5 Must Have Wordpress Plugins - Article by Simon Bunker:
WordPress is an awesome blogging platform that is really simple and easy to use and also easy to customise to your own liking using plug-ins and widgets. The purpose of this article is to highlight to you 5 plug-ins that make using and managing your WordPress environment a breeze. This article is primarily aimed at blog owners with self hosted WordPress Blogs.
What is a Plug-in?
A WordPress plug-in are applications or programs that enhance your WordPress experience. Most of the plug-ins are free and can be downloaded from the WordPress plug-in directory or you can search for them by using a search engine such as google or bing. So below is a list of must have plug-ins that you should have installed on your blog.
WordPress Database Backup by Austin Matzko
WordPress Database backup is a simple yet powerful plug-in that allows you to schedule and run backups right from within your WordPress dashboard. Installation is quick and simple with no real configuration required. The plug-in will even email the backup file to your preferred email account should you want. This is a must have plug-in to ensure that your WordPress database is backed up on a regular basis.
Google XML Sitemaps by Arne Brachold
This plug-in creates a site-map file of your WordPress site/blog and submits it to the search engines such as Google & Bing. Installation is a breeze and no real configuration is required to get it up and running. This is a valuable plug-in to help get your search engine rankings going.
WordPress Stats by Andy Skelton
The WordPress stats plug-in is a simple yet very powerful tool that displays stats within your WordPress dashboard showing you number of hits, referring URLS and search engine terms all in a neat and usable graphical interface. Its an ideal compliment to Google Analytics or any other analytics packages. You will need to register with WordPress for an API key to enable this to work on your blog site.
FD Feedburner Plug-in by John Watson
This plug-in takes your normal blog RSS feed and directs it into Feedburner. Feedburner is a google owned property that manages your RSS feed and enables a full range of statistics and monetization options for your feed. You will need a feedburner account (free) and will need to "burn" your RSS feed in the Feedburner interface, when that is done you basically input the Feedburner feed URL into the plug-ins settings and away you go. This is a highly recommended plug-in and it will enable you to add huge value to your RSS Subscribers
All In One SEO Pack by Michael Torbert
This plug-in allows you to input a whole range of SEO options into your posts or pages which will enable you to rank higher in the search engine listings. You can target specific keywords and meta data and add descriptions to posts and pages. A great addition to your WordPress armoury! Note you should check that this plug-in will work with your specific theme before installing.
So in summary that's 5 must have plug-ins for your WordPress installation.
Simon Bunker is a Technology consultant and blogger who specialises in the WordPress blogging platform. You can read more about Simon on his blog located at http://www.simonbunker.co.uk. I provide personal coaching on WordPress which ranges from installing and maintaining the WordPress system to helping you get your blog found by the major search engines.
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