Setup your WP Blog? Part 3

 

Part 1 – Paying to setup your WP Blog?

Part 2 – The Outside Applications

I started compiling this list when I set up my newest site, http://AreWeConnected.com

WordPress.com says

Takes seconds, costs nada

You can get a blog started in less time than it takes you to read this sentence.

And that’s true.

But to fully get the best results out of WordPress you need so much more.  So I put on my consultant hat and thought about what needs to be done and how to do a complete job .  Here’s Part 3 of what I came up with.

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The Hidden WordPress Plugins

There are many Plugins  that bring a WordPress blog to a higher level.   These are visible to your blog readers and enrich their experience.

Then there are the hidden plugins.  They do their job behind the scenes, unnoticed.  Yet these silent plugins are critical to the proper function of every blog.

Here are just four of the absolute essentials:

All in One SEO Pack - Part of the reason you are blogging is for the SEO, right?  This plugin (when properly used) brings proper metatags to the party in three flavors, Title, Description, and Keywords.

Google XML Sitemaps - Another SEO silent warrior.  Search engines like a sitemap.  We’re not talking the kind that some sites have for us humans.  This plugin generates an .xml document (map of your complete site) and sends it not only to Google, but to Yahoo, Ask and MSN every time you update your site.  It’s like saying "Hey Google!  Look over here!  Here’s my site, check it out!" Mine is http://AreWeConnected.com/sitemap.xml

TailHitter - Ever wonder just how people got to your site in the first place?  I’m not just talking about "They came from Google".  Deeper .  HitTail is a site that tracks and records the phrase someone typed into a search engine and then clicks on your page in the results.  It is invaluable for tracking what keywords people are using and what is working.  As an example I recently used the OctoMom’s website as an example for a blog post.  Her name is Nadya .  I intentionally spelled her name correct in some places and incorrect in others.  Using HitTail, I could see how many people reached my site only because they spelled it as Nadia .

WP-DBManager - Over the weekend I had a client who’s blog went dead.  It turns out her template design became corrupted.  All her posts were there - just not visible.  Reality Bites .  In the short couple of months here I have 117 posts - database and server errors happen.  Some people have been blogging on the same site for years.  What if all those posts were suddenly lost?  This plugin automatically runs a backup and then sends me a file as an email attachment.  Should I wake tomorrow to a blank site, I can easily restore the data with a couple of clicks!  I have the file sent to a Gmail address so I can never accidentally delete that.  You never think about this stuff until you have a problem.  Think of this as the Drivers Side Air Bag for your blog.  This may be the most important plugin you ever add, but may never need.

Remember, this is just the tip of the…

Photo credit by nick_russill

To be continued…

 

 

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