In Part One of our Web Site 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 not the same thing as a professionally-configured WordPress website. An ”expertly configured” WordPress web site is a website that is not only powered by WordPress, but has also been expertly set up and configured (either by yourself or professionally) to take advantage of the enormous power, features and functionality of WordPress and the way it integrates with various sites, specifically in areas like search engine optimization, content syndication and reporting.
(With an expertly configured WordPress site, all you have to do to generate web traffic is publish great content on a regular basis!)
Once your WordPress site has been expertly configured and fully set up, all you need to do is publish great content regularly to bring more web traffic.
As outlined in Part One of this article series, the components of the automated web 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 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 Automation Blueprint – Setup
If You Have No Website
If you haven’t got a website 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 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: Statistics And Popularity
After making the choice 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 important as there are two types of WordPress platforms available …
WordPress.org vs WordPress.com
(WordPress – Self-Hosted vs Hosted)
WordPress offers both a “self-hosted” and a “hosted” option.
The “self-hosted” option means you can download the full-featured WordPress CMS application at no cost from WordPress.org and host a WordPress site or blog under your own domain name.
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 site 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 platform. 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 Already Have An Existing Site
If you already have an existing website, check to see if the website has been built using WordPress.
If you need help with this step, check this article: The Easy Way To Tell If Your Website Runs On The WP CMS Platform
If your website was built using 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 web site was built using something other than WordPress, you will need to make some decisions.
Take a look at the simple diagram below …
(Use this simple flowchart to choose where to set up a WordPress website or blog on your domain)
Basically, you have two choices:
- Replace your existing site with a WordPress website, or
- Keep your existing web site and add a WordPress-powered blog. Your WordPress blog will then be used to drive traffic to your main website.
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 site’s settings and customize the design of your existing web site using a closely-matching WP theme.
To use WordPress as your main website, install the platform in the “root” directory of your domain name (e.g. www.mydomainname.com).
If you have an existing 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 anything 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 blog
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 Section Two
To read the rest of this article, click on the link below:
This tutorial is part of an article series aimed at helping you learn how to grow your business online inexpensively and drive traffic organically with a WordPress-powered website or blog and proven web marketing strategies.
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