In Part 1 of our WordPress Website Traffic Blueprint article series overview, we explained that the key to turning a website into an automated web traffic generation machine is to use an “expertly configured” WordPress website.
As we also explained, an expertly configured WordPress web site is not the same thing as a professionally-configured WordPress website. An ”expertly configured” WordPress website or blog is a site that is not only built with the WordPress CMS, but has also been expertly set up and configured (either by yourself or professionally) to take full advantage of the enormous power, ease-of-use and built-in functionality of WordPress and its integration with other services, specifically in areas like search engine optimization, external site syndication and analytics.
(With an expertly configured WordPress website or blog, all you have to do is add content regularly to automatically drive more web traffic!)
Once you have your WordPress site fully set up and expertly configured, all you need to do is publish content regularly to drive more web traffic.
As outlined in Part 1 of this article series, the components of this automated online traffic system are as follows:
- Setup
- Configure
- Automate
- Optimize
In this article, we look at the “Setup” phase of the blueprint. You will learn the best way to start if you don’t have a website yet, or if you already have an existing site that may or may not have been built using WordPress.
WordPress Web Traffic System – Setup Phase
If You Don’t Have A Website Yet
If you don’t have a website yet, it’s quite simple … build a WordPress site!
WordPress is the most powerful, flexible, cost-effective and easy-to-use content management system available. We provide loads of articles, tutorials, and tips on this site about the benefits and advantages of using WordPress to grow your business online.
For example, to learn just how popular WordPress is as a web content management system, see this article: WordPress: Useful Facts And Figures
After choosing to build your web presence with WordPress, the next step is to decide which WordPress platform you will use to build your web presence on.
This step is very important as there are 2 types of WordPress platforms you can choose from …
WordPress.org Or WordPress.com?
(WordPress – Self-Hosted vs Hosted)
WordPress provides users with a ”hosted” and a “self-hosted” option.
WordPress.org allows you to download the full-featured WordPress application at no cost and self-host a WordPress site or blog under your own domain name. This is the “self-hosted” WordPress option.
In the “hosted option”, WordPress will host your blog for free at WordPress.com. There are, however, a number of limitations on what you can and can’t do with your blog when it is hosted for free at WordPress.com.
If you are planning to build a professional web presence and you want to set up the traffic system described here, then choose the “self-hosted” WordPress version. The benefits of choosing the “self-hosted” option (WordPress.org) far outweigh those of hosting a free site at WordPress.com. You can fully customize your web presence and avoid the limitations of the hosted option. Keep in mind that you can overcome the limitations of the free hosting options by upgrading to a paid option, but then why not start off with a WordPress site hosted on your domain and avoid the hassles of upgrading later?
If You Have An Existing Web Site
If you already have an existing site, check to see if it has been built using WordPress.
If you need help with this step, check this article: How To Check If A Web Site Was Built Using WordPress
If your site is a WordPress website, move to the next step, and make sure that your site’s internal settings have been properly configured. We cover this step in more detail in another tutorial.
If your web site is not a WP site, then you have to make some choices.
Take a look at the simple flowchart below. It will help you decide where to set up a WordPress website on your domain …
(Use this simple diagram to choose where to set up WordPress on your domain)
Basically, you have two choices:
- Replace your existing site with a WordPress site, or
- Keep your existing site and add a WordPress blog. Your WordPress blog will then be used to drive traffic to your main site.
If you choose to keep your existing website and add a WordPress blog, make sure to use the self-hosted version of WordPress, which requires your own domain name and webhosting, but allows you to fully configure your blog’s settings and customize the look and feel of your existing website using a suitable theme.
To use WordPress for your main site, install the software in the “root” folder of your domain name (e.g. mydomainname.com).
If you have a website, then you will want to install WordPress in a subdirectory of your domain, e.g. www.mydomainname.com/blog (you can name your subdirectory whatever you like).
If you already have a site that you don’t want to delete or replace with a WordPress site, the other option you have is to set up your WordPress site or blog on an entirely different domain.
This way:
- mydomainname.com – goes to your existing website
- myotherdomain.com – goes to your WordPress site
Once you have set up your WordPress site, the next step is to configure its internal settings. This step is addressed in the next article in the series.
This is the end of Section 2
To read the rest of this article, click here:
This article is part of an article series designed to help you learn how to grow your business online cost-effectively and drive traffic sustainably using a WordPress-driven website or blog and proven online marketing methods.
Would You Like To Get Automatically Notified When New WordPress Tutorials Are Published? Then Subscribe To WPCompendium.org!
***
"Your training is the best in the world! It is simple, yet detailed, direct, understandable, memorable, and complete." Andrea Adams, FinancialJourney.org
***