Information about WordPress plugins

March 29, 2020

In this article you can read information about WordPress plugins from various angles. Whether you are a developer or a consumer, this blog post contains useful information about WordPress plugins for you.

WordPress plugin consumer tips

Everybody working on a WordPress website has come across a situation where you wanted to add a slideshow, a form, a calendar or anything additional to your basic theme. This was probably everyones first encounter with the WordPress plugins marketplace.

Before you use them

When using plugins there are a number of things you should be paying attention to.
Find a plugin that solves the exact problem you have. There are many huge plugins which may solve your problem, but also do many many more things you may not want or need them to do. In that case you will be better off using a smaller plugin which won’t slow down your website to the extent a large plugin would.

You can test this by checking your page speed before and after using the plugin. Checking the page speed is always a good idea because some plugins are simply not build efficiently and could slow down your performance.

Make sure the plugin works as intended in the most common internet browsers. Also check if it is compatible and tested with your WordPress version.

compatible and up to date WordPress plugin

Check if plugins are recently updated! This means the developer(s) care about the plugin and put in effort to keep things safe and optimized. Solved issues and forum status may also be a thing to keep an eye out for. If the plugin of choice will be critical for your website, you want it to be reliable. A thrustworthy support department will be important.

active support department of a WordPress plugin

While you use them

When you have made your choice to use a plugin and are using it for a while, make sure to apply the updates when they come out. You probably have a responsibility to keep the website as safe as you can. Applying (security) updates to plugins is a part of this. Every once in a while check the market again if there are new plugins which are better or more efficient than the one you currently have active.

WordPress plugin developer tips

Everyone has their own reasons why they choose to dive into the WordPress plugin development business. You could be missing something in the market and choose to simple develop it yourself because you need it. You could also see it as a way to make money.

No matter the reason, you need to make sure you follow the WordPress guidelines. If you don’t, you can expect at least one feedback round from WordPress when sending in your plugin to deploy it on the market. Also make sure you have relevant knowledge of multiple code languages. Not sure where to start? Make sure to check out these platforms.

WordPress plugin development guidelines

If your goal is to earn a profitable spot on the WordPress plugins marketplace, you should do extensive market research. Browse through the plugins on the marketplace and find out what is missing. Or search for populair plugins and check what they are missing, maybe they are old and not up to date, lack visual appeal, lack modern usability (responsiveness for example). It’s all about filling up the gaps.

Feedback

You will get bug reports, there will always be scenarios where your plugin won’t work optimal. To reduce the time spent on bugs when your plugin is on the market, gather as much feedback and do as much testing as you can before you go live. Solving issues while your plugin is live can be stressfull and may harm the relationship with your customers depending on how well you deal with the situation.

There are many ways of getting feedback. You can contact loads of WordPress bloggers and simply ask if they could do a review. Whether they are your target audience or not, they have often seen and worked with many different plugins. So even if they just give an opinion instead of a full review it may already be of use for you. I say ‘may’ because you should always check if their ideals match yours, don’t just assume everything they say is what is best for you.

feedback for WordPress plugin

When a bit further down the line you could place your plugin on websites like producthunt and share it with other tech enthousiasts. You could also post on various forms to check if there is enthousiasm for your idea.

After launch

After you have launched your plugin you should of course be supporting your first users and handling bugs and improvements. But after a while this should die down a little. This is the time to consider new features! Find ways to expand your plugin, free and premium features, keep things interesting. While doing this, keep the plugins’ weight in mind. Try to update your plugin a few times a year, stay active.