In Part One of our WordPress Web Site 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 site is different than a professionally-configured WordPress site. An expertly configured WordPress blog is a website or blog that is not only driven by the WordPress CMS, but has also been expertly set up and configured (either by yourself or professionally) to take full advantage of the enormous power, features and functionality of WordPress and the way it can be integrated with various services, specifically in areas like SEO, content syndication and reporting.
(With an expertly configured WordPress blog, all you have to do is add great content regularly to generate more traffic!)
Once your WordPress site has been expertly configured and fully set up, all you need to do to generate more web traffic is add great content regularly.
As outlined in Part One of this article series, the components of the automated online traffic machine 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 Traffic System – Setup
If You Haven’t Got A Web Presence Yet
If you haven’t got a web presence yet, then it’s really quite simple … build a WordPress site!
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 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, see this article: Facts And Figures About WordPress Usage
After choosing to build your site with WordPress, the next step is to decide which type of WordPress platform you will run your web presence on.
This step is important as there are 2 types of WordPress platforms you can choose from …
WordPress Hosted vs WordPress Self-Hosted
(WordPress.org vs WordPress.com)
WordPress offers users a “self-hosted” and a “hosted” option.
WordPress.org lets you download the full-featured WordPress CMS application at no cost and host a WordPress site or blog under your own domain name. This is the “self-hosted” WordPress option.
With 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 site when WordPress.com hosts it at no cost.
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 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 platform by upgrading to a paid option, but then why not just start off with a WordPress site hosted on your own domain and avoid the hassles of upgrading later?
If You Have An Existing Website
If you already own an existing website, first check to see if it has been built using WordPress.
If you need help with this step, check this article: The Easy Way To Tell If Your Web Site Runs On WP Software
If your website runs on the WP 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 existing website is not a WordPress site, then you have some decisions to make.
Take a look at the simple flowchart below. It will help you decide how to set up WordPress on your domain …
(Use the above diagram to help you decide where to set up a WordPress website 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 expertly configured and used to drive traffic to your main web site.
If you choose to keep your existing web site and add a WordPress-driven blog, make sure to use the self-hosted version of WordPress, which requires a domain name and web hosting, but allows you to fully configure your blog’s settings and customize the design and style of your existing site using a closely-matching theme.
To use WordPress for your main site, install the software in the “root” folder of your domain name (e.g. www.mydomainname.com).
If you already 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 your subfolder anything 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 it. This step is covered in the next article in the series.
This is the end of Part Two
To keep reading this article, click on the link below:
This article is part of a comprehensive series of tutorials designed to help you learn how to grow your business online inexpensively and drive traffic organically using a WordPress-driven website or blog and proven marketing methods that are easy to implement.
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"This is AMAZING! I had learnt about how to use WordPress previously, but this covers absolutely everything and more!! Incredible value! Thank you!" - Monique, Warrior Forum
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