GoDaddy setup

Use this guide when the domain's active DNS zone is managed by GoDaddy.

Confirm where DNS is managed

Open the domain in GoDaddy and check its nameservers. If they point to Cloudflare, Hostinger, DigitalOcean, or another provider, make the DNS change there instead.

Before changing www, identify a separate working origin URL. This can be the hosting provider URL or an origin subdomain that continues to point directly to the current server.

Add the www CNAME

In GoDaddy, open Domain Portfolio, select the domain, open DNS, and add or edit:

1Type: CNAME
2Name: www
3Value: customers.prerenderbuddy.com

GoDaddy expects www in the Name field, not the full hostname. Remove a conflicting www A, AAAA, or CNAME record first.

Redirect the root domain

Set a permanent forward from example.com to https://www.example.com. Enable path forwarding when available so example.com/pricing reaches www.example.com/pricing instead of the homepage.

Add validation records

Copy TXT validation records exactly from the Prerender Buddy dashboard. Enter only the host portion when GoDaddy automatically appends the domain.

Verify the setup

1. Wait until the new CNAME and TXT records resolve publicly.
2. Refresh the site status in Prerender Buddy.
3. Run Verify Installation.
4. Test both root and www URLs with a public content page.

Keep all MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC, Google verification, and other unrelated records in place.