Admist the COVID-19 Fallout and Termoil a
Digital Beacon Shines.
Digital Beacon Shines.
Like many citizens of this seemingly prospective wasteland known as Earth, the Coronavirus Pandemic has effected my personal life and business in many ways. As costs continue to rise astronomically along with tensions running high at home and beyond, it is difficult to imagine a future that seems promising at all, let alone formulate an impromptu business plan to solve the immediate issue of funds required to survive, or lack there of.
I am quick to jump down the throats of corporate conglomerates because in my experiences with most, they promote and practice greed around every corner. Most are a perfect example of an ever apparent financial cycle in this world of keeping wealthy people wealthy and poor people destitute. However, today I was given a delightful surprise. In recent weeks I have submitted several letters to various corporate giants, requesting payment deferments for my essential home and business services as a result of COVID-19 related circumstances. Most requests have, not surprisingly, gone on deaf ears and unfulfilled. Then I checked my email this morning and saw a reply from GoDaddy regarding payment for my domain name. Here is the email correspondence:
My letter to GoDaddy:
GoDaddy's Response:
I just realized how difficult it is to read those screenshots. Here is the plain text of the dialogue:
My letter to GoDaddy:
GoDaddy Corporate Headquarters
14455 N. Hayden Rd., Ste. 226
Scottsdale, AZ 85260 USA
Phone number: (866) 938-1119
Fax number: (480) 624-2546
Email address: HQ@godaddy.com
Re: Account Payment :
Customer # REDACTED
To Whom It May Concern:
I am writing this letter to ask for an extension or deferment of payment for my domain, REDACTED.com. I understand that my domain, REDACTED.com has expired and needs to be renewed. Not making excuses for non-payment, but the recent COVID-19 pandemic has left me in an unemployed state as of a few weeks ago. As a REDACTED, I am not classified as an essential worker, so it has taken some time for things in my office to get back on track, and we slowly are. The “Stay at Home” order is very ambiguous, and we are uncertain what to do. New orders have been slowly coming through, however, my domain name expired, along with my email, which cut off my access to the new work we have been receiving.
I am not looking for any special treatment here. I am a customer just like anyone else, and a businessman first and foremost. Should GoDaddy choose to keep our payment agreement as we originally stated and not factor in this extenuating circumstance, I will accept your choice and not make any noise about it. I just thought a personal note from one human to another may paint a better picture, and let you know personally that I did not forget. Unfortunately, I am out of disposable income right now because of the rising costs of food, etc. during this pandemic. I have slowly got some clients back in the door and actually just received confirmation of unemployment benefits I’ll be able to collect as early as Friday, which is when I would propose to be my new payment date. Unfortunately, with no access to my work email, I have not been able to see any updates regarding my other clients or timeframes on payment. You will have to forgive my ignorance, once upon a time I was a computer science major, and it is almost embarrassing for me to reveal, this was my first domain name purchase. I was not aware of the procedure behind the domain renewal process, or fully understand the concept of expiration dates for domains. Safe to say, I do now.
Any forgoing of payment, deferment, or assistance you could provide, even a few days granting email access would help me enormously and would not be forgotten.
Thank you for your time and attention to this matter.
Sincerely,
REDACTED
Apologies for sending this twice, my first delivery had some words cut off from accidental button mashing.
GoDaddy Response:
Dear REDACTED
Thank you for your email. It's very much uncharted waters that we all find ourselves in, and understandably, businesses may not have been able to prepare for an issue like this.
As a goodwill gesture and in appreciation for your loyalty, I've extended both of your domain names, and your Office 365 email plan each for one year terms at no charge to you. Hopefully this will provide you the time you need to get the business back on its feet.
Thanks for being a GoDaddy customer. Be safe!
Best regards,
REDACTED
Office of the CEO | GoDaddy
To be perfectly honest, I am at a loss for words. I have not even replied to GoDaddy yet to thank them. To be honest, a part of me, albeit a VERY small part of me, wanted them to say no. I like perpetuating the idea of corporate monsters picking on the little guy. We see it everyday and there is no recourse for the corporation who has an army of legal sentinels to fight their battles for them. This truly was a breath of fresh air. And honestly an endorsement for GoDaddy. I will definitely use their products in the future because of their remarkable gesture here.
Thanks Domain Dad.
Here is a plain text copy of the template letter I have been modifying on case by case basis to request payment deferments. I posted this before, but in case anyone missed it:
{insert today's date}
{insert company contact info}
{insert account/subscription info}
Re: Monthly Account Payment for -
{insert name/username/account#/email}
To Whom It May Concern:
I’m writing this letter to ask for an extension or deferment of payment for {insert account info}. My employer had to lay off everyone in my position because of the Coronavirus. A {insert time frame, such as - one/two/three-month} deferment should be enough time for me to overcome this hardship and get back onto a regular payment schedule.
As a {insert job title}, I’m not classified as an essential worker, therefore I have been placed on temporary leave. I’m scheduled to return to work after the state governor lifts the “Stay at Home” order, and it is uncertain when that will be. I tried to get a short-term personal loan, as well as looked for supplemental work among other efforts to earn money. None of my efforts have been fruitful quite yet. As a last resort, I’m writing this letter to you and a few of my other service providers, hopeful that an extension or deferment to my monthly charge could be accommodated. The service your company provides {insert B.S. about how great service is, such as "brings a beacon of hope into an otherwise uncertain world, and it would be difficult losing it"}.
Thank you for considering my request. I look forward to your prompt response.
Sincerely,
{insert your name}