3 Steps to Getting Your Website Up and Running

The process of getting your website live on the internet is actually pretty easy. If you have never done it though, it probably looks like a pretty complicated complex sophisticated tiring process. Yes, I was there myself.

I like to break down the process into three parts. 1) Getting Your Domain Name 2) Getting Your Hosting 3) Website Design and Final Check. So without further ado, lets get our hands dirty.

1) Getting Your Domain

A domain is your name on the internet. For example, when someone yells "Brad Pitt" in real life (given that is your name, which I know it is), you turn around and yell something back. On the internet, instead of yelling, people have agreed to type names, like HostBidding.com. That is the internet name for this website. So anywhere in the world, you type HostBidding.com in an internet browser, this website will yell back at you.

Just like a birth certificate, you need to register your domain so only you will have this name. This is done by Domain Name Registrars. Here is a few big names on the market right now:

http://www.GoDaddy.com
http://www.Register.com
http://www.NetworkSolutions.com

What is the difference between them? nothing really. So try to find absolutely the cheapest price to register your domain because they are all the the same, and the ones that charge more are buying their CEO a new Ferrari. I personally don't want to help someone else buy a Ferrari.

Keep in mind that many web hosting companies offer Domain Registration as part of their web hosting packages. So you may want to skip to step 2 and if your hosting company charged too much or didn't offer this service, you can do it yourself.

2) Getting Your Hosting

If you have read other articles in the basic section, you know there are several types of web hosting. In the stone ages, people used to go and find their own web hosting and accept whatever the hosting company offered them. Problem with that was, many companies were start up and offered unrealistic services. For instance, if you ever see a hosting company offer "Unlimited" storage, or "Unlimited" bandwidth, run away with four legs. There is no such a thing as Unlimited Service. Chances are that company will go out of business soon. With thousands of hosting companies out there, it is really hard to compare them apples to apples.

In Modern Ages, we have www.HostBidding.com. So instead of you going out and finding web hosting companies, they come and find you. It's really simple, you post a project, you tell them what you are looking for, and how much experience you have. Most of our users are brand new to web hosting so process is made super user-friendly. And then Hosting Companies bid on your projects. You can review their reviews from previous customers, their website, their uptime, and compare prices, and much more. In other words, HostBidding.com gives you all the tools you need to find your ideal web hosting company.

Once you do that, you are ready for step 3.

3) Web Site Design and Final Check

Now, comes the fun part. Who is going to design your website? If you used HostBidding.com to find your hosting provider, you were the given the option to choose between 1) Making the Website Yourself (For Advanced Users) 2) Making the website using an easy-to-use Web Site Builder 3) Hiring someone else to do it for you.

In which case, the hosting company you selected will guide you through the rest of the process.

If you did things the old fashioned way and found your own web hosting, ask them about site builders. You may need to go as far as hiring someone in anoter continent to make a fully customized website for you. This all depends on what your taste is.

Once your website is design, you will want to make it available online. Again, your web host can provide you the exact details on how to do this.

This is going to sound harsh, no one in the world cares about your website as much as you do. So take responsibility for it. Make sure the design looks good. Make sure the website is accessible through your domain, it is fast, and it is everything you wanted it to be.

And Finally, Welcome to the Internet!