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No, I'm not missing the point..... just clarifying a statement to go with a host that "gives" you the domain with a caveat that the client may not end up owning said domain... something that many are not aware of that happens.  There have been a few that have been bitten by the issue (which I first found out about from this site itself) and it's worth confirming prior to commitment of service.

As for the OP.... the XF cloud solution is the "easiest" (not necessarily the cheapest) to get into.  All others require some basic knowledge of setting up a shared hosting account and administering it or a VPS/dedi (either panel or CLI interaction).  There are providers that will do management for the client also.

So the decision on "how to get into it" is not one that can be clearly answered.

The base is:

Obtain a domain

Select hosting provider

Install script if self hosted (if cloud then follow the guidelines provided)

Configure site

The rest depends on the knowledge of the site owner/admin.

Generally one can get enough support in the forums to get through most difficulties with XF.