There are two things that you need to start a site.  The first is a domain name, which is the URL of your site.  Google.com is a domain name, as is Wikipedia.com.  A domain comprises both the website’s title and the top-level domain (TLD) extension, such as .com, .org, .net, .info, .us, etc.  Unfortunately for budding webmasters, all of the simple domain names were registered more than a decade ago, so domains nowadays must be very unique.  Once someone registers a domain, it is theirs until they transfer it, cancel it, or forget to renew it.  Don’t count on someone ever forgetting to renew a domain name you are eyeing; if there is an already taken domain that you want, consider contacting the owner and offering to purchase it.  Be aware that high quality domains can cost thousands, even tens of thousands, of dollars, so it may be cheaper to spend $10 and get your own original domain.

The second piece of the puzzle is hosting.  With just a domain, you have no server to store content on, and that is where a hosting firm comes in.  For a small fee per month, they lease you servers for space and bandwidth, and they also provide you with website building and analysis tools.  Some hosters feature what is known as cPanel, which is an all-in-one control panel for managing and updating your website, and it is much easier to use than an FTP client.

Building a website is much easier than getting people to come to it.  With billions of web pages online, no one is going to stumble across yours by accident.  In order to coerce visitors in to coming and staying on your site, you need to have a consistent stream of high quality content.  You also need to create links to your website, which serve a dual purpose of advertising and strengthening your website for search engines.  With an established website, you can make tons of easy money online through advertising or affiliate programs.