Go Daddy, the Scottsdale, Arizona based company, is by far the world's most popular domain name registrar dominating all other ICANN-accredited registrars due to competitive pricing and shrewd and sometime controversial publicity methods.
Go Daddy was originally named Jomax Technologies, and it wasn't until late 1999 that it became an ICANN-accredited registrar. The first domain registered by a customer at Go Daddy was GhettoJustice.com.
I thought it would be cool to chronicle the evolution of the Go Daddy main web page from 1999-2008 to see how Go Daddy changed their marketing campaigns with the growing popularity of domaining. All picture and date information provided courtesy of Archive.org.
Enjoy the pictorial timeline!
November 27, 1999
This is the first and original website design. Go Daddy did not sell domain names yet so the website only offered web site development services and hosting. For $89, you could purchase the WebSite Complete 2.5 Deluxe Edition.
May 10, 2000
This was the first major design change for the main web page. The emphasis was creating your own website with no experience required. A Real Estate Edition of their services was introduced. Notice the lack of sexy girls integrated into the design.
May 7, 2001
Hey, now we have some color! A one-year .com registration was $8.95 and a 10-year was only $6.95/yr. Crazy cheap back then!
November 27, 2001
The domain extensions .biz and .info are introduced and private email accounts cost $11. The design looks scattered and odd. Get ready for a storm of links and buttons.
June 2, 2002
Another confusing and complicated design with a plethora of links. It's funny how fully-dressed the female on the front page is. Don't worry, this will change soon.
February 7, 2003
It's been 4 years since the original website design and private registrations are going for $9 with Go Daddy offering Federal Copyright Protection for $59.95. Starting to look more and more cluttered.
December 31, 2003
There's a sale for $7.95 .com registrations instead of the regular $8.95 price. Awards show Registrar of the Year for 2002 and 2003.
July 1, 2004
Major design change with emphasis on the free extras you get with each new domain registration. Hosting is now only $3.95 and Traffic Blazer is $29.95/yr.
December 31, 2004
The new look of this Go Daddy main page is by far the best and easiest to navigate. CEO Bob Parsons begins his blog and links it on the front page.
November 23, 2005
It's 2005 and customers wanting to purchase Domain Privacy now pay $4.95 (was $9). Radio Go Daddy is introduced.
March 6, 2006
Price drop on private domain registrations to $1.99. 50GB hosting is now only $6.95. Lots of tabs, links and buttons.
December 30, 2006
Go Daddy girl, Danica Patrick, makes and appearance and after almost 7 years, Go Daddy begins to show signs of sticking to this template design. The Domain Name Aftermarket Auctions are integrated into the front page to drive traffic to them.
Today 2008
And this is where we are today. This screen shot was taken on March 28,2008. Go Daddy has come a long way since their original first design in 1999. Their prices have consistently dropped and more and more services were added on a regular basis. Seems Go Daddy has also taken a liking to featuring some sort of female on their front page and inundating website visitors with a ton of links and buttons. I personally like the web design of 2004 since it seems far less complicated and cluttered. Either way, Go Daddy has shown that they have their finger on the pulse of the domain industry by frequently altering and changing their website to accommodate the changing of the domain industry. I wonder what Bob Parsons has up his sleeve for their next website design concept. We'll just have to wait and see.
Happy Domaining.
-Rudy
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