In Part 1 of our WordPress Web Traffic Blueprint article series overview, we explained that the key to turning your site into an automated web traffic generation machine is to use an “expertly configured” WordPress website.
As we also explained, an expertly configured WordPress website is different than a professionally-configured WordPress website or blog. An expertly configured WordPress website is a website or blog that is not only driven by WordPress, but has also been expertly set up and configured (either by yourself or professionally) to take full advantage of the enormous power, ease-of-use and functionality of WordPress and its integration with various sites, specifically in areas like SEO, content syndication and reporting.
(With an expertly configured WordPress website, all you have to do to automatically start driving traffic is add content regularly!)
Once your WordPress site has been fully set up and expertly configured, all you need to do to generate more traffic is publish content regularly.
As outlined in Part One of this article series, the components of this automated website traffic system are as follows:
- Setup
- Configure
- Automate
- Optimize
In this article, we look at the “Setup” phase of the traffic automation process. 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 Web Traffic Automation System – Setup
If You Have No Website Yet
If you don’t have a web presence yet, then it’s really quite simple … get a WordPress site!
WordPress is the most powerful, flexible, cost-effective and easy-to-use content management system available. We provide loads of articles, tutorials, and tips on this site about the benefits and advantages of using WordPress to grow your business online.
For example, to see just how popular WordPress is with businesses around the world, see this article: WordPress Usage Statistics
After making the choice to build your website with WordPress, the next step is to decide which WordPress platform you will use to run your web presence on.
This is important as there are 2 types of WordPress platforms you can choose from …
WordPress – Hosted vs Self-Hosted
(WordPress – Hosted Or Self-Hosted?)
WordPress offers both a “self-hosted” and a “hosted” option.
The “self-hosted” option allows you to download the full-featured WordPress application for free from WordPress.org and host a WordPress site or blog under your own domain name.
In the “hosted option”, WordPress hosts your site 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 for free.
If you plan to build a professional business presence online and you want to set up the traffic system described here, then 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 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 own domain and avoid the hassles of upgrading later?
If You Already Have An Existing Website
If you already own an existing site, check to see if the site has been built using WordPress.
If you need help with this step, check this article: The Easy Way To Tell If Your Blog Runs On WordPress
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 blog runs on something other than WordPress, then you have to make some choices.
Take a look at the diagram below …
(Use the above diagram to choose where to set up a WordPress website or blog on your domain)
Basically, you have two choices:
- Replace your existing website so that your main website is built using WordPress, or
- Keep your existing web site and add a WordPress-powered blog. This blog will then be used to drive traffic to your main web site.
If you choose to keep your existing website and add a WordPress-driven blog, make sure to use the self-hosted version of WordPress, which requires your own domain name and webhosting, but allows you to fully configure your blog’s settings and customize the look and feel of your existing web site using an appropriate theme for WordPress.
To use WordPress for your main site, install the platform in the “root” directory of your domain name (e.g. http://www.mydomainname.com).
If you already 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 your subdirectory anything you want).
If you have an existing 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 2
To read the rest of this article, click on the link below:
This tutorial is part of a comprehensive series of tutorials designed to help you learn how to grow your business online inexpensively and drive traffic sustainably using a WordPress website or blog and proven online marketing strategies.
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