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How to Set Up & Configure Your Yoast Plugin (Free Version)

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How to Setup Your Yoast SEO Plugin (Free Version)

When I started blogging, one of the first plugins recommended to me was Yoast. I was told it was a great plugin and could point me in the right direction with SEO.  I uploaded it and whenever I created a new post I would try and get all green lights but that was it.

Granted, it’s my own fault. The information I needed was out there but… there are two types of people in this world: those who read the directions and those who don’t. Guess which category I fall into.

Two years later I now know there is so much more to it than that. You’ll be relieved to know that none of the setup is difficult but you do need to configure it to avoid problems.

Setting Up Yoast

General Settings

To get started, go to your WordPress Dashboard and scroll down to ‘SEO’ select ‘General’ then the features tab at the top. You want all  the features listed to be ‘ON’. If those settings are off then Yoast isn’t working.

Now go to the next tab and select ‘Webmaster Tools.’ There are four search engines listed but the two you want to configure are Google and Bing. Click on the links below each and follow the directions to configure both Google and Bing.

'Search Appearance' Settings

The next section you want to configure is ‘Search Appearance’ which can is under SEO in the dashboard.

Select your title separator then for ‘SEO title’ make sure it says Site Title, Separator, Tagline.  In Meta Description include a description about what your blog has to offer your readers.

The next tab over is ‘Content Types.’  These are different for each blog depending on the plugins you have but the ones that should be toggled to ON are posts, pages, and anything you sell. Anything you WANT in search engines- turn on. Things like Jetpack should be toggled to off because they can create duplicate content which Google doesn’t like.

The next tab is Media and you want that toggled to ‘YES’ so that if an image comes up in a search result readers are taken to your page and not just the image.

Next head over to the ‘Taxonomies’ tab. ‘YES’  should be selected for categories. The other selections should be toggled to ‘NO’ except the very last one.

Under Category URLs you want to leave it on ‘KEEP’. Do not turn this off. Once it’s off you can’t re-do it (unless you hire someone who REALLY knows tech) and it can create a bunch of 404 page errors.

Finally, tab over to ‘Archives’ and select ‘Disable.’ Archives can sometimes make it seem like you have duplicate content which, again, is a big no no in Google’s eyes.

Then tab over to ‘Breadcrumbs’ and disable it and you can leave the settings for RSS alone.

'Search Console' Settings

There isn’t anything to configure here. Just know that if Google finds any problems with your site, it will alert you here. The last settings tab is where you can re-authenticate Google if you ever need to.

'Social' Settings

Under ‘Social’ you want to list all of your social media URLs where you want to be found. You don’t have to worry about the tabs at the top but can fill in those metrics if you want.

A side note about Pinterest, if you’ve already verified your blog or website with Pinterest you won’t be able to verify it in Yoast and you don’t need to.

'Tools' Settings

The only thing you should consider touching in here is ‘Import and Export.’  That allows you to download a Yoast file and upload it to a new website. That way you don’t have to go through everything again to set up Yoast on a new site.

The rest of it you should leave alone less you’re really good at tech.

The Most Important Setting for yoast Isn't in the Yoast SEO Settings...

This last part is in the WordPress Dashboard but NOT under SEO.

If you completed the ‘Yoast Setup Wizard’ before launching your blog you may have told set it to block search engines from indexing your blog.

If that’s the case, the place to turn that off is in the WordPress Dashboard under ‘Settings’ and then ‘Reading’. You will see a line right above the ‘Save’ button that says ‘Search Engine Visibility’.  You want to UNCHECK ‘Discourage search engines from indexing this site’ then click ‘Save’ to allow search engines to find your blog or website.

Your Yoast SEO Settings are Done!

Once you’ve worked your way through the steps above, your Yoast SEO plugin should properly be configured.

If you need  help getting your Yoast plugin setup, check out my video tutorials site.  You can find the Yoast video tutorial in the ‘Plugins Workshop’ and much more!

Until next time, my friends, Happy Blogging!

The Best Solution for Bloggers Who Need Tech Help

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The Best Solution for Bloggers Who Need Tech Help

I have a bit of truth for you that most people don’t want to hear but are very aware of- blogging isn’t easy… especially if you struggle with the tech that comes along with blogging.

Every blog you look at has a ‘Start a Blog to Earn Extra Money’ post and talks about “how easy” starting a blog is. But, it can also be frustrating as hell with several stumbling blocks along the way.

A Familiar Blogging Journey

Does this blogging journey sound familiar to you?

  • You choose a domain only to find out later that “cutesy” domains are okay but domains with keywords tend to do better
  • You use a free theme available on WordPress and stumble through configuring it. Later you discover that you can’t make it look like all the other beautiful, professional-looking blogs. And, with every update you have to reset your font and colors. Bonus: your front page looks nothing like the demo-theme.
  • You finally build enough content to “launch” your blog but no one is reading it so….
  • You dive into Pinterest and start pinning every day but NOTHING IS HAPPENING.
  • You research Pinterest and realize you didn’t have rich pins enabled and your site isn’t verified. You also haven’t focused enough on keywords, your pins aren’t eye-catching, and your titles suck so you have to go back and rework all of that too.
  • Speaking of keywords- Google apparently doesn’t know you exist so you have to learn about SEO and how to do keyword research. You get a subscription to research keywords but have no idea how to read the results or what to do with them.
Limiting beliefs of writer

And on and on…. Does this blogging journey look similar to yours? It was mine and that was AFTER purchasing what is known as the “best” blogging course out there.

Good news is I did eventually get to the point that my blog was successful- I have good traffic, people subscribing daily, and I’m finally turning a small profit. 

But can you imagine how much easier it would’ve been if you had access to a video library to walk you through all of these things?

An Affordable Solution

My experience is exactly what made me want to help other bloggers without charging $400, $200, or even $49 because, let’s face it, most of us wouldn’t have even started a blog if we didn’t need the extra money, right?

My video workshops (aka groups of videos) sell for $12 to $20 a piece but I wanted to go one step further so for my launch month I’m offering access to all current and future videos for only $15/month.

That means you can watch all of my current tutorials on starting a blog, WordPress, blog design, and the best plugins for new bloggers for less than most eBooks. And as the videos and workshops are added you get to benefit from all of those as well.

Future workshops are going to include getting started with:

  • Google Analytics
  • The most popular social media platforms (Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter)
  • Email marketing (walking you through adding an opt-in box to your page to sending your first freebie in Mailchimp and Convertkit)
  • GDPR Walkthrough

… and much more!

You also get a say in what kind of videos get added. I have added a forum space (I know- so 2000s right?) where you can add problems you are having and I will create future video tutorials and workshops on them!

I’m not trying to toot my own home here but I sincerely wish there was something like this offered when I first started blogging.

So if you find yourself struggling with blogging tech- anything from creating your menus to using the best plugins, come on over and check out the videos. You can even get a coupon code for $7 to go towards a video or workshop so you can try them out first (checkout the sidebar or the bottom of this page to grab yours).

Feel free to contact me if you need any help or have any questions. 

Workshops
Membership

15 Steps to a GDPR Compliant Blog

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15 Steps to a

GDPR Compliant Blog

The announcement of the GDPR in early 2018 was enough to make even the most experienced bloggers tremble in their boots. It sent a lot of bloggers into a whirlwind and very few people had a grasp of what it was- myself included.  

What we did know was that it would mean more rules to follow and more work or face hefty fines. Ugh…

Good news is it’s been awhile since the announcement of the GDPR and the deadline to be compliant has come and gone. Tons of bloggers and companies have done a lot of research to make sure they are GDPR compliant.

Why is this good for you? You get to benefit from a simplified list of “Things To Do” in order to become GDPR compliant.  

What is the GDPR?

Before we dive into compliance, let’s discover what the heck the GDPR is.

GDPR stands for General Data Protection Regulation and according to EWGDPR.org, the GDPR is meant to protect all EU (European Union) citizens from privacy and data breaches.

The biggest change of the GDPR is that it applies to all companies processing the personal data of data subjects residing in the Union, regardless of the company’s location.  In translation, if there is a chance someone from the EU will visit your page you have to comply.

How to be GDPR Compliant

Before we get started I have to say this is in no way legal advice for the GDPR.

There are steps I have taken on my blog to ensure my policies are up to date and compliant with the GDPR. Every business is different, and this list is a guide to using the best free resources to help you become GDPR compliant.

1. If you have more than one blog, ensure they’re all connected with your main WordPress.com account

If you’re just starting to blog you won’t have to worry about this but if you choose to start another site (or several) make sure they’re all connected to one primary WordPress.com account.

This way when you upload a required plugin,  it uploads “once” rather than uploading and activating for each site-huge time-saver!

2. Download the Following Plugins

Go to each of the pages below and download the plugins.

Cookie Notice – Displays a cookie notice when the page loads.

WP GDPR Compliance– This allows process data requests from WordPress that’s secure for the user. This means they can only process by clicking a link in their email, from the same device and IP. It also allows you to easily add a checkbox to forms on your website currently supporting Contact Form 7, Gravity Forms, WooCommerce, and WordPress Comments.

This fulfills the Data Request Requirement & the Extra Checkbox Recommended For Sensitive Forms.

Contact Form 7  – An easy to setup, free, and flexible WordPress Contact Form.

This makes it easy for readers to reach you if they have a Data Removal Request.

Flamingo – Stores all Contact Form 7 Entries in WordPress and serves as a backup in case email fails.

3. Upload plugins to WordPress.com for all sites or to the WordPress Dashboard for your blog

If you’re not using WordPress.com, go to your WordPress Dashboard of your blog and hover over ‘Plugins’.

Click ‘Add New’ and upload one plugin at a time then click activate to finish.

4. Integrate Google Recaptcha For Contact Form 7

Go to Google reCAPTCHA and select the gmail account you use for your website. 

You will then see a page like the one shown below. You want to add your domain name and then you want to choose reCATCHA V2.

A box will pop up and you will have to enter your full domain address.

Once you select ‘Register’ you will get a Site Key and a Secret Key.

Return to WordPress Dashboard and hover over ‘Contact’ then select ‘Integration’ and you will be able to enter your Site Key and Secret Key here. 

5. Create a Privacy Policy page (or update your current one)

The resource I used to create my Privacy Policy is SEQ Legal. Their Privacy Policy includes a lot of optional text plus parts you are REQUIRED to edit so go through the policy to ensure it meets your needs and to make sure your privacy policy set up the right way.

Fair warning, these policies were created in the EU so you may have to edit the text a bit but since they’re policy is currently the strictest I feel confident I am compliant with other laws as well. I encourage you to do your own research or talk to a lawyer if you have any questions.

To create your privacy page your WordPress has to be up-to-date because only versions 4.9.6 has a built in “Privacy” link located under ‘Settings’ on the WordPress Dashboard. 

A new page will be created and you will be able to copy and paste your new privacy policy here. 

6. Edit Your Privacy Policy Page With Links To 3rd Party Services You Use

Create a list of all the companies that handle data on behalf of your business. The list should include Google, Facebook, your hosting company, autoresponder, and tracking services.

Include this list in your privacy policy with a link to each services privacy policy.

7. Create a Form for the Specific Purpose of Users Contacting You About Their Data

Once you have your privacy policy created, GDPR also requires you to add the following:

  1. Data Rectification which allows users to adjust their information.
  2. Data Access which allows users to see what records you hold.
  3. The ‘Right To Be Forgotten’ which allows users to be removed from your records.
  4. A Data Breach Process which states what will happen in the case of a data breach or website hack.

In order to fulfill the requirements, take the following steps:

  • Go to ‘Contact’ on the WordPress Dashboard and select ‘Contact Forms’ from the dropdown. 
  •  When Contact Form 7 is uploaded, it automatically creates a standard form and shortcode. Copy the shortcode located in the box on the page. 
  • Create a new page titled ‘Data Access Request and include a short paragraph explaining users are allowed to access, modify, and request deletion of their data at any time. 
  • Create and link to a ‘Data Request Access’ Page allowing users to be automatically emailed their data or have their data removed (fulfilling requirement 2 and 3). 
  • Write a paragraph on what will happen if their data is breached such in the case of a website hacked or data stolen (fulfilling requirement 4). Example: If the event of any data breach from our servers or third party providers we will contact all concerned parties within 72 hours and follow up with any details if required.

8. Download Other Legal Files & Create Pages

Having the Privacy Policy page done is awesome and a step in the right direction but there are quite a few pages you need to be compliant with GDPR including:

If you’re anything like me I had most of these on my page before but they were all on one long page. Now GDPR requires they each have a separate page.

9. Edit Cookie Notice

Go to your WordPress Dashboard and hover over ‘Settings’ then select ‘Cookie Notice’.

Ensure “Enable Privacy Policy Link” is clicked and choose your Privacy Policy Page.

Click Synchronize with WordPress Privacy Policy page and click save.

10. Edit WP GDPR Compliance

Go to your WordPress Dashboard and hover over ‘Tools’ then select ‘WP GDPR Compliance’. 

Under Integration checkbox and activate all the forms that you use on your site. On the next tab “Checklist” turn on everything that applies. 

On the last tab “Settings” under Request User Data you’ll see Active Requests.

Checkbox “Active Page”, > click Save Changes. From here view and bookmark this page. Sometimes this page is set to private. Click Edit and change the Visibility to ‘Public’. 

11. Create a New Email Address

Inside your cPanel (hosting account) create a new email. Use something like report/abuse/data requests@yourdomain.com.

If you need help with setting up a custom domain email, check out my article on Setting Up a Domain Email in Siteground. 

12. Filter, Tag & Prioritize This Email

Once you set up your email, set it up to be forwarded to your primary gmail email so you never miss a message. 

13. Add a footer to your blog

Go to your WordPress Dashboard and hover on ‘Appearance’ and then select ‘Menu’.

Click ‘Create a New Menu’.

Name the menu ‘footer’ and then select all of the disclaimers you  previously made.

14. Update All Your Opt-In Headlines and Landing Pages

GDPR requires you to clearly describe what people will get after they sign up.

Here’s an example of a landing page headline which is NOT GDPR compliant.

FREE PLANNER: “Get Your FREE Planner!” Enter your name and email for instant access

To make it GPPR compliant you should write:

FREE PLANNER: “”Get Your FREE Planner and Subscribe to Our Weekly Newsletter”. This way you are clearly stating readers are subscribing to a newsletter.

15. Ensure your opt-in box has a clear link to the privacy policy

Add a clear privacy policy to all of your opt-ins and landing pages including popup boxes.

Before GDPR I used: ‘We value your privacy and never share your email address with anyone.’

Now I include a clear link to my Privacy Policy:

‘We value your privacy and never share your email address with anyone.’

GDPR Compliance

GDPR Compliance requires you to up your game when it comes to protecting your readers privacy. Admittedly, it requires more work but it’s ultimately a good thing to be able to provide our readers with the security that their information is safe. 

Hopefully this list has made it a little clearer about what the GDPR is and easier for you to meet the requirements. 

Want to keep this article for later? Click ‘Read Later’ below to have the post emailed to you below. Or sign up for access to my FREE Resource Library to download a Printable Checklist to help make your blog GDPR Compliant. 

Brown ZigZag Line Checklist List

Discover How to Easily Setup Your Domain Email in Gmail [Picture Tutorial]

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How to Setup Your

Domain Email in Gmail

So you’ve started a blog on Siteground, posted a few articles, and now you’re ready to start building your email list. But one thing that has been nagging at you is the private email address you still use. You know you should create an email with your custom domain but the thought of setting it up yourself seems completely overwhelming. 

But what if I told you there was an easy way to setup sending and receiving your domain email to the gmail account of your choice for FREE? 

Keep reading to discover the easy steps you can take to setup your domain email to send and/or receive emails from the gmail account of your choice. 

Setting up your domain email through gmail

Before we get started, you should know there are actually three ways to connect Gmail to your domain email but I am only going to review the two ways here that are free. The third way is to purchase and setup a G Suite account which is amazing if you’re trying to coordinate with two or more people but overkill if you’re just getting going with your blog. If you want to try it out, contact me and I will send you a code for a two week trial and 20% off their annual plans. 

Both ways are easy but one will only allow you to receive email so I am partial to the second way in which you’ll be able to send and receive emails even though it’s a few more steps. 

Ready? Let’s get started.

Option 1: Forward Your Domain Email to Your Gmail

This step is great for forwarding your email to your personal email making it easier to check than logging in through the internet to check your phone. The only problem is you can receive emails but when you reply they will come from your gmail account unless you log into the actual domain email. 

To receive and send email from your Gmail that comes from your domain email, scroll down to ‘Option 2’.

Step One: Log Into Siteground

I didn’t include a screenshot on how to do this because I assume if you have setup your hosting through Siteground then you are familiar with this step. However, if you haven’t done so, check out my post on How to Start a Blog for step-by-step picture instructions. 

Step Two: Go to ‘My Accounts’

Siteground dashboard area. Select 'My accounts'

Step Three: Go to ‘cPanel’

Step Four: Go to the ‘Mail’ Section and Choose ‘Forwarders’

Siteground 'Forwarders' Under 'Mail' Section

Step Five: Select ‘Add Forwarder’

Select 'Add Forwarder' Under 'Forwarders'

Step Six: Fill in the Appropriate Email Addresses

Fill in the email address you want forwarded and then fill in the ‘Forward To’ address. Select ‘Add Forwarder’ and you’re done! 

Option 2: Setup your Domain Address to Send and Receive Email Through Gmail

This option has a couple more steps but is so way more convenient and the one I prefer. You will not only receive emails from your domain account but will also be able to respond and it will go from your domain account instead of your private email.  

Step One: Log into your Siteground and Gmail Accounts. 

I didn’t include a screenshot on how to do this because I assume if you have setup your hosting through Siteground then you are familiar with this step. However, if you haven’t done so, check out my post on How to Start a Blog for step-by-step picture instructions. 

And this article will help you setup your custom domain email if you haven’t done so yet. 

Step Two: Go to Gmail and Select ‘Settings’ 

Gmail is a little odd because there is a ‘Settings’ icon and there is a category labeled ‘Settings’ under the icon. See the pic below if that was hard to follow- sorry!

Either way, select the top ‘Settings’ and then select the ‘Settings’ in the drop down box. 

Gmail settings tab for domain account setup

Step Three: Go to ‘Accounts and Import’ 

At the top of the screen under settings, select ‘Accounts and Imports’ and then half way down the screen select ‘Add a Mail Account.’

My accounts in Gmail for domain address setup

Step Four: Enter the Email to Forward. 

These next few steps are really easy because there is literally nothing else on the screen once you get here. Simply follow the instructions by entering your email and then selecting the only option available. 

Step 5: Fill in the Domain Email & Password then Refer to Siteground

The username is going to be your email address and the password is your password for your domain email. 

The information for POP Server and Port can be found in Siteground- see the next step for how to access it. 

Step 6: Go to ‘My Accounts’ in Siteground

Siteground dashboard area. Select 'My accounts'

Step 6: Select ‘cPanel’ at the top

'cPanel' under 'My Accounts' in Siteground

Step 7: Scroll Down to the Mail Section and Select ‘Email Accounts’ 

cPanel Accessing eMail on Siteground

Step 8: Go to the Email You Want to Forward and Select ‘More’ then ‘Configure Email Client’

Mail Configuration settings in Siteground

Step 9: The Information You Need for Step 5 in Gmail is Located in the Bottom Half of the Page Below. 

Mail Configuration POP settings in Siteground

Step 10: Enter the Information Needed in Gmail

  • The Username is your domain email.
  • The password is the domain email password.
  • The POP Server and Port information can be found in the Siteground section in Step 8 above. 
  • You can select to leave a copy of retrieved messages in the future but I don’t because then you have to go into webmail to delete them at some point.
  • Check the boxes ‘Always use a secure SSL’ and Enter what you would like the ‘Label Incoming Messages’. This is what lets you see what emails are coming from your domain email versus what is being sent to your private email. 
  • Select ‘Add Account’ and you will be given the opportunity to set up your email response. The information needed can be found on the same Siteground page as before. 

Once you’ve added all the necessary information, you will be emailed a verification code to your domain email. You can either follow the link in the email or copy and paste the code they give you to activate your forward. 

You can then start to use your email account for your domain email. 

Setting Up Your Domain Email

Hopefully the steps above made it easy for you to setup your domain email. Not only will you find it to be more convenient but you’ll also be able to start building trust with new subscribers a lot easier. 

Have any other technical questions or concerns with setting up your new blog? Contact me and I’ll help you out! 

How to Quickly Setup Your Custom Domain Email in Siteground [Picture Tutorial]

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How to Quickly Setup Your

Custom Domain Email

in Siteground [Picture Tutorial]

Have you ever received an email from a business that didn’t use their name in the email address?  Let’s say you order something from “Mommy Blogs” but the emails you receive come from ‘MommyBlogsAdmin@gmail.com’ instead of Admin@MommyBlogs.com?  

See the difference? The second looks more professional and professionalism is becoming increasingly important since spammers are a dime a dozen nowadays. Setting up a custom domain email is an easy way to start building trust with your readers.

Setting up a custom domain may seem complicated but it’s pretty simple- especially if you’re using Siteground.

Keep reading to discover how you can set up your custom domain and start building trust with your readers from the very first email you send. 

How to Setup Your Custom Domain Email

Setting up your domain email is one of those things that seems like it would be ridiculously hard but I promise it’s not. As a matter of fact, when you’re done you’re going to think “That’s it?”

Step 1: Sign into Siteground

I didn’t include a screenshot here because if you’ve setup your account then you’re familiar with this step.

However, if you haven’t setup your hosting yet, check out my article on starting a blog which includes a picture tutorial for setting up hosting on Siteground. 

Step 2: Click on My Accounts

Siteground dashboard area. Select 'My accounts'

Step 3: Select cPanel

Step 4: Scroll Down Until You See the ‘Mail’ section then Select ‘EMAIL ACCOUNTS’

cPanel Accessing eMail on Siteground

Step 5: Create Your Email Name

To create your email type in the name you want into the blue highlighted box. You can create as many emails as you want so you can use your first name, first and last name, info, help, or admin. 

Then go to to section after the ‘@’ sign and select your domain (if you only have one, that will be the only drop down available). 

Create your password then type it in again. 

You can leave the email memory limit or make it larger. The memory amount that autofills should be plenty and you can always change it later. 

Once you’re done select ‘Create Account’ and you’re done!

Create Your Siteground Email

Accessing Your Domain Email

Now that you’ve setup your domain email you have to access it. Simply type your domain name into the address box followed by /webmail. 

So to get to my domain I type in ‘www.bloggingenthusiast.com/webmail’ and this page comes up. 

webmail login screen

The first time you login you will see the page below which allows you to decide which program (aka webmail application) you want to use.

If you’re not sure, you don’t have to set a default view. Just click a picture and the next time you login you will see this page again. If you are familiar with one of these then you can click the text ‘Set as Default’ below the one you want.

No worries if you do select one- all of the applications are easy to use and you can change it later if you change your mind. 

Default Webmail email platform

You're Set!

Congratulations on setting up your domain email. There is something exciting about seeing an email coming from your own domain.

Want to make things even easier? Discover how you can forward your email to your regular email account or setup Google for business for only $5/month which is perfect for you if there is more than one person managing your blog or business.

Is there something else you need help doing on your blog? Contact me and I’d be happy to help walk you through it. If we talk and it’s outside even my scope, I can at least point you in the right direction!

13 Must-Have Plugins for New Bloggers

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Reading Time: 9 minutes

13+

Must-Have Plugins

for New Bloggers

One of my favorite things about WordPress is the ability to use WordPress plugins. Plugins may seem daunting at first but, once you get used to them, they open up a new world of functionality for your blog.

What is a WordPress Plugin?

Before we get into my favorite WordPress plugins, let’s discuss what a plugin is.

As defined by WP Beginner, a plugin is “ a piece of software containing a group of functions that can be added to a WordPress website.” In layman’s terms, it expands the options for what your blog can do and how it can look.

Need help figuring out all the blogging terminology you’re running across as a new blogger? Check out this amazing resource called Blogcabulary [eBook]. It takes you from the very beginning of blogging into the more advanced stages and terminologies and can be used as a reference to supplement other courses or read straight through as a book.  

Below, I review each of my favorite WordPress Plugins. Some are free and some are paid but almost all come with a free version so you can at least test them out.

As mentioned before, learning WordPress can come with a bit of a learning curve. Check out this FREE  tutorial to Blogging on WordPress [Course] to help you set up your account, add security, and learn the basics of how to use WordPress in detail.

Maintaining WordPress Plugins

Wordpress plugin maintenance

For the most part, WordPress plugins are easy to maintain. Simply upload, follow any start up directions, and go. But occasionally they will require updates.

I know WordPress makes it nice and easy to select all of the plugins that need updates at once and select ‘Update All’ but avoid doing this. On rare occasion an update will be incompatible with a theme and crash your page which is enough to make anyone’s heart drop.

If you update one plugin at a time, you will know which plugin is incompatible and you can simply remove that plugin. However, if you update them all at once you won’t know which one broke your site. 

You also want to keep an eye on your plugins and remove the ones you aren’t using. Outdated plugins often have old code which hackers can use to gain access to your site. Keeping plugins updated and deleting unused plugins can help limit your websites vulnerability.

Uploading Plugins to WordPress

If you decide to buy the pro version of a plugin, you will often have to manually download the plugin from the site of purchase. It sounds complicated but it’s pretty easy to do. 

After downloading the plugin, go back to WordPress and follow these directions:

  • Go  to ‘Plugins’ in WordPress and select ‘Add New’
  • At the top of that page click ‘Add New’ again (redundant, I know)
  • Select  ‘Upload Plugin’ at the top of the page
  • Upload the file you want and click ‘Activate’

After you activate the plugin, most will have simple directions for getting your new plugin setup and running. If you ever have any issues, go to the ‘Settings’ for that plugin and verify you don’t need an API (a special code from the plugin) for it to work.

Step 1

uploading wordpress plugins

Step 2

uploading wordpressplugin

Step 3

installing wordpress plugin

Step 4

Activating wordpress plugin

Pre-Loaded Plugins

Now that we have the boring stuff out of the way, let’s take a look at the best plugins for your blog. Click on the title to access the plugin. 

Unlike most plugins, activating Jetpack takes a few steps to activate because it works by bridging the gap between WordPress.com and WordPress.org – you actually need to sign up for a WordPress.com account and activate Jetpack using that login info.

Jetpack is a huge plugin with tons of features listed below:

If you are switching over from WordPress.com then Jetpack is definitely a plugin you will want. They have 3 different plans with the lowest being 3.50/month so it’s affordable.

However, on occasion, I have heard people complain Jetpack slows their sites down. So far I haven’t had any problems with it but, if my site starts to slow down I may look into turning some of the features off for awhile. If you want to read up more on Jetpack before deciding whether or not to install, head over to WP Superstars for an in depth analysis of Jetpack and all its features.

Akismet does exactly what it says it does- it protects your site from being spammed with comments. Spammers will use your page to try and place backlinks to their (sometimes) malicious products so this is a great plugin to have.

Don’t forget to activate it by getting the API key code though. This allows your website to share information with Akismet so they can identify and block spam. To get started, click on ‘Activate’ and follow the steps down the rabbit hole to create an account and link it to your page. Don’t forget to click ‘save’ once it auto-inserts the API- key code for you.

  • Hello Dolly [no link]

Hello Dolly is a waste of space. It gives you a different hello message or something every time you sign in and I found it completely pointless so I deleted it. I have enough cluttering up my plugins and using up my memory.

13 WordPress Plugins You Need

Yoast is the “Gold Standard” of SEO (search engine optimization) plugins. It is a great first step in setting yourself up to succeed long term with SEO. When you post a new blog, it will analyze how easy the post is to read and if help you have take the first steps in setting up SEO for the post.

There are both Free and paid versions but for beginners free is more than enough.

I don’t upgrade often but after several people praised this plugin, I upgraded and will definitely continue my subscription when it’s time to renew. 

Social Warfare is hands-down my favorite plugin. The free version is good but the paid version is AMAZING and it’s easily the best money I have spent on my blog. 

It has made social sharing and tweeting a snap and it can be set to display or hide your Pinterest image with a hover button (those are all individual plugins you would normally have to have and manage).  Click on the link to get a list of everything Social Warfare has to offer.

This is an important one. When you upload a picture to your page it can take up a lot of data and significantly slow down your site. However, if you compress your images you can often save over 50% of the data you were originally using.

I love this particular image optimization plug in because you get the first 500 optimizations free each month. If you are kind of late to the game and already have a lot of pictures on your page you can use the “bulk optimization” option to get all of your current pictures optimized.

Elementor free is more than enough but paid Elementor is amazing with all of the extra features for lists, videos, and included themes and page layouts. I love the drag and drop features which make publishing posts really easy.

You can watch a tutorial for how to use Elementor here. Fair warning, it’s long and meant for building a home page on a website which is more indepth so use the fast forward button. You can also drop in pre-set themes and modify it with your text and images.

If you have questions about Elementor, contact me and I’d be happy to help you out.

Broken Link Checker WordPress plugin

A broken link happens when a page moves or is inactive for any reason but your link is still pointing to it. The broken link will often end up causing a 404 error and can negatively impact your Google ranking. This plugin monitors your site to detect broken links, notifies you of them, and then gives you suggestions on how to fix them. A lifesaver!

Check out this article by Shout Me Loud for a full tutorial on how to use Broken Link Checker.

In fall of 2017, Google had everyone in a panic because their next update would essentially punish anyone with a pop-up on their page. Come to find out, this wasn’t technically true. They were punishing pop-ups that made for a bad user experience- especially on mobile. MOST pages with a pop-up on their page got pushed further down in the Google search results but those with a compliant pop-up did not.

Milo Tree is Google Compliant because it doesn’t take up an entire mobile screen. It’s small on both mobile and the computer and can easily be exited. You can use it to gain subscribers by connecting it to your email provider for email campaigns or use it for growing a following on a social network. Mine is set for my Pinterest account and I have noticed a bump in follower numbers since activating it on my page so for $9 a month it is definitely worth it.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) requires that anyone who places affiliate links on their site disclose to their readers they may make a commission off of the links within their post. The problem is, adding the same phrase before every article can be a pain in the you-know-what. Plus, if you manually add it, it will also show up in your post previews.

This plugin allows you to set your disclosure and automatically adds it before every post and it’s  not be visible in previews. It’s a very simple plugin but a must have.

An on-site contact form can seem outdated but people will look for ways to contact you and a contact form makes it simple. It also allows you to keep your direct email off of your site so bots can’t find it and start sending you spam (not fun). 

One of the best things you can do for your site is to have off-site backups. Vaultpress comes with Jetpack and automatically backs-up your site daily so that if it ever crashes you have a file copy of your website that’s within 24 hours old. You may lose a comment or two but not your entire site.

If you have Siteground then it comes with automatic caching which means it saves bits of information when someone visits your page in order to allow the page to load quicker the next time they visit.

However, if you don’t have Siteground, then this is a great plugin which will help improve your site’s speed and your visitors experience.

Pretty links does exactly what is sounds like- it makes your links look pretty.

Just to give you an idea of how it works: I promote Thrive Market on my other blog. When you promote Thrive Market, the link someone clicks will look something like “Thrvmrk.com/a379823480.”

Instead of a reader seeing that link pop-up, I can set the link to say “BloggingEnthusiast.com/ThriveMarket”. Much nicer and it helps your audience have a little more trust in the products you are promoting.

*Side note: Make sure the company you are promoting does not have an issue with link cloaking (for example, this is a big no-go for Amazon links and a big no no if you are posting affiliate links on Pinterest). 

Post Gopher is a new plugin but I love it so far. It allows you to place a button at either the top and/or bottom of the page to allow people to download a PDF version of your post with no extra effort from you.

I personalized the email my readers receive to be the first of my email welcome series. It’s a really simple way to collect more emails and it works great in this busy world we live in.

This plugin allows you to customize the header and footer of your site without touching code.  This is a great option for bloggers who feel intimidated by code and who don’t want to risk crashing their site (no judgements here- I’m still intimidated by code and can’t wait for the new Coding Course to come out by my favorite tech guru). 

Plugins & Your Reader's Experience

Hopefully you find the above plugins as helpful as I have. They have been indispensable when it comes to providing a great reader experience when people visit my blog.

Were all of your favorite plugins mentioned? Let me know if there’s a plugin you have used and loved that you would add to the list.

New to blogging and all of the terminology and lingo? Check out this awesome new reference called Blogcabulary Plus. It’s great for new to intermediate bloggers and can be read all at once or used as a reference guide to help you get used to this thing called blogging.