In Part 1 of our WordPress Web Site Traffic Blueprint article series, 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 not the same as a professionally-configured WordPress web site. An ”expertly configured” WordPress site 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 full advantage of the tremendous power, ease-of-use and functionality of WordPress and how it can be integrated with various 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 traffic is add great content regularly!)
Once you have your WordPress site expertly configured and fully set up, all you then need to do to automatically generate web traffic is add content regularly.
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 traffic 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 Traffic System – Setup Phase
If You Have No Web Presence
If you don’t have a web presence yet, it’s 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 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 as a web content management system, see this article: Some Facts And Figures About WordPress
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 2 types of WordPress platforms available …
WordPress.org Or WordPress.com?
(WordPress Self-Hosted Or WordPress Hosted?)
WordPress offers both a “self-hosted” and a “hosted” option.
The “self-hosted” option lets you download the full-featured WordPress application for free from WordPress.org and host a WordPress site or blog using your own domain name.
In the “hosted option”, WordPress will host your site for free at WordPress.com. There are, however, some limitations to what you can and can’t do with your site when WordPress.com hosts it for free.
If you plan 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 have complete control over 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 Have An Existing Website
If you already own an existing website, check if your site has been built using WordPress.
If you need help with this step, check this article: The Easy Way To Tell If Your Web Site Was Built Using WordPress 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 website runs on something other than the WP CMS platform, then you have to make some decisions.
Take a look at the flowchart below. It will help you decide how to set up a WordPress website or blog on your domain …
(Use the above diagram to decide where to set up a WordPress site on your domain)
Basically, you have two choices:
- Replace your existing site so that your main website is powered by WordPress, or
- Keep your existing website 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-driven 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 web site using a suitable WordPress theme.
To use WordPress for your main website, install the software in the “root” folder of your domain name (i.e. http://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 subdirectory whatever you want).
If you already have an existing website that you don’t want to delete or replace with a WordPress site, the other option you have is 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 addressed in the next article in the series.
This is the end of Section 2
To read the rest of this article, click on the link below:
This article is part of a comprehensive article series designed to help site owners learn how to grow their business online cost-effectively and drive traffic automatically with a WordPress-powered website and proven marketing methods that are easy to implement.
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