Why does Bob Parsons, CEO of GoDaddy, consistently win in the domain game? It’s not his diamond earring, or the bodyguards, or the right-wing politics, or even his “failed” superbowl commercials.

Here’s why:

ICANN has pulled the RegisterFly accreditation after that company’s total meltdown, leaving thousands of customers desperately searching for someone to give their money to.

GoDaddy immediately has an ad and an explanation page and a program to help people move their names.

Enom, Register.com, Network Solutions - none of them has taken the slightest advantage.

It’s probably too hard for them to change a web page (let alone the home page).

Think about it: branding guidelines, PR implications, interference with ongoing user testing, legal risks. That’s at least four departments that have to be consulted. Then you have to get the “web team” to actually make the change, and (because of past disasters), to get them to do anything, you first have to write up a business case to present to them, and then they decide where it fits on the priority list.

In other words, forget it. There’s no upside, and no-one’s going to get fired for doing nothing. So, forget the customers.

That’s why Bob Parsons kills his competition. He pays attention to the market, he finds a way to take advantage.

Tags: Bob Parsons, GoDaddy, eNom, Register.com, Network Solutions, RegisterFly, ICANN, bureaucracy

Posted by Antony in: Domains