I know I check out the plugins that other people are using on their blogs. So here are a list of the ones that I find useful. If you see one that I’m using but can’t find it on the list, please drop me an email. I am happy to share!
Genesis Framework with Pretty Little Thing Child Theme: StudioPress Theme for WordPress (affiliate links)
Aweber – this is what I use to write my email newsletter and create the sign up boxes for them. (affiliate link)
Reply Me – automatically sends an email when you reply to a readers’ comment on your blog
CommentLuv – allows your readers to share their latest blog post when they leave a comment
G.A.S.P. – this is an anti-spam plugin that asks your readers to check a box to say they are not a spambot
Editorial Calendar – great for planning posts and shuffling them around
Broken Link Checker – regularly checks the links on your blog and lets you know if any of them are no longer working
WP Super Cache – This helps your blog load quicker for your readers
Contextual Related Posts – adds a list of related posts at the bottom of your post that relate to the content (Note: I have this turned off at the moment – it was making the blog slower)
LinkWithin – also available for Blogger blogs, this adds a row of related posts with pictures at the bottom of each post
nRelate Related Content – I use this one to add the row of elated blog posts below each post now
Print Friendly – adds a button that readers can click to get a printer friendly version of your posts – great for tutorials
AddThis – also available for Blogger blogs, this one allows your readers to easily share your posts on Twitter, Facebook and many more.
Update: the newest AddThis Layers plugin has lots of options including related posts, sharing buttons, and analytics.
Note: I now use DiggDigg for the buttons instead because it has Pinterest and Buffer as well.
WP Touch – creates a phone friendly version of your blog for readers who access via their smart phones
WP Facebook Open Graph Protocol – helps to get your posts looking right when you share them to Facebook
BackupBuddy – for backing up my entire blog
WP Bannerize – for rotating affiliate banners at the bottom of my screen
Scroll Triggered Boxes – for the little newsletter box that pops up at the bottom corner of my blog
Simple Image Link – for adding an image with a link to my sidebar – like a Featured Post
