Who owns your domain name?

Over the past couple of years I've assisted a number of small business and non-profit clients with their Web sites. During that time one challenge keeps popping up: many of the clients don't know who owns their domain name.

In one instance, a non-profit client had already lost one domain name when the person who was handling their Web site left the organization. They were forced to establish a new Web site on a new domain -- a challenge that obviously inhibited their online marketing efforts. This could have been averted if the domain had been registered to the organization rather than that individual.

In another instance, a client was moving their Web site from one host to another. During that process they discovered that their domain was owned by the person who had been hosting the site. His personal e-mail was listed as the primary e-mail address, not the company's e-mail address. Fortunately, we were able to contact the person in question and make the transition with no problem. However, it is important to note that this transition might not have been as smooth had the person who owned the domain been at odds with his employer or my client.

These are but two instances of a problem that seems to keep popping up as I work with small business clients. The Internet has become an increasingly important piece of your marketing mix, and your domain name is too important to risk losing.

A word to the wise: make sure your domain name is owned by your company and that you have accurate records in case you ever need to transfer it to a new host. If you aren't sure who owns your domain, now is a good time to find out.