This link goes to an article from the Nonprofit Times' enewsletter article about domain names (www.yourcharity.org/com/net) and what happens when they expire. It illustrates the importance of making sure they DON'T expire so some other group doesn't grab the registration and take advantage of your nonprofit's good name.
How does this relate to accounting? Well, two ways, one is that in a smaller organization one person may be doing all the admin stuff, finance, HR and IT so this is important info to them. But another way it affects accounting directly is reminding us to keep track of bills that do not come monthly or even annually. Domain name registration invoices, like other bills you may have, are cheaper if you buy multiple years at a time. "Great," you think, "I'll save us some money and register us for three years." But in three years when the renewal emails come, and they are almost always emails and not paper bills, will they get paid? Do you have somewhere where you track annual or irregular payments, maybe a vendor list that is easily accessible? Some thing to think about.
Hip Flexor Stretches for All Levels
4 years ago
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Regarding the loss of a non-profit's url: The easiest way to ensure that it will not lapse is to establish an AUTOMATIC RENEWAL through the domain name registrar which one used. Thereafter, the only matter about which one has to be concerned is that the credit card under which the url was first established remains active.
Another caution regarding urls is that non-profits should "run-the-table" with their organizations name. A great number of organizations register a .org, BUT leave .com, .net, .info, .us, even .biz, and other popular top domain names OPEN for others to CO-OPT or in modern terms, PHISH. Hence, in addition to xyz.org, organizations should secure xyz.com /.net / etc.,
Still another protection is to mash-up common words that would not be suspicious to the average visitor. For example, xyz.org also should obtain... officialxyz.org and xyzonline.org or onlinexyz.org, or both.
How much doe all this cost? This depends on the url registrar. For myself, I have exclusively used GoDaddy (godaddy.com) where "boxing" a url as I have described above can be accomplished for less than $100 per year. Certainly, any organizations "good name" is worth
this investment.
John David Sottile
jds@johndavidsottile.com
P.S. I have no financial or other interest in GoDaddy. I have used the company for years BECAUSE its customer service is excellent as is its pricing.
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