In Part One of our Web Site Traffic Blueprint article series overview, we explained that the key to creating an automated web traffic generation machine is to use an “expertly configured” WordPress website.
As we also explained, an expertly configured WordPress website or blog is different than a professionally-configured WordPress website. An expertly configured WordPress web site is a web site that is not only driven by the WordPress CMS platform, but has also been expertly set up and configured (either by yourself or professionally) to take advantage of the enormous power, features and built-in functionality of WordPress and how it integrates with various sites, specifically in areas like search engine optimization, content syndication and reporting.
(With an expertly configured WordPress blog, all you have to do is publish great content on a regular basis to automatically bring more web traffic!)
Once your WordPress site has been expertly configured and fully set up, all you need to do then is add content on a regular basis to automatically drive more traffic.
As outlined in Part One of this article series, the components of this automated online traffic blueprint are as follows:
- Setup
- Configure
- Automate
- Optimize
In this article, we look at the “Setup” phase of the traffic automation process. You will learn the best way to get started 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 Traffic System – Setup Phase
If You Don’t Have A Web Presence
If you haven’t got a web presence yet, then it’s really quite simple … get a WordPress site!
WordPress is the most powerful, flexible, cost-effective and the easiest to use content management system on the planet. We provide loads of articles, tips, and tutorials on this site about the benefits and advantages of using WordPress to grow your business online.
For example, to see just how popular WordPress has become as a platform for web businesses, see this article: Useful Statistics About WordPress Usage
After choosing to build your web presence with WordPress, the next step is to decide which type of WordPress platform you will run your web presence on.
This step is important as there are 2 types of WordPress platforms available …
WordPress.org vs WordPress.com
(WordPress.org Or WordPress.com?)
WordPress offers users a “self-hosted” and a “hosted” option.
WordPress.org lets you download the full-featured WordPress software at no cost and host a WordPress site or blog under your own domain name. This is the “self-hosted” WordPress option.
With the “hosted option”, WordPress will host your blog for free at WordPress.com. There are, however, a number of limitations to what you can and can’t do with your site when WordPress.com hosts it for free.
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 platform by upgrading to a paid option, but then why not just start off by hosting a WordPress site on your own domain and avoid the hassles of upgrading later?
If You Have An Existing Web Site
If you already own an existing site, check if it has been built using WordPress.
If you need help with this step, check this article: Tell-Tale Signs It’s A WordPress Site And Free WordPress-Checking Tools
If your existing website is powered by WordPress, 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 website runs on something other than WordPress, you will need to make some decisions.
Take a look at the diagram below. It will help you decide how to set up a WordPress website or blog 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 website with a WordPress-powered site, or
- Keep your existing web site and add a WordPress blog. Your WordPress blog will then be expertly configured and used to drive traffic to your main web site.
If you choose to keep your existing web site and add a WordPress blog, make sure to use the self-hosted version of WordPress, which requires a domain name and web hosting, but allows you to fully configure your blog’s settings and customize the design of your existing web site using a closely-matching theme.
To use WordPress as your main website, install it in the “root” directory of your domain name (e.g. http://www.mydomainname.com).
If you have a website, then you will want to install WordPress in a subfolder of your domain, e.g. www.mydomainname.com/blog (you can name the subdirectory whatever you like).
If you have a website 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 explained in the next article in the series.
This is the end of Part Two
To read the rest of this article, click here:
This article is part of a comprehensive series of articles designed to help you learn how to grow your business online cost-effectively and drive traffic sustainably with a WordPress-driven website and proven web marketing methods.
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"I am beyond impressed with what you have put together. I can tell that you put a ton of hard work into building what you have. You have the absolute best content on WordPress I have ever seen!" - Robert T. Jillie
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