In Part One of our Website Traffic Blueprint article series, we explained that the key to turning a website into an automated traffic generation machine is to use an “expertly configured” WordPress website.
As we also explained, an expertly configured WordPress site is not the same thing as a professionally-configured WordPress web site. An ”expertly configured” WordPress web site is a website that is not only powered by the WordPress CMS, but has also been expertly set up and configured (either by yourself or professionally) to take full advantage of the tremendous power, features and built-in functionality of WordPress and how it can be integrated with other sites, specifically in areas like search engine optimization, 3rd-party site syndication and analytics.
(With an expertly configured WordPress website, all you have to do to generate web traffic is add content regularly!)
Once your WordPress site has been expertly configured and fully set up, all you need to do to start driving traffic is publish great content on a regular basis.
As outlined in Part 1 of this article series, the components of this automated online traffic system are as follows:
- Setup
- Configure
- Automate
- Optimize
In this article, we discuss the “Setup” phase of the traffic automation process. The focus of this section is to 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 Blueprint – Setup Phase
If You Have No Web Presence
If you haven’t got a web presence yet, then it’s really quite simple … build your 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, 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: How Popular Is It? Facts And Figures About WordPress Usage
After making the choice to build your website with WordPress, the next step is to choose which WordPress platform you will use to run your web presence on.
This is important as there are two types of WordPress platforms you can choose from …
WordPress.org vs WordPress.com
(Self-Hosted Or Hosted WordPress?)
WordPress offers a ”hosted” and a “self-hosted” option.
WordPress.org lets you download the full-featured WordPress CMS application at no cost and host a WordPress site or blog using your own domain name. This is the “self-hosted” WordPress option.
With the “hosted option”, WordPress hosts your site 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 plan 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 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 platform 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 Already Have An Existing Web Site
If you already have an existing site, first check to see if it has been built using WordPress.
If you need help with this step, check this article: How To Check If A Site Is A WordPress Site
If your existing web site is a WP web site, 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 is not a WordPress web site, then you have some choices to make.
Take a look at the simple diagram below …
(Use this simple flowchart to decide how to set up WordPress on your domain)
Basically, you have two choices:
- Replace your existing site with a WordPress site, 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 site.
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 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 site using a closely-matching WordPress theme.
To use WordPress as your main site, install the software in the “root” folder of your domain name (e.g. mydomainname.com).
If you 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 subdirectory whatever you want).
If you 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 its internal settings. This step is covered in the next article in the WordPress Traffic Blueprint series.
This is the end of Section Two
To read the rest of this article, click here:
This tutorial is part of a comprehensive series of articles designed to help business owners learn how to grow their business online and drive traffic organically with a WordPress website and proven marketing methods that are easy and quick to implement.
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