Best WordPress Plugins
We just finished up our classes at the Huntsville Workshop. There was a an overwhelming response to our “How To Build A Professional Website in 30 Minutes” using WordPress. Many wanted to know what plugins we recommend, and which ones to stay away from. Without further ado, here’s the list:
All In One SEO
This wordpress plugin works well with any type of site. For the service based industry, it allows you to add and control your title tags, description, and keyword tags for every page and post. It’s easy to use, doesn’t bloat your code, and universally accepted as a must have.
Formidable
Formidable is an easy to use plugin for contact forms on your website. Click, drag and drop, no programming necessary. Once you create a form, a little tab shows up on your pages to easily to insert the form. Even better, it saves each customer’s entry inside your wordpress login, so you can go back and use them later. Also has a captcha field to prevent spam bots.
WP Super Cache
For any growing website, having a cache plugin is necessary. It has an easy On / Off button to save you from having to learn how to configure it. In a nutshell, this plugin saves static copies of your pages to dramatically decrease your site’s load time.
WP Touch
50% of all internet users are using mobile devices to access the web. If your site isn’t mobile friendly, this plugin will covert your pages for you. With an easy to use configuration panel, you can decide how it looks, change some colors, menu, background to customize a bit. A definite must have.
WP Realtime Sitemap
Having a sitemap on your website (for your users, not search engines) should be a priority. Keeping it up to date can be a pain though. This plugin automatically keeps a user friendly sitemap up to date for you. Make sure you insert the code into a separate page though, and add an easy to find link in your footer somewhere – otherwise they may not find it.
SEO Smart Links
Interlinking your site is a great seo technique. Going through all your content and linking pages to each other is tedious and annoying. This plugin will grab text that matches your page names and automatically links them for you.
I’m sure there are more plugins out there that are beneficial, fun, and productive. These are the ones we install standard in any wordpress site we work with. We’re comfortable with these, they work well, and they’re stable.
