10 Things To Know About Using WordPress Plugins

Anyone can easily extend one of the best content management systems definitely. Yes, we are talking about WordPress; it has nearly 25000 plugins available on the official wordpress.org site. There is no limit to what you can achieve with these plugins. However, the use of plugins can be a challenging task if you do not use them correctly. Plugins are used to offer extra functionality to the users. Below are some of the things you need to know if you want to use WordPress plugins. 

1) Updating your plugins – Keeping your plugins up-to-date is very crucial for the security and proper functionality of your website. Out-dated plugins are prone to the individuals who are trying to find weaknesses in your system. These plugins can also stop working when new versions are released. 

2) Updating your deactivated plugins or get rid of them – Even if the plugins are not active on your site, you must make sure that it is still updated. If a deactivated plugin is still present on your website then it can be exploited for security weaknesses. So you must keep an eye for the deactivated plugins as well. These plugins add additional strain to your website resources. It is suggested that you only activate plugins when they are needed. Active plugins on your site must be used by your website. If it is not the case, then you can simply deactivate these.

3) The number of plugins used is not important – plugins are simply a code that is integrated with your site. Furthermore, you can use the same code within your functions.php file and get the same effects as well. Therefore it is not necessary to use many numbers of plugins that you have installed and activated on your site.

4) Quality over quantity – it is very important that you focus on the quality of the plugins you are using for your website. When you want to install plugins, then you should look at some of the things such as – 

• Number of downloads

• Average rating

• Reviews

• The developers of plugins

• Evidence of active support

You must keep in mind that whenever you are installing any plugin, you are adding a piece of new functionality to your website. This must remain functional in the future. If the plugin is working, it’s good, and you must ensure that it must work in the future too. 

1) Premium plugins do not mean that they are better – most commonly, people prefer premium plugins over normal ones. However, it is not always true that if someone is charging you for a plugin, then it will be good. You can always find some free plugins that can help you as much as the premium ones. 

2) Some plugins are very necessary for all websites – there are many useful types of WordPress sites. You must install the plugins that can help you in building the kind of website that you are thinking of. An e-commerce website needs a shopping cart plugin, while a photography website will be benefited from the image gallery tool. 

3) Plugins can be integrated with other tools and platforms related to your website – there are many stand-alone independence features; however, other features provided by plugins are dependent on other software. Several plugins are designed to integrate your WordPress website with popular tools and platforms of all kinds. Some examples of famous tools are – Google Analytics Dashboard for WP, MailChimp for WordPress, Custom Facebook Feed. 

4) You can find plugins at various places online – if you are completely new to plugins, then you can start with the WordPress plugin directory. All the plugins here are free to use and are tested as well. This directory also provides you with a customer rating and reviews about the plugins, along with the number of WordPress sites currently using each kind of plugin.

Some common plugins if you are new – 

CodeCanyon

This is one of the largest directories of premium WordPress plugins online. You can easily find anything with prices starting at as low as $2. You can also find user reviews and ratings and complete information about every plugin.

WPMU DEV

This is an excellent place if you want quality WordPress plugins. It also has options for areas such as analytics, security, design, social media integration, and others. This website works uniquely from other directories, and you will need a membership to use the plugins. However, $49 for a month is a great deal if you can find several plugins you want to use on your website. 

WPExplorer

This website is one of the biggest libraries of WordPress plugins. This directory is free and has reasonable priced plugins from a wide variety of categories from which you can choose the plugins that you require. From E-Commerce to page builder, choose Search Engine Optimization; you can find all kinds of plugins here. You can surely find one or two plugins for your needs here. 

Conclusion

Plugins are very important and one of the most advantageous aspects of WordPress. However, there are many plugins available that can be very overwhelming. It can be difficult to choose and monitor all the plugins for any conflicts. You must keep in mind all the plugins that you are using and maintain them so that you get a sizable collection of the best effectiveness.