Many WordPress users double as business owners and are always looking for plugins to improve their business. Here are ten of the best WordPress plugins for business websites to take your business to the next level.
1. UpdraftPlus WordPress Backup Plugin
A good backup plugin is important to any site, but it is even more important for a business site. There are numerous WordPress backup plugins, and UpdraftPlus is one of the best plugins for an easy and safe backup.
2. Jetpack
Jetpack is one of the most versatile WordPress plugins. It’s a plugin by the authors of WordPress themselves and offers a lot. The list of its features is really long, but let’s just say it offers functionality for traffic and SEO, security and backup, content creation, community and discussion. With more then three-million active installs, Jetpack is really a useful plugin!
3. Yoast SEO
If you are happy with the SEO functionality of Jetpack, you might not need a dedicated SEO plugin, but if you do, go with Yoast SEO. The plugin helps with content creation, page analysis, technical SEO, meta and link elements, XML sitemaps, RSS optimization, breadcrumbs, .htaccess and robots.txt optimization, and social integration.
4. Google Analytics
Again, if you are happy with the traffic data you get from Jetpack or other sources, you might not need a separate dedicated plugin, but if you do, Google Analytics is the plugin to go with. It’s easy to configure and use. It connects your WordPress site with your Google Analytics account to display all the data from there into your WordPress admin dashboard. With this plugin you can also track ads, events, orders, file downloads, links, etc.
5. Super Socializer
Even though Jetpack has social functionality, it doesn’t give you a lot of customization options. A dedicated social plugin, such as Super Socializer, is always welcome. The plugin handles almost any aspect of your site’s social activities such as social share, social login and social comments. Yet, if you need more social functionality, check this list for other WordPress social plugins.
6. Akismet
No site, especially a business one, can survive without a good antispam plugin. The best antispam plugin among them all is the built-in Akismet. It comes with WordPress, so you don’t have to install it, you only need to configure it. You need to get an API key, which for business and commercial sites isn’t free ($5-9 a month), but the protection they offer is definitely worth the money. Akismet filters comments and form submission spam.
7. Mail Subscribe List
While many business sites can survive without an email list-building plugin, your marketing efforts will certainly benefit from such a plugin. Most of the list-building plugins offer a lot, but they are not free. If you don’t want to pay for features you rarely use and are okay with a more basic plugin, try Mail Subscribe List. This plugin doesn’t come with fancy features, but if all you want to do is collect email addresses from your visitors, it’s more than fine.
8. Newsletter
Similarly to email lists, a newsletter isn’t an absolute must for any business site, but if you have a lot to tell your clients, it makes sense to start a newsletter. If you are looking for a plugin for the purpose, try Newsletter. This plugin not only allows you to compose and send a newsletter, but it also tracks emails and subscribers and can be used for list building, too.
9. WooCommerce
While for many business sites this plugin makes no sense (e.g. your corporate site or your freelancer portfolio), if you are running an online store, WooCommerce is a must. This is another plugin by the creators of WordPress. It offers the basics to sell physical and digital goods online, and thanks to its numerous plugins, you can create a really one-of-a-kind shop.
10. Contact Form 7
Contact forms are one more way to interact with your clients, and one of the easiest ways to provide professional contact forms is with the Contact Form 7 plugin. The plugin comes with many customization options as well as a CAPTCHA and Akismet integration in an attempt to minimize comment form spam.
Coupled with a good theme, these ten WordPress plugins can make your business site a top-notch one. Of course, when there are thousands of great WordPress plugins, it’s hard to pick only ten that are best for everyone, but I believe the ones I picked are really useful and are the best in their segment.
