I don’t know about you, but I like simplicity. While I may be a tech nerd underneath, that’s for stuff like home theater, computers, video games, Kindles or Sony eReaders, etc. For the everyday things, simple suits me just fine.
Which is why today has been anything but simple, despite the fact that what I’m trying to do should be a relatively straightforward process – forwarding a domain. Yet so far it’s been anything but.
The current domain is with GoDaddy, and it needs to be forwarded to a new site that was set up on Bluehost. So, should be easy – and once you get into the right place, it is. Fairly. Sort of. The problem isn’t so much with the forwarding process as it is with the process to begin forwarding.
GoDaddy uses a graphical user interface that, while it looks pretty, isn’t the most well laid out. Here’s what it looks like:
Looking along the top from left to right, you have Organize, Locking, Cash In, Upgrade, Renew, Forward, Contact, Nameservers, Account Change and Delete Selected.
I can understand Organize being separate, and maybe Contact, but couldn’t everything else be selected in one single screen under the Organize banner? You could have all options visible to you, and all you’d need to do is select which option you wish. This could then open up a drop-down menu for you to input new DNS numbers, URL’s to forward to, masking, etc.
As it stands, you need to Unlock. Then wait for the settings to refresh. Then Nameservers or Forward. Then wait for the settings to refresh. Then Lock. Then wait for the settings to refresh… you get my point.
If you have problems, another area GoDaddy is lacking is in Live Online Support. They have a 24-hour helpline or an email helpdesk (response time around 4 hours) but for a business that’s operating online, wouldn’t a web-based support option be better?
It doesn’t need to be this difficult, does it? Are businesses still being successful with products or services that aren’t user-friendly?
GoDaddy is one of the biggest names in domain sales thanks to the simple search and buy option they have in place. Wouldn’t it make sense to make the after-sales area just as friendly as the pre-sales one?