Welcome to Part 3 of our WordPress Web Traffic Blueprint article series, where we show you how to turn a website into an automated traffic machine using the WordPress CMS platform.
In Part 1 of this series, we explained why using an expertly configured WordPress website is the key to automating traffic to your site …
(With an expertly configured WordPress website, all you have to do to automatically begin bringing web traffic is post new content regularly!)
In Part Two, we discussed the setup phase. We helped you understand the best way to start if you don’t have a web presence yet, how to set things up if you already have a website, and what to do if your existing website was built with WordPress.
(In Part two we show you where to set up WordPress on your domain)
In this article, we will look at the configuration stage of this process. We will explain what makes an expertly configured WordPress site different than a professionally configured site, and what kind of work needs to be done to ensure that when all is fully configured, visitors will automatically start flowing whenever you publish new content to your WordPress site.
WordPress Web Traffic Automation Blueprint – Configuration
Being able to drive more traffic to one’s website is often cited by many business owners as one of their greatest challenges online. Businesses are becoming so much more competitive and are looking for any advantage they believe will improve their performance and results online.
Having the ability to generate traffic on demand can be a tremendous advantage. For business owners, having an expertly configured website means having an immediate competitive advantage from the very beginning.
The Configuration Process Is The Difference
There is a difference between an expertly configured WordPress site and a website that has been professionally set up by a website-building expert but not necessarily configured to its fullest advantage.
Here’s a simple way to explain the key difference:
An expertly configured WordPress site gives you a professional web presence with online business marketing automation!
(An expertly configured site gives you a professional web presence and an automated online business marketing system!)
Not only are more steps required to build and integrate an automated online business marketing system into your website, it also takes a special kind of expertise.
Let me illustrate this point with a joke.
A True Story (Kind Of) …
All was moving along in the widget factory when things came to a sudden stop.
No one could figure out what is wrong and so the plant manager decided to call in an expert.
Promptly after arriving, the expert went directly to the control box. After staring silently at the board for less than 2 minutes, the expert then produced a teensy-weensy little hammer and made a very gentle tap near the left side of the box.
Immediately, everything came back to life.
The plant manager was filled with joy as he thanked the expert, who left just as quickly as he had arrived.
A couple of days after resolving the incident, the manager received a bill for $5,000.
The manager called the expert, demanding to know why they had been charged such a large amount of money for so little time spent delivering such a minimal amount of work. He promptly requested an itemized invoice before hanging up.
The next day, an invoice notice arrived in the manager’s intray. Upon opening the envelope, this is what he saw:
The #1 challenge most businesses face online is being able to drive traffic to their sites.
How much money did the factory stand to lose when the machines stopped functioning and no one on the factory floor was able to get things up and running again? Did the expert in our story not have every right to get paid fairly for spending years building up the knowledge, skills and expertise that allowed him to immediately avert a serious crisis?
Similarly, if you could have a WordPress web site fully configured so all you had to do is publish new content and search engines, social networking sites and dozens of other web properties would be automatically notified, how much time and money would this save you?
(How much time and money would you save if you could automate the process of attracting new visitors to your website?)
Although the solution to many problems often seems quite easy in hindsight, it rarely turns out to be that way.
Expertly configuring a WordPress site requires more than adding some pages with content and configuring a few settings. It involves knowing where to tap! This includes knowing things like:
- Which plugins need to be installed for specific things to occur on your site.
- Which third-party accounts you need to set up to achieve desired outcomes
- Which internal and external settings you need to configure to ensure that processes will run as expected, etc.
(Generating traffic automatically with WordPress is a process that requires expertise)
This part of the traffic automation system is not technically challenging, but it’s quite involved and time-consuming. This is because it’s not as easy as installing a plugin, configuring some settings in your dashboard area … it’s all of this and much more.
The configuration stage is a complex process that involves your web server, your website or blog, and various third-party sites and services …
(Expertly configuring your website involves more than just configuring some settings in WordPress)
If we were to create a simplified diagram showing all the steps involved in the configuration process, it would look something like this …
(A simplified diagram of the activities involved in the configuration process)
Let’s examine these steps in more detail.
Your Server
We’re not talking about the process of configuring your webhosting account for website installation purposes (this is normally done during the Setup phase). What we are talking about, is tweaking settings in your server specifically for handling all web traffic …
(During the configuration phase, your hosting account settings need to be fine-tuned for handling both good and bad traffic)
Not all web traffic is beneficial traffic. Some of the web traffic your site may attract will be unwelcome traffic like spam, malicious threats, brute-force bot attacks, etc.
This aspect of the configuration process, therefore, is all about evaluating your needs, planning for both bad and good traffic and adjusting settings in your server accordingly. This could include things like integrating server-level spam protection and preventing security threats, to configuring your domain and email redirections, setting up htaccess and 404 redirections, etc …
(Have you configured your hosting control panel settings for handling things like email forwarding, page error redirections, etc?)
After checking your server settings and configuring these (if required), the next step of the configuration phase is to set up a number of external sites and services.
3rd-Party Sites Configuration
The concept behind choosing external sites is that all content gets published from a central location (your site) and from there, it then gets distributed automatically to other parts of your web traffic system, or notify traffic-related web properties and applications.
Once you incorporate these external sites into your network, content linked back to your site will get automatically posted to these platforms, indexed by search engines and shared to other social networks, even to users of the platform itself. Your content will then be exposed to a new audience and new sources of traffic.
Some of the third-party sites and services will need to be set up before configuring your site to help speed up the configuration process and some will need to be done later, during the automation phase.
For example, here are just some of the accounts you will need to have set up before configuring your WordPress site’s settings:
Google Webmasters
(Google Webmasters)
Google Search Console lets you inform Google about your site’s pages, submit XML sitemaps for faster page indexing, and provides you with a range of important data, tools and diagnostic reports about your website.
Once your account and site details with Google are set up, you can use your details with web traffic settings in WordPress (e.g. using plugins like Yoast SEO) and other applications.
Google Analytics
(Google Analytics)
Google Analytics lets you improve your site’s performance, SEO, user engagement, marketing efforts, and more, by tracking all user engagement, pages visited, keywords searched for, search engine and organic referrers, etc.
Once your Google Analytics account and site data are set up, you can add tracking information to WordPress via any of several Google Analytics plugins and feed data instantly to other online applications and web properties.
Bing Webmaster Tools
(Bing Webmaster Tools)
Bing Webmaster Tools is similar to Google Search Console. After setting up your account, this information can be used with traffic-related settings in WordPress using plugins like Yoast SEO (see further below) and other applications.
WordPress.com
(WordPress.com)
As discussed in Part Two, WordPress offers both a hosted and a self-hosted option. We recommended choosing the self-hosted WordPress version if you plan to build a professional business presence online.
WordPress.com (the hosted option), however, provides a number of useful features, which a number of WordPress plugins can access. We recommend setting up an account with WordPress.com, therefore, and we’ll show you how to integrate this into your automated web traffic system in the next installment of this series.
Social Media
(Syndicate your content automatically to your social media sites and social bookmarking accounts and drive new traffic to your site)
You will need your social accounts set up in order to configure these as part of your traffic generation system.
After setting up and configuring everything, you will be able to syndicate your content automatically to your social media sites and social bookmarking accounts and attract new traffic to your site.
Set up profiles with all the main social networks – Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest, etc.
There are lots of social bookmarking sites you can set up accounts with. You don’t need to go crazy, just choose those that will work well with your setup and/or content syndication tools (we will review some of these tools in greater detail during the Automation phase).
(You can syndicate your content to loads of social bookmarking sites. Image: ShareThis.com)
Additional Services, Content Aggregators, Etc.
There are many new online web platforms and content aggregators that can serve as secondary-level sources of traffic. Some are free or provide free access levels, and some are paid services.
For example, here is a content aggregator site that lets you add a feed from your website …
RebelMouse
(RebelMouse)
RebelMouse is a news aggregator for your RSS feeds and social profiles. Your content is displayed in a Pinterest-like format and visitors can follow your social feed.
There are various sites and platforms you can incorporate into your own traffic system. Please contact us if you need assistance exploring this area further, or to discuss a configuration plan to suit your needs.
After you have configured your web server and set up accounts with external sites, it’s time to configure your WordPress site’s settings.
WordPress Site Configuration
The first step in configuring your site for traffic is to ensure that its global settings have been correctly set up.
Let’s go over some of the important areas.
Configuring Global WordPress Settings
The WordPress dashboard area contains a Settings menu that allows you to modify your site’s main settings …
(WordPress settings menu)
General Settings
Content entered into fields like Site Title and Tagline can affect your site’s SEO, search results, etc …
(Settings Menu – General Settings)
Writing Settings
The Writing Settings section contains one of the most important and often overlooked traffic notification systems available to WordPress users …
(WordPress Settings – Writing Settings)
As stated in this section,
When you publish a new post, WordPress automatically notifies the following site update services …
Unless you have intentionally chosen to prevent search engines from indexing your site, then your site will automatically notify the list of update services entered into the Update Services text area
By default, when WordPress is installed, only one service is listed …
(Update Services – A Powerful Traffic Feature)
WordPress lets you notify dozens of update services automatically …
(Notify dozens of update services automatically with WordPress!)
Download A Comprehensive List Of Ping Services For Your WordPress Site!
Click the link below to download a comprehensive list of reliable and authoritative ping services for your WordPress site or blog:
Download A List Of Ping Services For Your WordPress Site
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Note: If you need help setting up the list of ping services on your site, we recommend using a professional web services provider. You can find professional WordPress service providers in our WordPress Services Directory.
Reading Settings
This section affects how visitors will see your content when they visit your home page and blog pages.
The syndication settings in this section can influence web traffic. For example, your choice of displaying the full text vs summaries of your post, affects how your content displays to users in RSS feeds and blog post digests, and could play a part in someone’s choice to explore your site further, and whether or not they will visit your website to view the rest of the content from excerpts, or read the content in full without the need to click through to your site.
As far as traffic is concerned, however, the most important setting here is whether the Search Engine Visibility check box is enabled or not.
Typically, you would want search engines to visit your site. Leaving this box unchecked allows your site to automatically ping all the update services you have listed when new posts get published (see Writing Settings above). Unless there is a specific reason to discourage search indexing spiders from visiting your site, make sure this box is left unticked …
(Global Settings – Reading Settings Section)
Discussion Settings
Although the settings in this section are mostly concerned with how users engage with content on your site, you have the option to allow notifications to blogs linked to from your articles, and to allow link notifications from other blogs (pingbacks and trackbacks). This can work for you, but it can also drive bad traffic in the form of SPAM comments …
(Global Settings – Discussion Settings)
Permalinks
Permalinks enable WordPress to publish posts with SEO-friendly URLs …
(Global Settings – Permalinks Screen)
Here are some of the options for configuring your site’s search-friendly URLS …
(Configuring SEO-friendly URLs)
If you need help setting up permalinks, go here: Improve Your WordPress SEO With SEO-Friendly URLs
Configuring Settings – WP Plugins
WordPress provides users with thousands of plugins that help to add almost every kind of functionality imaginable to your website, including many plugins that improve traffic generation.
Let’s take a brief look at examples of plugin categories and plugins that can help drive more traffic to your site
WordPress Security Plugins – Blog Defender
Once again, it’s important to configure your site for handling both good traffic and bad traffic. No website or blog is completely immune from being attacked by hackers.
(Security Plugins help prevent bad traffic from harming your web presence)
Security plugins like Blog Defender help to make your website invisible to bot and hacker attacks.
More information:
SEO Plugins – Yoast SEO
SEO plugins help drive traffic by making your web pages more search engine friendly …
(WordPress Plugin – Yoast SEO)
Use a powerful plugin like Yoast SEO (previously known as WordPress SEO by Yoast) to improve your site’s SEO. Properly configured, this plugin not only makes your website easier for search engines to index, it also gives you control over how your content is displayed in Google’s search results and social media sites Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.
Social Sharing Plugins
Allowing visitors to easily share your content with their social networks can help to increase traffic to your site, especially if your site provides content that adds value to readers.
(WordPress users can easily add social features to their website with WordPress plugins)
You can add social sharing to your site easily with WordPress plugins.
Most social sharing plugins allow you to select which social sites visitors can share your content to, embed social buttons into your content, set up default update notifications, display/hide share counters (e.g. number of followers), etc. Some social share plugins even allow you to set up protected content areas on your pages which visitors can unlock by liking your page.
Configuring WordPress Traffic Generation Theme Features
As well as configuring various plugins, many WordPress themes also include features that help grow your site’s traffic.
For example, as well as options and settings for configuring the layout and design of your site, many themes also provide built-in features that let you improve search optimization and site linking structure for faster indexing, add analytics code, social sharing buttons, etc …
(Many themes like Graphene (a free theme) have built-in traffic optimization features)
With a number of quality themes, adding social sharing features to your site is as easy as selecting the option to enable this functions …
(Many WordPress themes come with built-in social sharing features that can be easily turned on with the click of a button)
Additional Features Of WordPress To Configure
Last but not least in the traffic configuration process, are the things that need to be set up outside of the global settings.
These include the following:
Website Compliance Pages
Once again, when preparing your website for a growth in visitor numbers, it’s important to plan not only for both good and bad traffic but also for all the situations that can seriously affect your business as more and more people find and begin to visit your website.
If you are making money online (or are planning to), it’s important that your website remains compliant with legal requirements of government agencies that regulate business online.
(Is Your Website Legally Compliant?)
If you need help adding compliance pages to WordPress, go here:
WordPress Categories & Tags
Tags & categories help search engines classify and index your web pages, which helps to increase traffic.
(WordPress post categories help improve traffic by improving your site’s search engine optimization.)
As we recommend in this article, your site’s post tags and post categories should be set up earlier on, during the Website Planning Process.
When considering ways to automate and improve traffic, you will want to review and make sure that your site’s tags and categories have been correctly set up to deliver optimal benefits.
Add A Site Map To Your WordPress Site
A site map that displays all of your site’s pages and posts to visitors is not only a useful navigation tool for users, it can also help external sites discover more of your site’s content …
(Site Map – great for site visitors and beneficial for web traffic too!)
An HTML site map and an XML sitemap are not the same things. An HTML site map is a web page that links to all other content on your site, while an XML sitemap contains code that only search engine bots can understand. Although Google can index your site just from an XML sitemap (which plugins like Yoast SEO will create for you – see earlier section), allowing visitors to find more pages on your site can result in increased traffic.
404 Error Page – A Source Of Lost Traffic Opportunities!
When online users enter the wrong web address or click on links pointing to an incorrect destination on your website, they will typically be presented with a 404 Not Found page …
(Default WordPress 404 Page)
Configuring your 404 Error Page allows you to redirect traffic that may otherwise be lost. …
(Configuring your 404 page allows you to redirect web traffic that may otherwise be lost.)
Although a 404 Not Found page can be set up on your web server, there are WordPress plugins that allow you to easily configure your 404 page inside your WordPress dashboard.
WordPress Traffic System: Configuration Phase – Summary
Once you have your site fully set up and expertly configured, all you then have to do is add fresh content regularly to automatically begin bringing traffic organically.
The process of expertly configuring your WordPress site, however, is quite involved and elaborate and requires the configuration and integration of a number of different elements and external web properties …
(Traffic System – Configuration Checklist)
The skills and expertise involved in expertly configuring a WordPress site can take some web professionals months to acquire.
Once you have configured your WordPress site, the next step is to automate the aspects of the process that can be automated. This step is explained in the next section of our series.
This is the end of Section Three
To keep reading, click on the link below:
This article is part of an tutorial series designed to help you learn how to grow your business online inexpensively using a WordPress website and proven web marketing strategies.
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