What Is A WordPress Plugin? WordPress powers over 40% of websites globally. While the core platform offers extensive functionality, businesses often need additional features. This is where plugins come in – but what exactly is a WordPress plugin? A WordPress plugin is third-party software that extends your website’s capabilities without requiring coding knowledge. For Northern Irish and UK businesses, plugins offer cost-effective solutions to add sophisticated website functionality.

Some of the most popular features offered by plugins include securely handling e-commerce transactions, boosting search rankings, managing mailing lists, and configuring specific types of websites such as wikis, forums, or private portals. With WordPress now powering over 40% of all websites worldwide, plugins have become indispensable parts of millions of sites. Over 55,000 free WordPress plugins are available in the official directory alone, and the average WordPress site uses at least five plugins to extend functionality.

“At ProfileTree, we regularly see Belfast businesses struggling with plugin overload,” says Ciaran Connolly, Director of ProfileTree. The key is selecting quality plugins that align with your business goals rather than installing dozens of options that slow your site down. At their core, WordPress plugins are pieces of software that extend the capabilities of a WordPress site. They allow site owners to easily add new features like contact forms, e-commerce shops, forums, membership sites, and more.

Technically, plugins are PHP scripts that hook into WordPress. When installed and activated, they register their own functionality, which users can access via the WordPress dashboard and front-end site. This allows plugins to integrate tightly with core WordPress functions like templates, menus, widgets, etc. Plugins focus on specific functionality compared to WordPress themes, which control the overall design and front-end layout. While there is some overlap, themes handle presentation, while plugins handle functionality. Most WordPress sites use both themes and plugins to create the desired user experience.

How Do I Use A Plugin in WordPress?

WordPress plugins can be free or paid. Many also operate using a “freemium” system, where the basic package is offered for free, but users who want more advanced features must purchase the full version.

After you’ve installed each plugin, you will use it slightly differently because different companies develop them. However, accessing them does not change. Each plugin you have installed on your site will appear on the left-hand side of your admin dashboard. Let’s look at how to add a plugin to your WordPress site.

Installing a Plugin

Most WordPress plugins can be installed in just a few clicks through their dashboard’s “Plugins” menu.

Through this menu, users can search through the thousands of available plugins or sort them by category. They can also use the plugins’ user ratings and number of downloads to find the most reliable options.

Many plugins require users to complete a setup procedure, typically organised into a convenient walkthrough. If a user is unhappy with a plugin they’ve downloaded, removing it is as easy as installing it: they just click a button in the Plugin menu.

This easy installation and management is why WordPress has become so popular, as maintaining a powerful website doesn’t require a programming background. Many plugins allow users to install them manually, but this is considerably more difficult and only appropriate for those knowledgeable about web development.

What do WordPress Plugins do?

Plugins could be broadly divided into two categories: those that add features for the website’s visitors and those that are available only to the site’s administrator through the dashboard. Of course, many plugins fit at least partially into both of these categories.

Every one of WordPress’s thousands of plugins is unique, but certain types are broadly popular across many different types of websites. Some of the most popular types of plugins include those for e-commerce, search engine optimisation, and site configuration.

Some of the most popular plugins have been downloaded and deployed thousands of times and power many highly-ranking websites.

The breadth of available WordPress plugins is remarkable. Here’s what they can add to your site:

• Contact forms and lead generation tools
• Shopping carts and e-commerce functionality
• User login areas and membership sites
• Forums and social features
• Review systems, ratings and voting
• Sliders, galleries, portfolios and other media
• SEO and marketing tools like sitemaps and analytics
• Security features like firewalls and backups
• Site speed optimisations and performance tools
• Form builders, event calendars, job boards, wikis, and so much more!

For UK and Irish businesses, we’ve seen particular success with plugins that support GDPR compliance, local SEO, and region-specific payment gateways that process GBP and Euro transactions.

The most popular categories of free WordPress plugins include:

• SEO – like Yoast SEO and All in One SEO Pack
• Security – Wordfence Security, iThemes Security, Sucuri
• Contact forms – Contact Form 7, Ninja Forms, Gravity Forms
• eCommerce – WooCommerce, Easy Digital Downloads
• Performance – WP Rocket, WP Fastest Cache
• Social media – Social Pug, Social Share Buttons

So, if you want to add a particular feature or functionality to your WordPress site, chances are there is a plugin available. The wide selection gives businesses freedom to customise their sites.

How Do Plugins Work?

Under the hood, WordPress plugins contain PHP code that hooks into WordPress using defined methods. These integration points allow the plugins to tap into core features and data, including:

• wp_enqueue_script – Allows loading additional JavaScript files
• admin_menu – Adds menu items to the WordPress admin dashboard
• wp_head and wp_footer – Inserts code into the head and footer sections
• template_redirect – Intercepts page loading to execute code
• widgets_init – Registers sidebar widgets
• The_content – Filters post and page content
• wp_insert_post – Triggers when new content is published
• wp_mail – Hooks into email notifications and newsletters

When the plugin files are uploaded to the /wp-content/plugins folder on a WordPress site, they register their hook functions. The hooks then fire as WordPress loads pages and executes tasks, allowing the plugin code to run.

This tight integration with core WordPress functions enables plugins to provide deep customisations and advanced functionality. At the same time, plugins’ modular nature helps keep WordPress sites running smoothly and avoids conflicts.

Pros and Cons of Using Plugins

Plugins provide an easy way to enhance your WordPress site without coding everything from scratch. However, they also come with some potential downsides.

Benefits of Using Plugins

• Extend functionality quickly – add complex features to your site with just a few clicks.
• Offload development – rather than building features yourself, leverage plugins created by experts.
• Open-source libraries – take advantage of code contributions from the WordPress community.
• Modularity – keep site bloat under control by only activating the plugins you need.
• Ease of use – most plugins provide an intuitive dashboard and settings after installation.
• Support – popular paid plugins include technical support from the developers.
• Saves time and money – reduces the need for custom development.

Potential Drawbacks

• Security risks – compromised plugins are a common malware vector for WordPress sites.
• Bloat – too many plugins can slow your site’s speed and performance.
• Compatibility issues – conflicts between plugins can break your site.
• Lack of support – Free plugins often have limited support channels.
• Upgrade failures – maintaining and updating plugins takes continued effort.
• Cost – many advanced plugins require paid licenses or subscriptions.

Types of WordPress Plugins

There are many different types of WordPress plugins available, each designed to add a specific feature or functionality to your WordPress website. Some of the most common types of WordPress plugins include:

• SEO plugins: These plugins help to improve the search engine optimisation (SEO) of your website, making it more likely to rank higher in search engine results pages (SERPs).
• Security plugins: These plugins help to protect your website from security threats, such as malware, hacking, and brute-force attacks.
• Performance plugins: These plugins help to improve the speed and performance of your website.
• E-commerce plugins: These plugins allow you to add e-commerce functionality to your website so that you can sell products and services online.
• Social media plugins: These plugins make it easy to integrate social media with your website so that you can share your content with your followers and encourage them to engage with your website.
• Contact form plugins: These plugins allow you to add contact forms to your website so that visitors can easily get in touch with you.
• Gallery plugins: These plugins allow you to create and manage galleries of images and videos on your website.
• Backup plugins: These plugins allow you to create backups of your WordPress website so that you can restore it in the event of a problem.

Many businesses in Belfast and across Northern Ireland struggle with selecting the right plugins. At ProfileTree, we evaluate which combination will best serve your specific business needs while maintaining site performance.

Most Popular and Useful WordPress Plugins for Different Types of Websites

Some of the most popular and useful WordPress plugins for different types of websites include:

• Blog websites: Yoast SEO, Akismet Anti-Spam, Jetpack, WP Rocket, and Smush Image Compression and Optimisation.
• E-commerce websites: WooCommerce, Stripe, PayPal, and Jetpack Boost.
• Business websites: Yoast SEO, WPForms, Jetpack, WP Rocket, and Smush Image Compression and Optimisation.
• Portfolio websites: Envira Gallery, Essential Grid Gallery, and Soliloquy Slider.
• Membership websites: Memberful, Restrict Content Pro, and Paid Memberships Pro.

How to Choose, Install, and Use WordPress Plugins

To choose a WordPress plugin, you can browse the WordPress Plugin Directory or search for plugins by keyword. When choosing a plugin, be sure to read the reviews and description carefully to make sure that it is compatible with your WordPress version and that it has the features that you need.

To install a WordPress plugin, go to the Plugins page in your WordPress dashboard and click on the “Add New” button. Then, search for the plugin that you want to install and click on the “Install Now” button. Once the plugin is installed, you must activate it before using it.

To use a WordPress plugin, go to the Settings page in your WordPress dashboard and click on the plugin that you want to configure. Then, follow the instructions on the page to configure the plugin.

Latest Statistics and Facts about WordPress Plugins

• As of October 2023, there are over 60,000 free WordPress plugins available in the WordPress Plugin Directory.
• Over 50% of all WordPress websites use at least one plugin.
• The most popular WordPress plugin is Yoast SEO, which is used by over 11 million websites.
• The most popular type of WordPress plugin is SEO plugins, followed by security plugins and performance plugins.

Finding and Evaluating Plugins

With over 55,000 free plugins alone, how do you find the best ones for your needs? Here are some tips for selecting quality plugins:

• Check user ratings and reviews – see what other users are saying. Look for plugins with 4+ star ratings.
• Ensure regular updates – choose plugins that are actively maintained and updated. Watch out for outdated plugins.
• Consider downloads and installations – popular plugins are safer and more reliable.
• Verify compatibility – make sure the plugin works with your current WordPress version.
• Check developer reputation – favour plugins from known, reputable developers.
• Evaluate security – examine the code, if possible, to spot any vulnerabilities.
• Consider performance impact – lightweight plugins are best, especially if you use many.
• Check support availability – make sure someone can help if you need assistance.
• Read the documentation – proper documentation indicates quality.
• Look for transparency – clearly labelled settings, changelog, roadmap, etc.

“We’ve seen many Belfast businesses face website crashes after installing poorly-coded plugins,” notes Ciaran Connolly. “Before adding any plugin to a business website, we recommend testing it thoroughly on a staging site first.”

A good practice is to limit plugins to essentials, starting with the basics like security, performance, SEO, and your must-have features. You can always add more later on. Avoid plugins that have few installations, poor reviews, or haven’t been updated in the past six months.

Installing and Activating Plugins

Once you’ve found a plugin you’d like to use, installing it on your WordPress site is simple:

1. Download the plugin .zip file from the developer site.
2. In your WordPress dashboard, go to Plugins > Add New.
3. Click Upload Plugin and select the .zip file you downloaded.
4. Click Install Now to upload and install the plugin.
5. After installation completes, click Activate to enable the plugin.
6. Usually, the plugin will display new menu items in your dashboard for its settings and features.
7. Follow any additional configuration steps suggested by the plugin.
8. Test the plugin functionality on the front end of your site.

Start with essential plugins and add more as needed. Too many active plugins can slow down your site and create security vulnerabilities.

Managing Plugins

Installing plugins is fast and easy, but managing them over time takes more effort:

• Keep plugins updated: Check the WordPress dashboard periodically for plugin updates. These often contain important security fixes and new features.
• Disable unused plugins: Don’t keep plugins active if you aren’t using them. Too many active plugins can impact performance.
• Watch for conflicts: If your site breaks after installing a new plugin, try disabling plugins individually to isolate the conflict.
• Fix problematic plugins: If a plugin is causing issues, try reconfiguring its settings or contact support. Otherwise, uninstall it.
• Remove abandoned plugins: Don’t use plugins that haven’t been updated in over a year, as these can become security risks.
• Backup before making major changes: Use a plugin like UpdraftPlus to back up your site before installing or updating multiple plugins.
• Learn the basics of PHP: Understanding some plugin code can help troubleshoot issues.

For businesses across Northern Ireland and the UK, ProfileTree offers WordPress maintenance services that handle plugin updates, security monitoring, and performance optimisation so you can focus on running your business. With a strategic approach, plugins can extend WordPress in valuable ways without compromising site health and performance.

Essential Plugins to Start With

Here are 5-10 essential free plugins that add important functionality for building a solid WordPress site:

1. Yoast SEO – optimise your site for search engines.
2. WP Rocket – speed up your site with caching and other performance optimisations.
3. Sucuri Security – harden site security and get alerts about threats.
4. MonsterInsights – connect Google Analytics to track site traffic and user behaviour.
5. UpdraftPlus – back up your site and database in case of emergencies.
6. Akismet – block comment spam.
7. Broken Link Checker – find and fix broken links on your site.
8. WPForms Lite – easily creates contact forms and surveys with drag-and-drop.
9. Smush – compress images to improve page speeds.
10. Classic Editor – roll back to the old WordPress editor if needed.

This covers some of the most useful tools for optimising performance, boosting SEO, handling security, fixing errors, backing up your site, and integrating contact forms without having to dive into advanced functionality right away.

Best WordPress Plugins

It’s only natural when you’re considering WordPress plugins to ask yourself which ones are best. Of course, to some extent, this depends on what you’re hoping to achieve. After all, everyone is different.

First up, we’ll look at three of the most commonly used plugins by major brands. After that, we’ll look a bit more broadly at some of your best options for different applications of WordPress plugins.

WooCommerce

WooCommerce can be used to set up an online shop offering virtually any sort of item.

After moving through the Setup Wizard and registering with one or more payment services, users can easily create items, sort them into categories for easier browsing, set prices, and add photos and product descriptions. For UK and Irish retailers, WooCommerce supports region-specific tax calculations, Royal Mail shipping integration, and both pound and euro currencies, making it ideal for businesses serving the local market.

While Stripe and PayPal are the most popular payment services, several more are available, allowing users to accept orders in all sorts of international currencies. A convenient button will appear in the Dashboard’s toolbar that allows shop owners to manage their sales and active orders, and they can withdraw funds from whichever payment services they accept at any time they’d like.

Though the plugin itself doesn’t require an SSL certificate, virtually all of its payment services do because they handle sensitive data; most web hosting services offer SSL certificates for free, and they are easy to acquire otherwise.

WooCommerce is available as a “freemium” plugin; most of its features are available for free, but certain ones require a subscription, including the option to sell appointment time slots.

Yoast

Yoast is a plugin designed to help users monitor their blog posts’ search engine optimisation potential.

With easy post, users can enter keywords and see how often they’re used, have the plugin analyse its readability score, check for duplicate content, add a title and meta description, and preview how it will look in Google and social media pages.

Users can also take more general actions to boost their site’s SEO performance, such as creating an XML sitemap and maintaining the site’s permalink URLs are still functional. The plugin is updated every two weeks to keep pace with the latest Google algorithm.

Yoast is also available as a freemium plugin. The full version costs $89 per year and includes support for more keywords per article, a feature to create redirects for deleted pages, access to 24/7 customer support, and a complete lack of advertisements.

MailChimp

MailChimp is an email management system that allows users to maintain a mailing list; while it’s most often used for marketing, many organisations also depend on MailChimp for newsletters and other internal communication.

Launched in 2001, MailChimp predates WordPress by about twelve years, but it has released a WordPress plugin to make it easily accessible. For Belfast businesses and organisations across the UK, MailChimp offers GDPR-compliant subscription forms and EU data storage options that help meet local compliance requirements.

Like many popular plugins, MailChimp is “freemium,” with its most advanced features reserved for paying customers.

However, even the free service is far more than a simple mail manager, and it offers many impressive features, such as the option to automate messages and a detailed analysis of how many people unsubscribe with each mailing or how much traffic the mailings drive to your site.

Data Backup

One unfortunate reality of running a website is that sometimes things go wrong. Depending on where your site is hosted, it’s pretty common for data to get lost. This can happen due to server issues or human error.

To avoid this, here are some of WordPress’s best data backup plugins.

• Duplicator – The free version makes a backup copy of a website but does not store it in the cloud. The premium paid version makes the backup and automatically sends it to cloud storage. It starts at $39 per year for up to three websites for personal use.
• Backup Buddy—For $80 per year, it creates an automatic scheduled backup of a website that is stored securely in the cloud.
• Vault Press – Makes and stores automatic website backups for $9 per month or $99 per year.

At ProfileTree, we’ve helped numerous Belfast businesses recover from data loss situations. Our WordPress support services include regular backups and disaster recovery planning to protect your business website investment.

Website Security

There are also plenty of people out there who will try to breach your data deliberately. This can cause several business problems. At best, you might suffer reputational damage. You might even be liable for a hefty GDPR fine. UK and Irish businesses face strict GDPR requirements, with potential penalties of up to £17.5 million or 4% of annual global turnover. Website security plugins are an essential protection layer.

You help keep yourself and your users protected; consider using one of the following plugins:

• Login LockDown—This free plugin stops repeated login attempts from a particular IP address after a certain number of failed attempts. This prevents a brute-force attack to gain unauthorised access to the website administration.
• Wordfence—This security plugin comes in a free version and a paid premium version for $4.92 per month. It has a firewall, helps stop brute-force attacks, and scans a website for malware. The premium version allows country IP blocking, scheduling malware scans, and password auditing and includes premium customer support.
• iThemes Security—This security plugin has a free version and a paid pro version, which starts at $80 per year for WP bloggers. The paid pro version has 30 more security features than the free version.

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

SEO is one of the most important elements of website management, but it’s also one of the most widely misunderstood. It’s true that SEO requires a broad range of skills, which can make things difficult.

Plenty of SEO plugins for WordPress are available to make your life easier.

• All in One SEO Pack—This plugin optimises a WordPress website for SEO. It is available in a free version and a paid Pro version for $79 per year.

• SEO Ultimate—The free version of this plugin has more than twenty modules and hundreds of features. The SEO Ultimate+ paid version, which costs $49 per year, includes technical support and added features.

Local SEO is crucial for businesses in Northern Ireland, Ireland, and the UK. Plugins like Yoast SEO and All in One SEO Pack can help optimise for region-specific searches and improve visibility in local Google results.

Website Coding and Management Tools

Of course, many website owners aren’t technical geniuses. Gone are the days when you had to have an in-depth knowledge of web development. WordPress plugins have made it easy for anyone to implement advanced features on their site.

• Display Widgets—This free plugin allows a webmaster to choose which pages on the website to hide or display widgets.
• List Category Posts – This free plugin organises posts by categories.
• Raw HTML Snippets – This free plugin creates a library of various raw HTML code that adds easily to a WordPress website by using an abbreviated short code snippet.

What is a WordPress Plugin? An Unmissable Opportunity!

WordPress is an incredibly popular way to manage websites, owing to its simplicity and ease of use. One of its other top-selling points is the ability to add additional features from third parties using WordPress plugins easily.

Even better, the WordPress API is open source, so you can use a steady stream of amazing new plugins to improve your site. Following this guide, you can find, install, and make the most of plugins on your site to meet your specific needs.

ProfileTree specialises in WordPress development and plugin customisation for businesses across Belfast, Northern Ireland, Ireland, and the UK. Our team can help select, configure, and optimise the right plugins for your business website, ensuring security, performance, and functionality work together seamlessly. Contact us today to discuss how we can enhance your WordPress website with the perfect plugin strategy.

FAQ

• What is the difference between a free and a premium plugin?

Free WordPress plugins can be downloaded from the WordPress Plugin Directory. Premium plugins, which often offer more features and functionality than free plugins, can be purchased from third-party developers.

• How do I keep my WordPress plugins up to date?

To keep your WordPress plugins up to date, go to the Plugins page in your WordPress dashboard and click on the “Update Available” button. Then, click the “Update Now” button next to each plugin you want to update.

• How do I troubleshoot a WordPress plugin?

If you are having problems with a WordPress plugin, the first thing you should do is disable it and see if the problem resolves itself. If the situation resolves itself, then you know that the plugin is the cause of the problem.

If you need help troubleshooting a WordPress plugin, you can contact the plugin’s developer or search for help online. Or reach out to our team of WordPress experts at ProfileTree, and we can help with any plugin requirements you have.

Conclusion

WordPress plugins represent one of the most cost-effective ways to transform your basic website into a sophisticated business platform. The sheer variety available means you can add e-commerce functionality, improve search rankings, strengthen security, and create engaging user experiences without custom development costs.

However, this abundance creates challenges – selecting the wrong plugins can slow your site, create security vulnerabilities, or cause costly conflicts. Many business owners find themselves overwhelmed by the technical aspects of plugin evaluation, installation, and ongoing maintenance. Success with WordPress plugins requires strategic thinking and technical expertise to achieve the best results.

Plugin selection involves additional considerations beyond basic functionality for businesses operating in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and across the UK. GDPR compliance requirements mean your plugins must handle user data according to strict European regulations, with potential fines reaching millions for non-compliance. Local SEO plugins become crucial for competing in regional search results.

In contrast, e-commerce plugins must support GBP and Euro currencies, UK-specific payment gateways, and shipping providers. Tax calculation plugins must account for VAT rates and regional variations that differ from international standards. These local requirements make the plugin strategy more complex but essential for business success in the UK market.

Ready to Elevate Your Business to A New Soar?

At ProfileTree, we’ve spent years helping businesses across Northern Ireland and the UK navigate WordPress plugin challenges successfully. Our team understands the technical requirements and local business needs that shape effective plugin strategies for companies in our region. We handle everything from initial plugin selection and security auditing to ongoing maintenance and performance optimisation, allowing you to focus on running your business.

Whether you need SEO plugins to dominate local search results, security plugins to protect customer data, or e-commerce plugins to sell online, we deliver solutions that drive measurable business growth. Contact ProfileTree today to discover how our WordPress expertise can transform your website into a powerful business tool.