In Part 1 of our WordPress Website 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 is different than a professionally-configured WordPress site. An expertly configured WordPress blog is a blog that is not only driven by the WordPress CMS platform, but has also been expertly set up and configured (either by yourself or professionally) to take advantage of the enormous power, ease-of-use and functionality of WordPress and the way it integrates with other sites, specifically in areas like search engine optimization, external site syndication and analytics.
(With an expertly configured WordPress website, all you have to do to drive more traffic is add great content on a regular basis!)
Once your WordPress site has been expertly configured and fully set up, all you need to do to bring more traffic is publish content on a regular basis.
As outlined in Part One of this article series, the components of this 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 get started 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 Automation Blueprint – Setup Phase
If You Don’t Have A Website
If you don’t have a web presence yet, it’s quite simple … build a WordPress website!
WordPress is the most powerful, flexible, cost-effective and easy-to-use content management system on the planet. We provide loads of articles, tips, and tutorials 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 worldwide, see this article: WordPress: How Popular Is It? Facts And Figures About WordPress Usage
After choosing 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 step is very important as there are 2 types of WordPress platforms available …
WordPress Hosted Or WordPress Self-Hosted?
(WordPress – Self-Hosted Or Hosted?)
WordPress offers both a “self-hosted” and a “hosted” option.
The “self-hosted” option means you can 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 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 plan to build a professional web presence 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 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 options by upgrading to a paid option, but then why not start off by hosting a WordPress site 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 to see if it has been built using WordPress.
If you need help with this step, check this article: How To Check If A Web Site Is A WordPress Web Site
If your existing web site 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 blog was built using something other than WordPress, you have to make some decisions.
Take a look at the simple diagram below …
(Use this simple diagram to choose how to set up a WordPress web site on your domain)
Basically, you have two choices:
- Replace your existing website so that your main website is powered by WordPress, or
- Keep your existing site and add a WordPress-powered blog. Your WordPress blog will then be expertly configured and used to drive traffic to your main web site.
If you choose to keep your existing website and add a WordPress-powered 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 site’s settings and customize the design and style of your existing site using an appropriate WordPress theme.
To use WordPress for your main website, install the platform in the “root” folder of your domain (e.g. http://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 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 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 2
To read more, click on the link below:
This tutorial is part of an article series designed to help website owners learn how to grow their business online using a WordPress-driven website or blog and proven marketing strategies that are easy and quick to implement.
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