WordPress Plugins – Page 3 – Best WordPress Tips

WordPress Forum Plugin

The WordPress forum plugin is a great tool to have with your WordPress blog if you are interested in offering your website visitors a location on your blog for interaction and message posting. Using the WordPress forum plugin is a great place to stimulate discussion and establish a community surrounding your blog.

There are many options for expanding your blog like including the WordPress forum plugin. A feature like this enhances your blog and increases usability for your web visitors. There are many types of the WordPress forum plugin that you can choose from for your blog.

Why should you have a WordPress forum plugin on your blog?

If you are looking for fun and new functional features to add to your WordPress blog, you should consider adding a WordPress forum plugin. There are a variety of these plugins to choose from including plenty of open source forum systems that are available. Choosing the best WordPress forum plugin is important, but sometimes with so many options to choose from, it can be difficult to find the one that is best for your blogging needs and one that actually works without tons of kinks and bugs that still need worked out.

WordPress Forum Plugin options:

Because WordPress has evolved so much in recent years, it is really now more of an entire Content Management System (CMS), which means WordPress capitalizes on being a great way to enhance and build communication relations between its members. If you are a blogger that is interested in joining this band wagon, it is a good idea to add a WordPress forum plugin to feature on your blog. A forum is a great way to better manage the multiple amounts of conversations that may exisit within a community that a blog simply cannot address without it getting extremely bogged down and confusing among members and frequent visitors.

When choosing the best WordPress forum plugin for your WordPress blog, it is a good idea to choose one that has received great user rating vouching for its reliability and authenticity. Next, it is a good idea to make sure and choose a forum plugin that is simple to install and configure. Many plugins will configure itself automatically wtihin your WordPress theme and styles itself accordingly. Another aspect of forum plugins to take into consideration is to find a plugin that also works well with social networking integration. Just about anyone that is interested in joining your forum on your blog is also most likely to be interested in social networking on online communication. This type of plugin allows users to publish the topics they wish to discuss to their Facebook and Twitter feeds as well. This way, the forum can be embedded into multiple websites and not just your WordPress blog. One of the most popular WordPress forum plugins is the WP-Forum. This plguin supports different skins and blog administrators also have the option to easily turn guest posting on or off with optional Captcha. Because this plugin has such a tight integration with WordPress, it makes it easy for the administrator to use and administer.

Another thing to consider when chosing the best WordPress forum plugin features is to make sure the plugin has been updated recently to adapt for the newest security updates. This is important to keep in mind whenever you are adding a widget or plugin to your blog. Widgets and plugins are often the weakest links open to hackers and other online threats to your blogging account with WordPress. Simply make sure they have been updated recently to add in those newest security patches to make sure they are not at risk.

There are also situationss where it may be best to install your own forum plugin using an open source application, separate from your blog entirely. When it comes to this phpBB is the most popular and reliable of the open source applications. This forum plugin allows you to include in your blog a list of recent theads, topics, conversations, etc providing you with a great way to integrate a forum with your blog.

Make sure you choose a forum plugin that is simple and easy to use because that makes a large difference for your blog visitors. If you want to have frequent visitors to your blog and forum, then it is a must to choose a forum that is usable for everyone, and continues bringing back visitors for more information on your blog and forum.

WordPress Video Plugin

Using the WordPress video plugin is a great way to integrate some of the best blog tools WordPress has to offer to create an innovative and creative website where website visitors can come to your site and enjoy their stay by checking out your WordPress video plugin that you can use to showcase products, services, even information and so much more.

There are a variety of plugins available to be had on the WordPress blog system including the WordPress video plugin. This is a great feature that can be used on any blog to enhance the usability of the blog as well as the overall appearance of the WordPress blog.

Like with many other plugins for WordPress, there are a variety of WordPress video plugins to choose from. Many designers are specifically for WordPress, others are independent designers. There are many to choose from when it comes to WordPress video plugins, so it is a good idea to do your research beforehand to choose the best WordPress video plugin for your blog. One thing you’ll have to keep in mind is making sure it is a plugin that works. There are often user reviews for each plugin. Make sure the WordPress video plugin options you review have user reviews as well ensuring the plugin does indeed work. The next step is to assess how important your video and multimedia needs will be when trying to find the right WordPress video plugin for you and your blog. If video is going to be a huge and widely-used feature on your blog, you are going to want to choose a video plugin that works well with all types of software and features to make sure there is easy video embedding of supported sites. Embedded video can be from places like YouTube, YouTube playlist, Google video, Yahoo!, Brightcove and more.

This is the best type of WordPress video plugin if you plan to feature many external videos located on other sites on your blog. If this is the case, and you need quick and ready access to YouTube or a similar video site, choosing embedded video is the best option. With this type of WordPress video plugin, you can not only integrate videos from external portals, but a corresponding link to the video on the portal page can be generated automatically if on demand. However, your options for the best WordPress video plugin do not end here. There are literally hundreds to choose from. It is simply a good idea to know what types of video plugins are out there before you make your final decision. Other WordPress video plugin options include options like Smart YouTube, Lightview Plus and Simple Flash Video. These other types of WordPress video plugins are also highly functional and reliable perfect for any blog looking to attract visitors and potential customers, if you are planning to use your blog to make money. One video plugin in particular, the Smart YouTube, is helpful because it works to allow you to easily insert YouTube videos and playlists into your blog posts comments as well as the blog RSS feeds. With other similar plugins, sometimes the video is not embedded properly and won’t play on the RSS feed. However, with this particular video plugin, you don’t have to worry about that issue becoming a problem.

If you are new to blogging and to using WordPress plugins in general, it might be worthwhile to check out the Simple Flash Video player. This option builds on the plugins that already allow for easy posting of .flv or .mp4 files on the WordPress platform. With this Simple Flash video plugin, you can easily post these videos to your blog via upload and give viewers the opportunity to instantly watch the video without having to fully download it before watching. In this day and age of the Internet, users want everything fast and efficiently. This is a great way to ensure that quality to them before they go looking elsewhere for the information or products and services. Remember, there are many different types of WordPress video plugins available. Be sure to shop around before finally deciding on which option works best for your WordPress blog. One of the best conveniences about plugins is they are easy to switch out and arrange through WordPress, so don’t be afraid to trial and error a few options before deciding which WordPress video blog works best for you and to fulfill all of your multimedia feature blogging needs.

WordPress Shopping Cart

Using a WordPress shopping cart is a great way to integrate eCommerce tools in with your website and blog to start making money by blogging. Find the best WordPress shopping cart to get started. You can find the best WordPress shopping cart deals online and through several WordPress plugins and widgets

If you are planning on using your WordPress blog to make money, it is essential to find the best WordPress shopping cart. With the convenience and ease of so many WordPress plugins throughout the Internet, it is a good idea to check out the WordPress shopping cart plugin options.

What is a WordPress shopping cart?

Just like with regular websites that operate as an online business, there is also the option of turning your blog into a money-making operation. This is a great chance for you to sell services and products directly on your blog in addition to your website reaching even more online customers. An online shopping cart for your blog can work just like a shopping cart for a website. This shopping cart allows your customers to organize their purchases including having control over removing or deleting items from the cart as well as changing item quantities. This is a great feature to help your customer enjoy their shopping experience on your website or blog. If a customer is impressed with the ease of use of your shopping cart, they will be more likely to return for repeat visits ensuring you more business. By using ecommerce tools like a shopping cart on your blog, you can easily grow and expand your online business. There are a few different options for choosing the best WordPress shopping cart.

Where to find WordPress shopping cart plugins:

There are various plugins bloggers can use to build their online store on their WordPress blog. First, it is important to assess your e-commerce needs. If you are planning on using your blog primarily as a money maker, it is a good idea to find a shopping cart plugin that is capable of supporting larger quantities. If you are simply using your blog as a way to promote your online business website, but want to use the blog to supplement purchases, it is not as important to find a shopping cart plugin that has to support excessive quantities. The classic WordPress shopping cart plugin gives users the ability to easily integrate shopping to your blog in an organized fashion for shoppers. This particular plugin provides customers the ability to not only shop for their desired products and services, but users can always pick from a multiple payment gateway option including Google Checkout, PayPal, eWay, 2checkout.com and more. This is a great way to appeal to the preference of the customer. This is a convenience for both you on the merchant side of the operation as well as for the customer. This shopping cart plugin also allows you to select the type of shipping options for your merchandise.

Another type of WordPress shopping cart option would be the WordPress e-commerce plugin. This plugin takes the shopping cart a bit further and adds other features in addition to the shopping cart, payment gateway and shipping options. With WP e-Commerce, you can get easy WordPress integration, product update system, social networking tools, payment options, one-page checkout, slick store front design tools, community and support features and more. If your blog is intended to be a full-on money making machine, this type of plugin is a great option.

On the other hand, you might be looking for a shopping cart option for your WordPress blog that is a lot cheaper and simpler than the above mentioned options. Found on the WordPress.org plugin directory, you can get access to the WordPress Simple PayPal Shopping Cart. This is easy to use and is perfect for selling products online in one click from your WordPress website. If you are looking for an easy-to-use and simple option, this Simple PayPal Shopping cart plugin would be a great addition to your blog. More and more online consumers love the security and reliability found with PayPal so they are likely to already have a PayPal account making this a great option for each of your customers to quickly and easily make purchases. As you can see, there are so many e-commerce options for your WordPress shopping cart making your WordPress blog a great tool and resource in kick starting your online business.

Pros and Cons of WordPress Plugins

There are many pros and cons of WordPress plugins, and it all depends on the types of WordPress plugins that you need for your WordPress website. For example, some WordPress plugins might work better with your website in comparison to other. The pros and cons of WordPress plugins should be considered before you decide which plugins to add to your website.

When it comes to the pros and cons of WordPress plugins it is important to do your research so you can avoid some of the issues associated with WordPress plugins. Keep reading to find out more about WordPress plugins and how to avoid common plugin issues.

There are a few pros and cons to both sides of WordPress plugins. However, if you know what you are looking for and know how you would like your WordPress blog to look, it is easy to make your way through the disadvantages of using WordPress plugins. Anyone who is familiar with WordPress knows the advantages to having access to easy-to-use plugins on their blog. However, if you are new to WordPress it is also a good idea to know what some of the disadvantages might be when it comes to WordPress plugins.

Pros of WordPress plugins:

Some of the advantages of using WordPress plugins include the ability to enhance the overall content of your blog. There are a wide variety of plugins of every variety you can add to your blog. This is a great way to spice up your blog by adding functional tools and features. You can also enhance content of your WordPress blog by installing plugins that allow you to showcase your content with pull raised quotes as well as highlights and scroll bars. Another one of the advantages of WordPress plugins is the ability to enable search engine optimization (SEO). Using SEO is a great way for you to make sure your blog gets found. There are a few SEO plugins out there that can help your overall search ranking. With more features because of the variety of WordPress plugins, you can add ecommerce features, e-commerce themes as well as other fun features your web visitors can check up when they are on your site. This is a great way to turn your blog into a steady money maker. Everyone knows social networking is also a great way for your site or blog to get found. Using plugins for this social apps on your blog is a great way to spread the information about your website to potential Internet visitors throughout the web. One of the best advantages to using a WordPress plugin is because it reduces the amount of time you spend developing your website or blog and it is also easier than trying to learn how to code it yourself. If you are someone that is new to plugins, web development and web design, you’ll find using plugins is a much simpler way to build and develop than to try and learn to code your blog yourself.

Cons of WordPress plugins:

Unfortunately there are a few disadvantages to using WordPress plugins. When talking about some of the cons associated with the pros and cons of WordPress plugins, most of the issues come from installation. Some WordPress plugins can be difficult to install. Unfortunately there is really no way to tell which plugins cause installation troubles and which do not until you try them yourself or find feedback about a certain plugin. However, plugins are still easier to use than trying to learn to code yourself. With WordPress plugins, the more you have, the slower your website will be. Just with any additions to a site or blog including pictures, video and other multimedia features, the more stuff you have on your site, the longer it will take to load. This is important to keep in mind when choosing which features and plugins you want on your blog before you do any of the installation. Because WordPress plugins are the work and feature of another company, you are essentially promoting a product that is not yours. If this doesn’t bother you, then it is not a big deal. It is simply important to know and understand which plugins will work best with your online business to avoid competition on your own site. Unfortunately there are also some security issues associated with WordPress plugins. If you choose plugins that are some of the more popular choices, you will most likely be okay, but there is no guarantee just as there isn’t with any outside addition to a website.

Overall, if you know what to look for and what to watch out for when building your blog with plugins, you can easily avoid some of the cons of using WordPress plugins. Simply do not add too many plugins, make sure they are reliable and secure and avoid competing plugins that might affect your own online business. Other than that, using WordPress plugins is a great idea especially for those who have little to no experience in web design or development.

Best WordPress Plugins for SEO

When you are looking to find the best WordPress plugins for SEO, it is important to choose the best SEO plugins because you can make sure the SEO works to get your website the attention it deserves on various search engines like Google. The best WordPress Plugins for SEO are some of the best tools for your WordPress blog.

Finding the best wordpress plugins for search engine optimization (SEO) is a hard task, but we have taken the hard work out of the situation for you! I’ve used tons of WordPress plugins over the last few years and these are the best. These plugins will help your site climb to the top of Google, Yahoo, and MSN.

1. All in One SEO Pack– this plugin lets you define the homepage title, meta description, and meta keywords for your site. It also lets you define the page titles for just about every type of archive/search page for categories, pages, tags, and more. It’s a great SEO tool so you don’t have duplicate title tags in your site. Perhaps the best part of the plugin is that it includes the nofollow attribute for certain types of search pages like archive & tag. This way the search engines don’t index search pages that might end up in duplicate content.

2. Homepage Excerpts – this one is great for websites that want to avoid putting the entire post on the homepage and archive pages, category searches, and tag pages. This let’s you define how many words to display from the post as an excerpt which is great if you don’t use the custom excerpt feature. I have imported a few blogs from blogger and those don’t come along with a custom excerpt in the post – and one of the blogs has over 700 posts! So I can’t exactly go back and write a custom excerpt for all those posts anytime soon. This is the perfect fix for this.

3. Akismet– a lot of people think this is the best wordpress plugin altogether. Akismet WordPress plug filters spam comments. This is free to personal site users and Automattic charges a small fee to business users. Why is Akismet plugin good for SEO? If you have comments set loose in moderation tactics – you need something like this. This way you won’t have non-topic comments coming into your blog that will dilute your page’s keyword density. It will also save you time so you can focus on getting more high quality links to your site and posting quality content.

4. Google XML SiteMaps– this is pretty straightforward. If you have a Google Webmaster Account – you’ll want this feature. It will generate a sitemap which you can include in your site and post to your google account to ensure better and deeper spidering of your content. Google will also check on how often this is updated so they can spider quicker. With the new Google Instant feature in search fresh content is more and more important – you need to make sure Google/Yahoo/MSN get to your content faster.

5. Meta Robots WordPress Plugin– another great WordPress plugin for SEO. The meta robots plugin allows you to stop the search engines from indexing your images, any kind of archive pages, and certain links on your homepage. It can also prevent the indexing of your private pages like the login page for your WordPress admin area.

These are just a few of the favorites that you can count on to SEO your WordPress blog. These are the best WordPress plugins for SEO that I have found, but I’m not quite done looking! I’ll keep you posted on other plugins for various functions in SEO as I find them.