This is a list of WordPress Plugins that currently integrate beautifully with our custom WordPress Framework. Over the last 2 years we’ve developed a platform allowing us to build responsive websites more quickly than our competitors. Plugins play a big role in getting the functionality right and these plugins are perfect for many of our projects. Our standard, hand selected WordPress plugins have been chosen through years of dedicated testing and “re-configuration”.
These are the best, essential WordPress Plugins for businesses. They’ve all been extensively tested by us and have passed a rigorous demand of integrated concepts using our custom WordPress Framework.
Gravity Forms
Quickly build and design your WordPress forms using the form editor from Gravity Forms. Select your fields, configure your options, and easily embed forms on your WordPress powered site using the built in tools.
Create a Form
Creating a form is fairly straightforward. (However) there are several variations and if your form is going to be complex (which it can be with Gravity) it will take time to get it right.
See Forms on Your Website
If you’re checking on how your forms are performing you can do it (and easily). These forms give you the ability to see every entry and percentages of submissions.
Notifications
With Gravity you can set up dynamic notifications which really help in the sales process.
WordPress SEO
Another essential WordPress plugin. The WordPress SEO Plugin is a powerful way to make sure Google and other search engines correctly see the content on your site. Will it solve all of your issues? No. But… if you have a well developed framework or theme this will be the final element to tie everything together.
- Optimize your WordPress site with just one plugin
The most complete SEO plugin for WordPress available today offers you everything you need to optimize your site. - Content analysis functionality
Write better content with the built-in content analysis and easily optimize your sites titles and descriptions with the snippet preview. - Automatically generate XML Sitemaps
And many more technical improvements to your site that you don’t even have to look at.
Respondo Shortcodes
You haven’t heard of this one and you won’t find it available online (sorry). This is our custom shortcode plugin built by us and modified and used on every site we build. Every element on our sites has been custom built via twitter bootstrap and is styled differently for nearly every project. It’s a tool that allows our customers to easily modify nearly every element of content portions and widget areas of their site. There has never been anything we’ve developed that has saved more time or made our process more proficient than our Framework and this Respondo Shortcode plugin.
A Partial List of Elements Created with the Respondo Shortcodes
How to Enter Data for a Shortcode (Example)
Tiny MCE
The Tiny MCE options will give you a “WYSIWYG” editor. Now, there several plugin options to use HOWEVER, Spark Logix Studios doesn’t use any of them as we’ve built Tiny MCE into our framework. However, if you’re not using the Spark Logix Studios Framework to develop your website you will most certainly want to find a reliable Tiny MCE WordPress plugin.
Here’s what a Few Tiny MCE Elements Look Like in our Custom WordPress Framework
Cache Plugin
A caching plugin is a must for most WordPress sites. The truth is (we don’t use a caching plugin) WHAT? Why not? We host our websites with a company called WP Engine. WP Engine has their own caching system that is second to none. Most of our clients choose to host directly through us (we handle everything with WP Engine). However, if you’re not with WP Engine, I would strongly suggest you move… NOW! But if you’re not going to, I’d suggesting getting a solid Cache Plugin. W3 Total Cache and WP Super Cache should be at the top of your list.
Non Essential Plugins
*** Yet Very Important ***
These are only “non essential” because you may not need them on every site. However, depending on the need these are the best you can get!
WooCommerce
If you need eCommerce, the best choice is WooCommerce. Over several years of fighting with WordPress eCommerce plugins we’ve finally found the very best (or at least it has evolved to become the best) and we’ve been using it for quite some time now. It’s been tested and works as intended over and over again. Like WordPress, WooCommerce has a huge group of people building extensions to expand the plugin’s usefulness. There are very few things that Woo can’t do and for this reason, we (at times) build on Magento. However, these reasons effect about 1% of all eCommerce businesses. WooCommerce is simply the best eCommerce option for 99% of eCommerce businesses.
Product View
Cart Widget
Cart Details (before checkout)
Controlling the Product Details
MyMail Newsletter Plugin
A newsletter is almost a must when it comes to good marketing technique. The MyMail newsletter plugin is surprisingly powerful and it works (really well). With this plugin you can create an auto-responder or a standard newsletter. The way we use it for some of our client’s marketing projects is to create something the target audience wants and require them to sign up to get it. This plugin integrates right in WordPress so you don’t have to learn another platform, this saves time (sometimes a lot of it).
Features (from the Author)
- Track Opens, Clicks, Unsubscriptions and Bounces
- Track Countries and Cities
- Schedule your Campaigns
- Auto responders
- Use dynamic and custom Tags (placeholders)
- Webversion for each Newsletter
- embed Newsletter with Shortcodes
- Forward via email
- Share with Social Media services
- Unlimited subscription forms
- Sidebar Widgets
- Single or Double-Opt-in support
- WYSIWYG Editor with code view
- Unlimited Color Variations
- Background Image support
- Quick Preview
- Email test with IsNotSpam.com support
- Revisions support (native)
- Multi language Support (English and German included)
- SMTP support
- Gmail support
- DomainKeys Identified Mail Support
- Import and Export for Subscribers
- Retina support
EventON
If you need events on your site the EventON plugin is clean and does the trick (nicely too). The shortcode options make this plugin a fantastic addition as it doesn’t rely on just a widget (this means it can be added virtually anywhere on your website). It not only looks good but it’s nicely editable (if you know a little CSS) and… it’s responsive. Another nice feature is the author has add-ons which I think is great. This means the author is actively involved in making the Event Plugin more useful as technologies evolve.
Events Used in Sidebar
Color Organize the Events
Easy Event Settings Configuration
These aren’t the only ones… we’ll be adding more.
Comment and let us know your favorite, “essential” WordPress plugins?
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