First Things First, Get Your Domain Name at Yahoo!  This may not seem that important at first glance but believe me, securing your domain name should be the first thing you do.  By getting your domain name secured you are setting the foundation for your Internet audience.  You domain name will be your identity online.  Your domain name must be personal and relevant to your mission.  It must be easy to remember.

Another reason to secure your domain name quickly is to make sure it is available before you spend any more time and money on branding.  This can give you better ideas about your competition as well.  You will learn what domain names are taken and get a chance to see the websites you are up against in competition for that domain.

Once you have secured your domain name you can look for web hosting.  In some cases the same company you bought the domain name from will also offer web hosting.  I prefer the host with unlimited plans.  This will let you develop as you please without worry of over charges.  Note, you do not have to host your website at the same company where you bought your domain name.  If you choose a different web host you will need to change the DNS on your domain name account to match your web hosting account.  If you need assistance with this you can call your hosting provider tech support for help.

The last reason I can give you for getting your own domain name is that you will be able to create e-mail accounts with your domain name as the address.  For example: YourName@YourDomainName.com