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10 “Gotta Have” Wordpress Plugins for Your Blog.

One of the quickest ways to make blogging easier on yourself is to use Wordpress plugins. From automating tasks like backing up your blog articles to guarding your site from spam, plugins enhance your website and help you maintain a top notch blog. Luckily for us all, Wordpress makes installing and using plugins as simple as a few button clicks.

There are literally thousands of plugins available, but the ones I've listed are ones I use over and over for many reasons. Some are optional depending on your level of blogging or code expertise (and will be noted in the descriptions below), but most of these plugins can be used on any blog to immediately improve things. If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions on plugins please leave me a comment below!

1. Akismet:

   Akismet is a spam control plugin. Installed by default on all Wordpress blogs, Akismet shouldn't even be a question. It's ridiculously accurate in separating spam from real comments and it just works.

2. All in One SEO Pack:

   If you're looking to increase the search engine friendliness of your site, start with this plugin. Coupled with some smart markup (read: HTML) and decent content, your blog will start seeing the love it deserves from Google, Bing, and other search engines. There are some great customization options available, too.

3. Exec-PHP:

   In a nutshell, this Wordpress plugin lets you add PHP code inside of posts. If you're even slightly tech-minded, or if you want to add more functionality to your posts, the Exec-PHP plugin is a no brainer. If you don't plan on using PHP I wouldn't worry about this plugin; but if you do this is a must have.

4. FD Feedburner Plugin:

   Get your RSS feed out there with more panache with a Feedburner account (easily logged into with your iGoogle account). This plugin replaces the default feed and uses the Feedburner feed instead. Once you've set up your Feedburner account you can customize it with a ton of options that will help spread your blog around and gather interest to your site.

5. Google Analytics for WordPress:

   This plugin automagically puts your Google Analytics code on each page/post as appropriate. It's a great way to get some basic stats and easily integrates with your website. There are plenty of free analytics packages out there, but this one is really simple to get started with and monitor.

6. Google XML Sitemaps:

   When you update your blog this plugin makes all the necessary updates so Google can parse your site more easily. Highly recommended, especially in conjunction with the "All in One SEO Pack" above!

7. Permalinks Moved Permanently:

   If you ever rethink how you've categorized posts or decide to update posts on the back-end, there's a good chance that you'll eventually run into a problem with broken permalinks. This plugin is a great go-between that helps you out while you're finding the broken links because it tries to find the update permalink and send them to the right page, all seamlessly.

8. PS Disable Auto Formatting:

   The PS Disable Auto Formatting plugin lets you get rid of the automated formatting that exists in Wordpress posts. Take control of your blog's posts and sculpt the markup as you wish. There are a few minor things to update and/or remember when using this one, but if you want to control your HTML in a post it's a great plugin to have.

9. WordPress Database Backup:

   Don't get caught with your pants down! If your Wordpress ever gets corrupted or if you get hacked, make sure you have a backup with this plugin. It can be configured to automatically backup your content so you can repair if/when necessary.

10. Wordpress Gravatars:

    So you've read my Gravatar post and want to hook up your blog readers, have you? Just install the Wordpress Gravatars plugin and you'll be on your way. This plugin makes it really easy to have your commenters feel like a part of the blog.

One more thing to note: To make sure your Wordpress blog runs as efficiently as possible, be careful how many plugins you install and use. Too many plugins can actually slow things down on your website.