Have you been following the GoDaddy domain name aftermarket looking for “diamonds in the ruff?”

After all, wouldn’t it be incredible if the owner of Pets.com forgot to pay their renewal fee, and you could snap up the domain at the click of a button?

Whether you’re a domain name flipper or you’re looking for relevant domains to boost SEO rankings for your main website, you’ve probably checked out GoDaddy auctions.

As the world’s largest registrar of domains, GoDaddy Operating Company, LLC has a reported 77 million domain names under ownership. GoDaddy auctions give you the opportunity to buy expired domains before they go back to the registry and become available for other people to purchase.

However, domain name auctions can get expensive, and there’s often a bidding frenzy for the highest quality domains in GoDaddy auctions.

It can be tempting to get caught up and invested in the idea of being the winning bidder, no matter the cost. But, wouldn’t you prefer to know exactly how to buy an expired domain and what the domains on your watch list are actually worth and not rely on GoDaddy’s (inflated) estimates or the perspective of other bidders?

Don’t Bid on Another Domain or Pull Out Your Credit Card Until You Read This

Finding expired domains is one thing. Knowing their worth is another. Experts in the space, including SEOs, use Spamzilla to find and qualify expired and dropped domains.

Instead of taking the price at face value, Spamzilla gives you advanced analytics data to help you both determine the worth of the domain and identify if it’s right for your use purposes. Before placing any bids with domain registrants, it's important to know the status of the domain.

With Spamzilla, you can evaluate domain names by performing a variety of functions and filters with your account, including:

-      Backlink profiles

-      Majestic topical trust flow

-      Site languages

-      Moz domain authority

-      Archived site screenshots

-      Anchor text

-      Ranking keywords

-      Pages indexed by Google

-      Traffic and ranking data

-      And more

Also, just because GoDaddy is the largest domain name registrar, they’re not the only game in town. As you scroll through expiring domains, you can see which registrar owns it and go directly to the auction house to place your bid.

You can also use this tool to find dropped domains, which is when the owner didn’t renew an expired domain at GoDaddy. This means that you can go to any registrar, including GoDaddy, and buy the domain name outright.

Pro Tip: Sometimes a domain name has expired for a reason, such as the business model wasn’t profitable, the site was spammy, etc.

This is where the power of Spamzilla comes in. The tool provides advanced history and analytics data to get a complete picture of the sites you’re evaluating.

Determining Whether a Domain is Right for You

Using tools like Spamzilla can save you a lot of money and help you discover more hidden gems as you navigate the GoDaddy auctions expired domain purchase options. But is a domain even worth the reserve price?

Here are a few, of several, variables to explore in Spamzilla before you place a bid, consider a counter offer, or go through the registrant process.

1.    Relevance: Look for link profiles that are relevant to your target website.

2.    Link Profile: The majority of backlinks should be editorial, not directories. Look for quality links and sort by “dofollow.”

3.    Unoptimized anchor text profile: The site’s anchor text should not be full of exact match anchor text or foreign language anchors.

4.    History: Make sure the domain names have not been used for spammy purposes. Look at the archive to view screenshots.

5.    Indexation: Ideally, the site should be indexed by google. There are some legitimate reasons why a domain you’re looking at might not be indexed, but in general, this is a good rule of thumb. Just click on Index inside of Spamzilla to find out.

Beware of the Closeout

Some websites make it to the GoDaddy auction page as a closeout. These domains had been up for auction, but the auction ended without a buyer.

The closeout process can allow you to buy a domain at a steep discount, sometimes for as little as $5. At first glance, buying a closeout GoDaddy auctions expired domain package seems like a deal, but these domains are often referred to as “trash.”

Though the price of a closeout is low, you’ll still want to do your due diligence before placing bids by using Spamzilla to find out if the domain is worth dealing with the trouble of going through the sales and checkout process and then using it for your needs.

With many people dismissing these GoDaddy domains because of their reputation, you’ll have actual data that can help you determine if it’s worth adding to your account.

On the flip side, domain auctions dealing with expensive domains may require the registrant to use an escrow service. During escrow, payment information is verified, and there could be additional steps and delays.

This isn’t inherently a bad thing, but it’s something to consider if you’re in a time crunch.

Can You Avoid the GoDaddy Expired Domain Name Auction?

In some cases, you may be able to avoid the auction process by using a backorder service. This service allows you to specify interest in a domain, and when it's time for the owner to renew the domain, you may be able to buy it easily.

If you’re competing with other bidders, the domain will go to auction, and you can set a proxy bid, which limits the amount you’ll pay to something that you’re comfortable with.

Acquiring expired domains involves multiple steps and requires both expertise and attention and knowledge of the GoDaddy domain expiration grace period. The registrant is given multiple opportunities to renew the domain before it becomes available, and it pays off to be the first in line in the event that the renewal doesn't happen.

By arming yourself with the right tools, you’ll have advanced insight into what a domain is worth and whether it aligns with your goals.