In Part One of our WordPress Web Traffic Blueprint article series overview, we explained that the key to creating an automated 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 website is a website or blog 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 tremendous power, ease-of-use and functionality of WordPress and its integration with various sites, specifically in areas like search engine optimization, third-party site syndication and analytics.
(With an expertly configured WordPress web site, all you have to do to automatically drive more traffic is publish great content regularly!)
Once you have your WordPress site fully set up and expertly configured, all you need to do then to automatically drive traffic is publish content regularly.
As outlined in Part 1 of this article series, the components of this automated web traffic machine are as follows:
- Setup
- Configure
- Automate
- Optimize
In this article, we discuss the “Setup” phase of the blueprint. The focus of this section is to help you understand the best way to get started if you don’t have a web presence yet, or if you already have an existing site that may or may not have been built using WordPress.
WordPress Web Traffic Automation Blueprint – 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 … build a site with WordPress!
WordPress is the most powerful, flexible, cost-effective and easy-to-use content management system available. We provide many articles, tips, and tutorials about the benefits and advantages of using WordPress to grow your business online.
For example, to learn just how popular WordPress has become around the world, see this article: WordPress: Statistics And Popularity
After choosing to build your website with WordPress, the next step is to choose which WordPress platform you will run your web presence on.
This step is important because there are two types of WordPress platforms you can choose from …
WordPress Self-Hosted Or WordPress Hosted?
(Self-Hosted Or Hosted WordPress?)
WordPress offers website owners a “self-hosted” and a “hosted” option.
WordPress.org lets you download the full-featured WordPress CMS application for free and 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, some limitations on what you can and can’t do with your blog when WordPress.com hosts it at no cost.
If you are planning to build a professional business presence online and you want to set up the traffic system described here, then you should 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 Website
If you already have an existing website, check if it has been built using WordPress.
If you need help with this step, check this article: The Easy Way To Tell If Your Web Site Runs On WP Software
If your existing web site was built with 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 site was built using something other than WordPress, then you will need to make some choices.
Take a look at the flowchart below. It will help you choose how to set up a WordPress website or blog on your domain …
(Use this simple flowchart to choose where to set up a WordPress site on your domain)
Basically, you have two choices:
- Replace your existing web site with a WordPress-driven site, or
- Keep your existing site and add a WordPress blog. Your WordPress blog will then be expertly configured and 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 a domain name and web hosting, but allows you to fully configure your site’s settings and customize the design and style of your existing website using an appropriate WP theme.
To use WordPress for your main site, install the software in the “root” folder of your domain name (i.e. http://mydomainname.com).
If you already 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 subfolder whatever you like).
If you 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 it. This step is covered in the next article in the series.
This is the end of Part Two
To keep reading, click here:
This article is part of an tutorial series aimed at helping you learn how to grow your business and drive traffic automatically with a WordPress-driven website and proven online marketing methods.
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"If you're new to WordPress, this can stand on its own as a training course and will stay with you as you progress from beginner to advanced and even guru status." - Bruce (Columbus, Ohio)
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