain name has been replaced by a better domain name, we can immediately redirect the old name to the new name so that all subsequent browsing and bookmarking will make use of the new name.

Of course, we'll need to keep the old name registration renewed in order for the redirect to function. This is usually the best option for where an old name is being replaced with another name.

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