Building an AEA step by step (ensure you have followed the Preliminaries and Installation sections from the AEA quick start first):

1. Set up your AEA project with the CLI: `aea create my_aea && cd my_aea`
2. Look at, then add the right connections for your use case: `aea search connections`, then `aea add connection [public_id]`
3. Look for, then add or generate the protocols you require: `aea search protocols`, then `aea add protocol [public_id]` or `aea generate protocol [path_to_specification]`
4. Look for, then add or code the skills you need: `aea search skills`, then `aea add skill [public_id]`. This guide shows you step by step how to develop a skill.
5. Where required, scaffold any of the above resources with the scaffolding tool or generate a protocol with the protocol generator.
6. Now, run your AEA: `aea run --connections [public_id]`

See information on the CLI tool here for all the available commands.