12 Essential WordPress Plugins … and How to Properly Use Them

This is part 5 in our 6 part series on Designing your Blog or Website in WordPress.

In this tutorial I share with you my 12 Essential WordPress Plugins. These are plugins that I install on all of my sites. I show you the what they are … and how to properly set them up on your site.

The 12 plugins that I feel are essential to all sites are:

1. Akismet to control SPAM
2. All in One Favicon to easily add a favicon to your site
3. Contact Form 7 to add a simple contact form
4. Floating Social Bar to add social follow buttons
5. Genesis Simple Hooks to insert our footer links … and lots of other possibilities!
6. W3 Total Cache to keep our site functioning its best!
7. WordPress SEO by Yoast to extend Genesis SEO
8. WP Google Font to ensure our fonts look amazing on all computers and devices
9. WP Post Signature to automatically insert a signature to each post
10. Genesis eNews Extended to add a subscribe button to your sidebar
11. Genesis Featured Widget Amplified to create AWESOME homepage designs
12. Simple Social Icons to add social share buttons

PLUS … I also show you where I go for even more plugins to add AMAZING functionality to your site. Want to add an online store? Or a chat area? Need to schedule appointments through your site or add membership? I share with you in this video my GOTO source extra functionality plugins.

Check out this video to learn about my 12 Essential WordPress plugins … and how to properly use them: