One of the best things about WordPress is its flexibility. Thanks to thousands of plugins, you can add just about any function to your website that you can imagine, without needing to write custom code.

With so many possibilities, it’s easy to get caught up in shiny object syndrome, but don’t let that happen!

Before you install another plugin, ask yourself why you need it.

If it won’t help you reach your website goals, don’t install it. Period. If you think it might be useful in the future, make a note of it. If you install it now, you’ll have to keep it updated and you’ll probably forget it’s there anyway.

Don’t clutter your website with plugins you don’t need! Only use those that will allow your website to bring you closer to your goals.

Selecting a WordPress Plugin

A few of the things I consider when choosing a plugin:

1. Is it compatible with the current version of WordPress?
2. What is its rating on the WordPress repository?
3. How many active installations are there?
4. What type of support issues have been raised?
5. How well does the developer respond to support issues?
6. Are there any known incompatibilities or issues?
7. If it’s a premium plugin, is it a one-time cost or yearly subscription?

It might feel like a lot of work when you’re anxious to dive into a project, but it’s better to spend the time to get it right than run experiments on a live website.

Don’t be afraid to invest in a premium plugin if there isn’t a free one that meets your needs. I’ve been using Gravity Forms for over 10 years, and it’s been worth every penny.

Evaluating Your Existing Plugins

You’ve probably installed plugins that seemed like they were just the thing. Then they didn’t work the way you expected, or you didn’t have time to set them up properly, so they just sat there. You might think it’s not a big deal, but consider these facts:

• Inactive plugins still take up server space and may pose a security risk if they contain vulnerabilities.
• If you keep the plugin, you have to keep applying updates to keep your site protected from vulnerabilities.
• The more plugins you have, the greater the chance of a conflict.

Doing a Plugin Audit

To keep your website running well, it’s a good idea to do a plugin audit from time to time, where you review your plugins, one by one.

Before you begin this process, take a backup of your site.

Now, go to the Plugins page and see if any are inactive. Unless you’ve deactivated them for a specific reason and expect to reactivate them shortly, those are candidates for removal.

Removing inactive plugins from your WordPress site is a good start.

I recommend creating a spreadsheet with the following columns to keep track of your findings.

1. Plugin Name
2. Plugin Description
3. Notes – to record issues and compatibility concerns
4. Decision – keep, investigate, replace, or remove

You’ll find the plugin name and description on the Plugins page of your WordPress dashboard.

Work your way through the list and record any problems you encountered during testing or day-to-day use in the Notes column. Then to be on the safe side, dig even deeper.

Each plugin description includes a “View details” link. Click on it and look for warnings. Record these in your spreadsheet as well. Highlight anything that needs follow-up.

Now you’re ready to review your data.

Any plugins that serve important functions and are working well should be kept.

If any plugins have issues and aren’t essential, let them go – but back up your site first, just in case. In addition, make sure removing a certain plugin won’t break anything on the front end of your site.

For all the rest, you have decisions to make. If one is important but has issues, weigh the risk of keeping it versus the work involved with sourcing, installing, and configuring a replacement.

Plugin Updates

Remember when you logged into your WordPress site to make a quick change and a bunch of plugin updates were available?

You didn’t have time to deal with them, so you just did what you logged in for and went on your merry way.

The next time you logged in there were even more.

So you decided to just ignore them. After all, your website was perfect when it was launched, so why mess with it?

Maybe you were too nervous to run those updates because you’ve heard about the kinds of things that can go wrong.

Or maybe you went ahead with them, but something did go wrong, and you had to hire someone to fix it.

Whoever thought owning a website could be so stressful? And what’s with all the updates anyway?

Updates are released for one or more of the following reasons:

1. Compatibility: Your website consists of many moving parts: your WordPress installation, your theme, your plugins, and even your hosting platform. If any of these aren’t compatible, something may stop working as expected.
2. Security: As the most commonly used website platform, WordPress tends to be a popular target for hackers, and many updates include security patches to fix vulnerabilities that are identified.
3. Performance: Some updates are designed to improve page loading speed.
4. Features: Some updates introduce new features or improvements. You may not need them, but it’s worth knowing what’s changed.

Your best strategy is to have a regular routine for website maintenance, whether you manage it yourself or hire an expert.

In other words, don’t ignore your WordPress plugin updates!

Are automatic updates right for you?

Automatic updates can be a useful way to maintain your site, but they work best alongside reliable backups, monitoring, and a way to recover if something fails.

How to Update WordPress Plugins Safely

If your site has regular activity such as ecommerce, e-learning, or even a blog, I check for updates at least once a week. Even if your site is simple and rarely changes, establish a regular routine for checking updates and responding promptly to security issues.

Applying updates appears to be as simple as clicking on “Update Now” but there are a few best practices to keep in mind:

Before You Start

• Take a recent, restorable backup.
• Check that the site is functioning normally before making changes.
• Read the update notes, especially for plugins that control important functions.
• Look for reports of problems with the new version.
• If the site is business-critical, consider testing updates on a staging site first.

While Doing the Updates

• On a site where problems would be costly, update in small batches or one at a time.
• Avoid making other major site changes at the same time, so it’s easier to identify the cause if something goes wrong.

After You’ve Updated

• Check the front end and the WordPress dashboard.
• Test important functions, such as forms, payments, membership access, and other features relevant to the site.
• If something goes wrong, stop further updates and investigate before continuing.

Conclusion

Choosing your plugins wisely and keeping them up to date won’t guarantee a problem-free website, but a regular maintenance routine will reduce risk and help you catch and resolve issues before they become bigger headaches.

Photo by Ivorymix