In Part 1 of our Web Traffic Blueprint article series overview, we explained that the key to creating an automated web traffic generation machine is to use an “expertly configured” WordPress website.
As we also explained, an expertly configured WordPress web site is different than a professionally-configured WordPress website or blog. An expertly configured WordPress blog is a site that is not only powered 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 built-in functionality of WordPress and its integration with other sites, specifically in areas like search engine optimization, external site notification and analytics.
(With an expertly configured WordPress site, all you have to do is add content regularly to automatically bring web traffic!)
Once you have your WordPress site fully set up and expertly configured, all you need to do is publish great content on a regular basis to automatically bring more traffic.
As outlined in Part 1 of this article series, the components of this automated traffic system are as follows:
- Setup
- Configure
- Automate
- Optimize
In this article, we discuss the “Setup” phase of the automation process. 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 Blueprint – Setup
If You Don’t Have A Website
If you haven’t got a web presence yet, then it’s really quite simple … get WordPress!
WordPress is the most powerful, flexible, cost-effective and the easiest to use content management system on the planet. We provide loads of articles, tutorials, and tips about the benefits and advantages of using WordPress to grow your business online.
For example, to see just how popular WordPress has become as a platform for building a web presence, see this article: WordPress Usage Statistics
After making the choice to build your website with WordPress, the next step is to choose which WordPress platform you will build 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?
(WordPress.org Or WordPress.com?)
WordPress offers users a ”hosted” and a “self-hosted” option.
WordPress.org lets you download the full-featured WordPress software 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 hosts your blog for free at WordPress.com. There are, however, some limitations on what you can and can’t do with your blog when it is hosted for free at WordPress.com.
If you are planning to build a professional web presence 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 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 own domain and avoid the hassles of upgrading later?
If You Already Have An Existing Web Site
If you already have an existing web site, check if your web site has been built using WordPress.
If you need help with this step, check this article: The Easy Way To Tell If Your Blog Was Built Using WordPress
If your existing website runs on the WordPress CMS platform, 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 web site was built using something other than the WordPress CMS platform, then you have to make some decisions.
Take a look at the simple flowchart below …
(Use this simple diagram to choose how to set up a WordPress site on your domain)
Basically, you have two choices:
- Replace your existing website with a WordPress website, or
- Keep your existing web site and add a WordPress blog. This blog will then be used to drive traffic to your main website.
If you choose to keep your existing site and add a WordPress blog, make sure to use the self-hosted version of WordPress, which requires your own domain name and web hosting, but allows you to fully configure your site’s settings and customize the look and feel of your existing site using an appropriate WordPress theme.
To use WordPress as your main site, install it in the “root” directory of your domain (e.g. www.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 site 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 blog
Once you have set up your WordPress site, the next step is to configure its internal settings. This step is addressed in the next article in the series.
This is the end of Part 2
To keep reading about this topic, click on the link below:
This article is part of a comprehensive series of articles aimed at helping site owners learn how to grow their business online cost-effectively with a WordPress-powered website or blog and proven web marketing methods.
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