Different Types of WordPress Plugins
Plugins let users add functionalities and values to a WebPress site by pressing a button. Some plugins are essential to every site, whereas others are only required for certain WebPress sites. Plugins help create our own WebPress-powered websites, they don’t necessarily do any fancy, but they are critical for the security and functionality of any WordPress website.
- Security Plugin: No matter what type of websites a developer builds, it should be safe and secure. The website owner should always be ready with something to help prevent most normal attacks. Depending on the site owner’s need, different security plugins perform several functions that prevent malfunctions. For example, hackers build malicious code or programs that target WordPress sites. WordPress security plugins offer a variety of solutions. For example, a plugin called Loginizer limits the number of login attempts to thwart brute force attacks. Another security plugin, Wordfence, puts a firewall enforces to keep the site away from malicious traffic. Apart from that, it sends an alert message every time something weird happens on the site. By weird, it means anything that’s not supposed to happen in terms of security. For example, when a plugin that you use gets abandoned or close or when a vulnerability issue occurs.
- Backup Plugin: Even though web hosts tend to keep backups, it’s not a good idea to completely rely on it. It is impossible to retrieve any data if there is no backup facility. So, as a website owner, it is important to make sure that the site is backed up, especially the database. Therefore, the backup plugin is highly recommended on any WordPress site. There are different backup plugins available. Here are some backup plugins that will help: Duplicator - this plugin helps WordPress users copy, move, migrate, or clone a site from one location to another and serve as a beneficial backup utility. Another widely used backup plugin is Backup Buddy, which gives the users the ability to schedule backups. Users can backup just the database keeping several components (such as posts, pages, comments, settings) in-tact or the entire site with this plugin.
- SEO Plugin: SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is the process of making a website more visible. So, it is important to optimize any website for search engines to improve search engine rankings and drive organic traffic. Most SEO plugins provide tips on how to amplify the site content’s SEO. For example, Yoast SEO plugin offers a powerful kit that allows website owners to gauge keyword usage, edit meta descriptions, and more.
- Caching Plugins: Caching is one of the most popular features of the online world. It helps to decrease the load time of the site and hence, offers a better user experience. Moreover, the loading time of any website directly impacts its search engine rankings—the faster website load results in better search ranking. A recent survey says, 22.2% of the initial visitors of any web page tend to navigate away from a site if it takes more than 5 seconds to load. So, improving the loading speed of any website is very critical to avoid a higher bounce rate. Though many caching plugins are available, the best are WP Rocket, and W3 Total Cache are the two most widely used plugins. W3 Rocket plugin improves the speed and SEO rankings of any WordPress site, and it doesn’t require any coding. W3 Total Cache improves the user experience and SEO of any website by boosting the performance and reducing load times using features like content delivery network integration and the latest best practices.
- Contact Form Plugins: A website needs to build constructive relationships with its readers or users. That’s where contact form plugins come into the picture. Some readers, especially blog readers, want to communicate, send in their queries, or express their reactions about the post to the site owner. So, the contact form plugin acts as a bridge between the site owner and its readers. Some owners may prefer to leave a contact number or email address if their visitors want to have a word. But, it might turn out to be an invitation to spammers as well. So, a contact form is far better. There is no substitute for the availability and reachability it offers. Gravity form is the most popular of all the contact form plugins. It provides a simple way for anyone to create a form. Another commonly used plugin is Contact Form 7. It can manage multiple contact forms and allows form customization.
- SMTP Mail Plugin: WordPress sites have a built-in capability to send emails. WordPress sites send emails using built-in capability, and it uses PHP mail code by default. However, this doesn’t prevent spam emails and might cause your mail to get dumped in a spam folder. Here comes the use of SMTP plugins. These plugins let your site send an email with the same protocol used by email clients. Hence, an email is much less likely to be flagged as spam with the SMTP Mail plugin. Easy WP SMTP is the most widely used SMTP Mail plugin.
To be a good WordPress Plugin developer, one should have professional experience in creating plugins for WordPress sites. While hiring a WordPress Plugin developer for your organization, look for candidates familiar with different WordPress site elements. Also, the candidate must have the ability to quickly grasp the latest technologies and willingness to work in a dynamic environment.