1. Buy a domain   
2. Sign up to a hosting service   
3. Find your DNS   
4. Point your domain to your new server   
5. Install Joomla   
6. Buy/get a template

1. Find the right domain name

It's getting harder and harder to find a good domain name, especially if the title of your site is a popular word, product, or name. However, nothing is impossible, and a bit more searching will yield the results for the perfect domain name. Domain registries like Domain.com and GoDaddy.com offer great alternative possibilities for domains you might like but which are already taken.

Even if you find that, instead of the simple word you wanted to use originally, you have to use a phrase, avoid linking this phrase with dashes. Domains with hyphens/dashes are a pain to spell out. For example, if your domain is Computers-In-LA.com, you will have to tell people to log on to "computers dash in dash la dot com". Saying "ComputersInLA.com" is much easier.

And regarding suffixes, '.com' is still the way to go, with the next best choice being '.net', followed by '.info', etc. Whatever you choose, make sure it's easy to pronounce: in general, a cool, short domain that ends with .net is better than a domain-tha-looks-like-this.com

Buying a domain name

The domain registrars of Domain.com and GoDaddy.com offer various solutions depending on the domain name extensions and amounts you want. These can range from $3.95/year to $30/year. Any domain registrar can register your domain names for you.

If you'd like to get your domain name FREE, read on to Step 2!

2. Find the best Joomla web hosting service

A domain name is great but without a web host, you have nowhere to store your files! Finding a web host can be a pain, and finding a Joomla-friendly host can be worse. The best host we've come across here at iJoomla is Lunarpages Web Hosting. They not only have a one-click installation of Joomla on every server but also offer options for every webmaster at every stage of your site or business. Not to mention you get that free domain name we mentioned earlier - and all for under $7/month. Their 24/7 support also assures that if you get stuck, they'll help you out.

With Lunarpages Web Hosting, you also get:

• 350 GB storage space
• 3500 GB bandwidth
• Unlimited email accounts
• Unlimited subdomains (blog.yourdomain.com)
• E-commerce capability including 3 shopping carts
• Wordpress and three other blogging tools
• and more!

To sign up:

• Go to Lunarpages.com and take a look at their Web Hosting Solutions
• Choose the web hosting plan that's best for your website - the Basic Hosting Plan works for 80% of webmaster, while the Business, VPS, and Dedicated Hosting Plans offer a variety of exclusive features for the big business or big-bandwidth sites. When in doubt, contact their sales team or let us know and we can help you figure out the best plan for you.
• If you haven't chosen a domain name yet, type "yourdomainname" in the blank box under "choose your domain name" and choose the appropriate extension: .com, .net., etc.
• If you bought your domain from another registrar, choose "I already have my domain name" and enter it in the box provided.
• Choose the Billing Cycle most appropriate for your needs. Remember, to save money in the long run as well as to take advantage of the "free domain name" option, choose a 12/24 month plan for Basic and Business Hosting or a 6/12/24 month VPS or Dedicated.
• Choose any of your account add-ons, if you need them. If you don't know what they are, odds are you don't need them.
• Fill in your billing and payment information and hit submit
• In about 30 minutes, you will receive your account information via email. The email may fall in your spam, bulk, or junk email folders, so double check!

Now you're ready to install Joomla!

3. Install Joomla

Lunarpages Web Hosting offers CPanel or Plesk Control Panels. CPanel has the easiest installation, so if you're looking at Dedicated Hosting, add CPanel to your purchase and save yourself money in the long run. Both CPanel and Plesk will help you manage your site, show you web stats, allows you to add unlimited email accounts, install Joomla, and everything else you can think of

Installing Joomla with CPanel

• Go to account.lunarpages.com to login with the username/password provided in your Critical Account Information email. Once logged in, go to CPanel.
• Once in CPanel, look towards the bottom of the page where the Fantastico icon resides: . Click that icon, which forwards you to the Fantastico one-click installer.
• Choose "Joomla" under the "Content Management" section in the menu on the left.
• Follow the New Installation link at the center of your screen.
• Finally, enter all the requested information and continue. Take note of your Joomla admin username/password and save them somewhere save.
• You're done!
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3. Find your DNS

You might be able to remember ComputersinLA.com but the Internet will have no idea what you're talking about. It first has to translate the name of your domain into an IP (Internet Protocol) address. It's a bit like the difference between telling someone the name of a store and giving them the street address.

You need to look up your domain on the DNS (Dynamic Name System) before you can point it to your new server.
 
Here's how to do it:

Your Nameserver info will be included in the welcome email. Click on the "Domain Name Instructions " link to find your DNS. Your DNS has 2 entries that usually look like this:

NS1.lunarservers.com
NS2.lunarservers.com
 

4. Point your domain to your new server

When you buy a domain from a registrar, they park it on their server. Now that you have your own server though you can point your domain towards it. It's just a matter of a little change on the regisrar website. Login to your registrar website and enter the DNS entry for your domain.

Your DNS for your domain name needs 24-72 hours to propagate, but assuming this time has already passed, you should now be able to view your Joomla website! Open a browser and type in your domain name. You should see a page that says "Joomla!" and some Joomla content. From here, you can access your Joomla site, tweak it to your specifications, etc.

Now you just need a template!

4. Buy/get a template

The default templates that are supplied with a Joomla site aren't that great. You'll probably want to install some different templates. If you're looking for great Joomla templates, go here and learn how to install them!