It's a bit of a simplification to say there are exactly four steps to seafloor spreading. It's a continuous process with overlapping stages. However, we can outline the major components in a simplified four-step process:

1. Upwelling of Magma: Hot magma from the Earth's mantle rises towards the surface at mid-ocean ridges.

2. Creation of New Oceanic Crust: The magma erupts at the ridge, cools, and solidifies, creating new oceanic crust. This process pushes the existing crust away from the ridge on both sides.

3. Plate Movement: The newly formed crust becomes part of the Earth's tectonic plates, which are constantly moving away from each other at the ridge (divergent plate boundary). This movement is driven by the upwelling magma and convection currents in the mantle.

4. Seafloor Features: As the plates move apart, the process creates various features like:

* Mid-Ocean Ridges: The elevated areas where the new crust is formed.

* Rift Valleys: Depressions along the ridge axis where the plates are pulling apart.

* Magnetic Stripes: As the magma cools, it aligns with the Earth's magnetic field. This creates alternating bands of normal and reversed magnetic polarity in the oceanic crust, providing evidence for seafloor spreading.

Important Note: The process of seafloor spreading is a continuous cycle. As new crust is formed at mid-ocean ridges, older crust is pushed away from the ridge and eventually subducts (slides) beneath another plate at a convergent plate boundary. This cycle is a fundamental part of plate tectonics.