Owning your own domain name- web address is basically no more than having your own
selected name registered with an authorized domain registrar. Such registration
allows only you to use the name on the Internet with your web site. An authorized
domain registrar provides web browsers around the world with the IP (web
address) of your
domain instantly when someone types the name in. Domain names are followed by .com, .net,
or quite a number of other extensions. These extensions identify the type of
company that
owns the domain, i.e. .com=commercial, .net, .org, gov=government, .edu=education, etc.
The first step to put your business online is to get a domain name.
Step 1 - Creating Your Domain Name
A domain name can be up to 63 charactersPLUS the extension (.com, .org etc.)
The domain name can have characters or numbers (a-z), numbers (0-9)
no spaces can be used in the domain name
A dash can be used "-" (buy-now.com)
Names are registered on a first come basis. Subject to any trademark, legal or
Internic (or authorized domain name registrar) rules or changes.
You want to search for a domain that has not already been registered or purchased by someone else.
Once you search for your domain name and register your domain name it's yours as long as you pay the applicable
fees
Even if you are not ready to set up your web site at this time, it is a good idea to
register your domain name before someone else does. Why!
It's your unique identity on the Internet. You own it! Use it or
sell it!
Step 2 - How to Use Your Domain Online
After getting your domain name, you will need to get web hosting so that you can use your domain name and create your website.
Step 3 - What is Web Hosting and How Do I Get It for my Domain Name?
Web Hosting is a service provided by a company that has computer servers that allow your web pages and domain name to be saved on their servers so that your website can be viewed on the Internet and you can use your domain name. You will copy your website files from your own computer to the web hosting company server or you can use their WebSite Builder and answer questions and build your website in a very short period of time.
Step 4 - What Type of Hosting Can I Get?
cPanel Hosting - good for tech savvy person who wants to build their website from scratch and can use HTML to create their files.
WebSite Builder - good for non-tech savvy person and is easy to use. Just answer some questions about your website and in less then an hour you are online.
WordPress - managed wordpress installation. WordPress is a popular website platform that is used to create websites from pre-built templates and for creating blogs.