It seems as if there is no limit to the amount of WordPress plugins available these days – if you need something for your website, there’s a plugin for that! WordPress plugins have almost become the new appstore for cell phone users, with various plugins available for your website online.

Plugins help you perform a variety of functions – from analyzing the SEO of your content, to preventing spammers from commenting on your blog, and creating automatic call to action landing pages. Some of them are incredibly useful and can completely transform the look and ease of access of your site, while others on the other hand are completely useless and can actually harm your site rather than help you. That being said, let’s take a look at seven must-have WordPress plugins to use for your website.

1. Akismet

Many bloggers often comment on other blogs in the hopes that they will boost their visibility and gain more website followers. Some even go as far as utilizing or creating bots that automate the commenting process and leave you spammy comments on your website. Thanks to Akismet by Matt Mullenweg (who also founded WordPress) and 9 other top web developers you can now filter out and limit the comments that are placed on your blog. Akismet automatically runs each comment through its system on the plugin and removes spammy comments.

2. Contact Form 7

This is a must have plugin for your WordPress site. This specific contact form is one of the best and most reliable available of all WordPress plugins. You can create a “Contact Us” button on your navigation bar, or fit the contact form virtually anywhere on your website in order to gain invaluable feedback form your clients. Use Contact Form 7 to answer any questions, receive problems and complaints as well as positive feedback, or to book appointments and gigs. It’s incredibly simple and easy to use on any website – try it out to keep an open dialogue with your clients.

3. Google Analyticator

Google Analytics will become your best friend when it comes to marketing and trying to grow your website, if it isn’t already. This handy little plugin allows you to check vital data from Google Analytics right from your dashboard on WordPress. No more switching between tabs or windows and logging in to your Google account – now you can have everything you need to know right there included in your WordPress dashboard. Google Analytics gives you a great indication of how well your content is reaching its audience – if you are using the right keywords and providing content that adds value to your audience you will likely see the results you’re hoping for on Google Analytics.

4. Shareaholic

Another incredibly simple yet effective plugin for WordPress – Shareaholic allows all of your posts and website information to be shared in just a click. Shareaholic makes building your website easy. WIth various functions and elements that can be customized, you can really make the social sharing buttons work in the most effective and attractive way possible for your website. This is definitely a handy tool to have for both the experienced WordPress developer as well as the rookie having a go at making his or her own website. Try it out for a clean, easy to use social sharing bar that can be added to any of your website’s pages.

5. Nrelate Related Content Widget

If you find yourself reading through several blog posts and pages on a website and scroll down to the bottom, constantly clicking through article after article of interesting, related content – it’s most likely die to a content widget. Content widgets work by suggesting content for the reader to look at next once they scroll to the bottom and read the current article. It’s a great situation for everyone involved – the visitor of your website gets more information, and from the perspective of a website owner, they are much more plugged in and begin to establish a loyalty to your site and often click to other pages which increase conversion rates and boosts sales. Expert web designers argue that nrlate is one of the top wordpress plugins to use for related content. Nrelate is straightforward, clean and really entices readers to keep going.

6. Instagram Image Gallery

Having a website and a strong grip on social media is a must in today’s world. Now you can connect them by displaying your favorite photos from instagram right on your website. As it’s said: a picture’s worth a thousand words – why not show your clients rather than tell them. This is particularly effective and strategic when clothing designers, photographers, online merchants, or anything else that can be expressed in a photograph use the instagram gallery feed in order to show off their products and services.

7. Easy Pricing Tables

Instead of going through a complicated process of making your own table, now you can imbed one that looks great and professional on any of your pages on your website. The WordPress plugin, Easy Pricing Tables, is incredibly easy to use as the name implies. You can turn a boring price presentation into something that grabs attention. You are much more likely to pull in customers when they see all of the available plans and prices available to them – present it in a way that is clear and drives in sales.

Bottom Line

As far as building your website and expanding your business, these are seven of the most important plugins for your WordPress you can use. If you are looking to boost sales and increase the aesthetic appeal of your site, while getting customers to stay longer looking through your content – these are 7 sure fire ways to ensure this. Go ahead and enable these plugins on your website for an extra boost above the competition. These 7 plugins will set your website apart and allow you to add unique details about your business that separates it from others. Get on WordPress and try out these web development plugins!