Now that you’ve set up your host, installed wordpress, added a theme and customized the site settings a bit it’s time to add some plugins. There are a LOT of plugins to chose from and there’s no way I can cover them all but here are a few that I find myself installing every time I set up a new site.
Step 1. Download my recommended Plugin pack here.
Step 2. Unzip the file (or use winrar which is free)
Step 3. Login to your website through WordPress admin login screen.
Step 4. About 7 options down on the left is the Plugins menu. Click Add New.
Step 5. Click Add New
Step 6. Click Upload and then browse for the folder where you unzipped the Plugins.
Step 7. Upload the first one, then activate it.
Step 8. Rinse and repeat with the rest of them.
My Most Used Plugins – In Alphabetical Order
1. all-in-one-seo-pack – This plugin enhances your websites ability to be discovered by search engines. When posting a blog post you fill in a custom Title, Description and Key Words to help boost your SEO (Search Engine Optimization).
2. Bookmarkify – One of two bookmark Plugins I switch between. Allows readers to bookmark or share your site/post easily.
3. Contact-form-7 – This is a great plugin for adding a contact form to your site. I use mine on this site, you can see it here.
4. exclude-pages – I love this plugin since it is so easy to use and does it’s job perfectly. It adds a small box that you can uncheck when creating a new page so that the page won’t appear in the sitemap or menus. I use this all the time for landing pages or other ‘hidden’ pages.
5. google-sitemap-generator – This creates a sitemap for Google so that your site will have more results in a search query and be easier for Google to list the different parts of your site in search results.
6. like-button-plugin-for-wordpress – A very simple like button that allows readers to like your post or site on Facebook at the click of a button. The reader never leaves your site. You can put it at the top or bottom of posts.
7. sexybookmarks – This is the other bookmark plugin I use and is the one currently running on this site. You can chose between fun little sayings, or plain but it’s got a nice feel to it and works well for allowing readers to share your site.
8. tweetmeme – Similar to the like-button above this allows people to Tweet your post or site on Twitter without leaving your site. Currently I’m running the like button, tweetmeme and sexybookmarks all together.
There are many more Plugins I recommend depending on the type of site you are running. I’ll go through an easy to use e-commerce plugin where you can turn an ordinary WordPress site into a rockin’ online store.
How To Set Up A Website – Volume 1
How To Set Up A Website – Volume 2
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