WordPress Contact Forms Plugin with Gravity Forms

Gravityforms was a recently released plugin for wordpress that is under the premium license.

It might be different from other plugins because it has a cost involved but it is WORTH EVERY PENNY.  Its so damn good I’m recommending it as an essential purchase and am affiliated with the developers. (Just to be clear).

The forms on your site are one of the most important aspects, and lets be honest this is a no brainer.

So don’t be tight.

There are a few other forms available (if you are to cheap to buy this) and the best is probably CForms II WordPress Plugin though it is quite comprehensive it its functionality it tends to update frequently to cover errors and other issues and, in order to maintain the integrity of the plugin you should update asap every time so it can be a bit of a time sink. Aside from that it is the best alternative.

So why is Gravity Forms so good.

Its so good because it is incredibly simple to manage, setup, install and has a range of functionality and application.

Honestly, its one of those, “Can’t live without it” type plugins.  Even though it costs to buy it the added benefit is that you have dedicated support as well and an active and informed community who are helping the developers find new ways of increasing the functionality of the plugin and of course dealing with tech support issues and questions. Not something to be snubbed! All the new functionality, like most plugins, is then added on to your existing plugin and because the developers are being supported financially the updates are of a very high quality.

Using the plugin requires you to do a little messing about by inserting your personal reference key into the settings, once you install and activate the plugin, to validate the purchase and also create an account on the Gravity Forms community forums but this is, in itself,  is a simple enough process.  Once you create a new form and realise just how much and how easy it is to do you will be hooked.

Have a read through the features that Gravity Forms offers and im sure you will agree that its money well spent. (and thanks for the business if you do decide to buy it, it is most appreciated).

WordPress XML Sitemap Generator plugin

I love this Google XML Sitemap generator plugin and so does Google.

To clarify (in case you don’t know) a sitemap is a single page on your site that is purposely set up for search engines to read and scan (spider) very quickly and realise what posts and pages you have (content) on your site.  If you have Google webmaster tools (get a gmail or google account and follow the instructions there) there you can submit the sitemap once you create it on the blog.

Activate the plugin and then check the settings.  They look complicated but really they are not, just take your time and read through them.

You will notice at the bottom of the list there is a list of “ratings” called “sitemap content” “frequencies” and “priorities” and its important that you set these to suit your site. They will not force the changes that you make but rather are considered as suggestions.

Author: Arne Brachhold

Download the XML sitempa plugin for wordpress here.

WordPress Feedburner Feedsmith Plugin

On your blog (and more and more websites) you will likely encounter an RSS (Really simple Syndication) feed.  Even today, there are in reality, very few people who understand or even use this feature effectively so I thought it best to fill you in right now on why its so cool for website visitors. The most popular RSS tool is `probably Feedburner (now owned by Google) so you will need to have setup your feed there in advance.

On a visitor level, the RSS feed means one thing. Access to information automatically.  When you visit a site you will no doubt encounter the RSS logo, which is typically an orange coloured square or round cornered box with a white dot and three concentric circular lines radiating out from it to the right.

When you click this icon you will be (typically but not necessarily) be presented with a screen like this with a range of options.

http://feeds.feedburner.com/justinparks

You can from here subscribe via RSS and if available subscribe via email if the option exists.  You can also “feed” the RSS into an aggregator  or RSS reader if you have one setup. Once subscribed you will from that point on receive the latest news and updates automatically to the destination as soon as they are posted or scheduled by the poster for delivery.

RSS feed with feeburner

Once you set it up (use your gmail account and hit this page: http://feedburner.google.com/ to burn the feed) you can now (finally) activate the FeedBurner Feedsmith Plugin in the WordPress admin and go to the settings page.  Drop the RSS feed address into first line as requested and your all good to go!

You will notice the comments on your blog also have an RSS feed and this is dependant on your theme and if you are using DisQus, so decide accordingly.

Author: Google

Download the FD Feedburner Plugin.