In my opinion, plugins are what make WordPress the most popular cms on the web. If you can imagine a business process needed for a website, there is probably a plugin. WordPress Plugins ensure the strong cohesion of web resources and the various media channels that allows WordPress web pages to be more interactive as compared to other content management systems.
There are currently 59,207 plugins available.
The wide variance in plug-in quality contributes to the perception that WordPress isn’t secure or performant enough for a “real” website. Instead, taking a holistic approach to choosing and implementing the proper suite of plugins will maximize your WordPress experience. WordPress platform integration with other media resources is the only benefit that some SEO page developers look for and that results in exceeding popularity.
Choosing a plugin:
Choosing the right plugin can be overwhelming due to the number of competing categories in any category. At E Flat, we look for plugins in the following categories:
- Security – Firewall software to block DDoS attacks and unauthorized access to the admin panel.
- Maintenance – Tools that automate website backups and send them to a cloud storage platform.
- Analytics – Integration with Google Analytics
- Seo – Allows the webmaster to submit an XML sitemap to the major search engines.
- Page Builders – WYSIWYG editors that allow a content author to build advanced page layouts without coding.
- Project-specific – Determined by the project requirements.
In the case of some of the Best WordPress Plugins in each category possess several criteria that a plugin must meet before being considered for use. The first is reputation. Does the plugin have a large installed base of users, and is the development team reputable? For example, WooCommerce, the top e-commerce plugin for WordPress, has the benefit of being owned by Automattic, the actual creators of WordPress. As a result, it has tremendous usage and support.
The second criteria is the plugin frequently updated to maintain compatibility with WordPress. If a plugin displays an update warning from the WordPress repository, it indicates that the developer isn’t committed to their product.
The third is their business model. We tend to stay away from free plugins that don’t have an obvious revenue source. WooCommerce is free with optional subscriptions, Google Sitekit is free, but it’s a loss leader for Google’s paid ads services.
Conclusion:
As much as a year subscription ray rankle, it creates (hopefully) profits for developers to continue developing in their tools and services.
Finally, we look for where to download plugins. At all costs, avoid nulled, aka pirated plugins. It’s a scumbag move to the developers, these nulled files often contain malware, and there is no way to receive critical security updates.
Outdated plugins are one of the top vectors to hack a WordPress site, and I’m sure nulled plugins play a significant role in contributing to the problem.
The official WordPress repository is the best place to download plugins and is similar to the Apple App Store. However, third-party marketplaces such as ThemeForest are also highly recommended.
Staying aware of the WordPress scene through our resources will help you keep up to date with the WordPress platform.
