On August 1, Afilias announced a program that offered FREE INFO (first year only) to registrars who enrolled in the program. Many registrars have already signed up. If you haven't yet, you must enroll by THURSDAY, August 26 for your program to begin on September 1.
The original program featured a limit of 25 free first years per registrant per registrar. Names registered in excess of the 25 limit were to be charged at the normal INFO registrar fee of $5.75 per domain year.
ENHANCEMENT:
REGISTRATIONS IN EXCESS OF THE 25 LIMIT WILL NOW BE CHARGED ONLY $3.00 FOR THE FIRST DOMAIN YEAR (instead of $5.75).
This change reduces the registrar's risk with the program and should result in more aggressive participation. Please note that domain years 2-10 will still be charged the $5.75 rate.
Enrolled registrars do NOT need to re-enroll to take advantage of this enhancement.
SALES IDEAS:
We expect that each registrar will field an aggressive promotion for .INFO, passing on the savings and offering a compelling reason to register and use a .INFO domain. Here are some ideas on how to take full advantage of the program:
For retail-based registrars:
FREE Info--pass along the free first year to your customers
Buy 1 year, get 1 year FREE--sell a two year registration for the price of a one year
50% off a two year registration--same as previous idea, just different positioning.
Deeply discounted package--offer a discount if the registrant selects a .INFO
.INFO as default domain on a discounted package
Get a free INFO with each purchase of your best seller (com/de/etc)--be sure the free .info is at least redirected to an active site to improve your renewals. Keep in mind our goal is to generate USAGE and revenue, not just registrations.
Try a different program each month
For reseller-based registrars:
Hosting Customers--pass along the savings to your major hosting customers and convince them to use .INFO as the default domain in their packages during the entire program
Buy 1 .INFO, get a second one free--field a quantity discount program to build volume among resellers
Buy 10, get 9 of them free! an eye-popping variation of the standard buy 10 get 1 free.
Try a different program each month
This program is a tremendous value to registrars and is flexible enough to meet nearly any business model. NOW is the time to leverage the power in .INFO to build your business!
MORE DETAILS:
Click here for a Q&A addressing many of the questions we have received about the program. Below are answers to some of the main questions:
Enrollment Periods:
Registrars now have the opportunity to enroll later and finish their programs earlier if they desire. Specifically, registrars will be able to enter or exit the program effective on the first of each month (September 1, October 1, November 1 and December 1) with 5 days notice. Afilias must be in receipt of your enrollment form at least 5 days prior to the intended start period (August 26, September 25, October 26, or November 25, respectively). All enrolled registrars will be enrolled through the end of the program unless Afilias receives an enrollment form indicating a different program end date. Click here for a revised enrollment form for instructions.
Free calculations:
Afilias will use the registrant data in the database (in addition to registrar ID and other data) to determine whether a registrant is "the same registrant" for the purposes of determining registrations that exceed the limit. Registrars should do their own tracking of registrant activity to avoid abuse.
Back-billing:
Afilias does not plan to apply any backbill charges to registrar accounts before mid-December, 2004 (more details will be provided later). These charges will be reported to the affected registrars 2 weeks in advance of the actual charge being applied to the account. This will give registrars time to ensure adequate funding in their accounts to accommodate the backbill amount. Customer Support will attempt to contact registrars who appear in danger of running out of funds as a result of back bill charges. It remains the registrar's responsibility to ensure adequate funds.
Reports:
Enrolled registrars will receive from Afilias each month a preliminary report indicating the number of names registered in excess of the 25 limit. The limit of 25 will cumulate from September 1 through the end of December. At the close of the program, a final report will be issued to each registrar with registrants who are over the limit that details the number and names of domains (and the registrants) that exceed the limit. MONTHLY REPORTS WILL BE SENT TO THE CONTACT PROVIDED ON THE ENROLLMENT FORM.
Links:
Enrollment Form: Enrollment form including the rules for the program. Keep in mind that you MUST enroll by 26 August to be eligible to start on 1 September. This form has been revised to allow registrars to enter/exit the program on a monthly basis. Registrars who are already enrolled do not need to resubmit this form unless they wish to exit the program before the end.
Q&A: featuring many of the questions received to date.
.INFO Fact Sheet: this provides updated facts about .INFO's development as a domain and can be used as a resource for marketing material.
Contact Karim Jiwani (
[email protected]; +49 173 547 8789), Roland LaPlante (
[email protected]; +1 215 706 5700 x105) or Heather Carle (
[email protected]; +1 215 706 5700 x114) to sign up for the program. Or simply fax the executed document attached as indicated in the instructions.