In Part 1 of our WordPress Web Site Traffic Blueprint article series overview, we explained that the key to turning a website into an automated web traffic generation machine is to use an “expertly configured” WordPress website.
As we also explained, an expertly configured WordPress website or blog is different than a professionally-configured WordPress web site. An ”expertly configured” WordPress website or blog is a site that is not only built using the WordPress CMS, but has also been expertly set up and configured (either by yourself or professionally) to take advantage of the enormous power, features and built-in functionality of WordPress and the way it integrates with other sites, specifically in areas like search engine optimization, content syndication and analytics.
(With an expertly configured WordPress website, all you have to do to automatically drive more web traffic is add great content on a regular basis!)
Once you have your WordPress site fully set up and expertly configured, all you need to do then is add content regularly to generate web traffic.
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 discuss the “Setup” phase of the automation process. 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 System – Setup Phase
If You Have No Web Presence
If you don’t have 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 available. 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 is as a content publishing platform, see this article: WordPress: Facts And Figures
After choosing to build your site with WordPress, the next step is to decide which WordPress platform you will run your web presence on.
This is important as there are two types of WordPress platforms you can choose from …
WordPress.org Or WordPress.com?
(WordPress – Hosted Or Self-Hosted?)
WordPress offers website owners a “self-hosted” and a “hosted” option.
WordPress.org lets you download the full-featured WordPress application at no cost and host a WordPress site or blog under your own domain name. This is the “self-hosted” WordPress option.
In the “hosted option”, WordPress will host 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 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 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 site 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 Already Have An Existing Site
If you already have an existing web site, first check to see if the website has been built using WordPress.
If you need help with this step, check this article: How To Tell If A Web Site Is A WP Website
If your existing 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 website is not powered by WordPress, you have to make some choices.
Take a look at the diagram below. It will help you choose how to set up WordPress on your domain …
(Use the above flowchart to choose how to set up WordPress 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-driven blog. Your WordPress blog will then be expertly configured and used to drive traffic to your main website.
If you choose to keep your existing web site and add a WordPress-powered 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 website using a closely-matching theme for WordPress.
To use WordPress as your main site, install the platform in the “root” directory of your domain (e.g. http://www.mydomainname.com).
If you have an existing website, then you will want to install WordPress in a subfolder of your domain, e.g. www.mydomainname.com/blog (you can name the subfolder anything you like).
If you already have an existing 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 series.
This is the end of Section Two
To read more, click on the link below:
This article is part of a comprehensive tutorial series designed to help small business owners learn how to grow their business online inexpensively with a WordPress website or blog and proven online marketing methods.
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"Wow! I never knew there's so much to learn about WordPress! I bought one of the WordPress for Dummies three years ago, such authors need to be on this course!" - Rich Law, Create A Blog Now
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