In Part One of our Website Traffic Blueprint article series, 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 site is different than a professionally-configured WordPress website or blog. An expertly configured WordPress website or blog is a website that is not only built with WordPress, 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 the way it can be integrated with other services, specifically in areas like search engine optimization, content syndication and reporting.
(With an expertly configured WordPress web site, all you have to do is publish great content on a regular basis to automatically generate traffic!)
Once your WordPress site has been expertly configured and fully set up, all you need to do then is publish content regularly to generate traffic organically.
As outlined in Part 1 of this article series, the components of the automated website traffic blueprint are as follows:
- Setup
- Configure
- Automate
- Optimize
In this article, we look at the “Setup” phase of the blueprint. We will help you understand the best way to start 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 System – Setup Phase
If You Have No Website
If you haven’t got a website yet, then it’s really quite simple … build a web presence with WordPress!
WordPress is the most powerful, flexible, cost-effective and the easiest to use content management system on the planet. We provide many 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 has become around the world, see this article: Statistics And Usage Of WordPress
After making the choice to build your site with WordPress, the next step is to decide which type of WordPress platform you will build your web presence on.
This step is very important because there are two types of WordPress platforms you can choose from …
WordPress – Self-Hosted Or Hosted?
(Self-Hosted vs Hosted WordPress Site)
WordPress offers users a “self-hosted” and a “hosted” option.
WordPress.org allows you to download the full-featured WordPress software for free and self-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, some limitations on what you can and can’t do with your site when it is hosted for free at WordPress.com.
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 blog at WordPress.com. You have full control over your web presence and avoid the limitations of the hosted option. Keep in mind that the free hosting limitations can be overcome by upgrading to a paid option, but then why not just start off with a WordPress site hosted on your domain and avoid the hassles of upgrading later?
If You Have An Existing Site
If you already own an existing site, first, check if the web site has been built using WordPress.
If you need help with this step, check this article: Tell-Tale Signs It’s A WordPress Blog And Free WordPress-Checking Tools
If your 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 existing website was not built with WordPress, 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 site on your domain …
(Use this simple flowchart to decide how to set up WordPress on your domain)
Basically, you have two choices:
- Replace your existing site so that your main website is built with WordPress, or
- Keep your existing site and add a WordPress-driven blog. This 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 webhosting, but allows you to fully configure your site’s settings and customize the design of your existing website using a suitable theme for WordPress.
To use WordPress as your main website, install the software in the “root” folder of your domain name (e.g. http://mydomainname.com).
If you already 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 the subfolder whatever you want).
If you already have a website that you don’t want to delete or replace with a WordPress site, you can choose 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 explained in the next article in the WordPress Traffic Blueprint series.
This is the end of Section 2
To read the rest of this article, click here:
This article is part of a comprehensive series of articles aimed at helping website owners learn how to grow their business online cost-effectively and drive traffic organically using a WordPress website and proven web marketing strategies.
Subscribe Using The Form Below And Get Notified Of New WordPress Tutorials!
***
"I have used the tutorials to teach all of my clients and it has probably never been so easy for everyone to learn WordPress ... Now I don't need to buy all these very expensive video courses that often don't deliver what they promise." - Stefan Wendt, Internet Marketing Success Group
***