There are two things a designer forever has the need for – more money and more resources.
Well, we cannot (directly) help with the money part, we can see to your need for exceptional resources, which would (hopefully) get money to flow in.
Check out our list of 10 popular and versatile themes and plugins, and let us know which one did you like best.
BigWave – One Page Free Business WordPress Theme
One page websites are well on their way to becoming the next big thing, just look at how many business-centric websites are imperceptibly switching over to this option. And there’s a reason why the old-school layout with scattered texts, images and CTAs are going out of vogue, not only are they blah but they aren’t as intuitive and seamless as a one page design is.
And it’s not just business or content related websites that would make the switch, but other niches too. So it would save you from frantically searching for a good theme when the need arises if you start stocking up on them now.
And one such theme is the BigWave that hikes up the aesthetics, is loaded with features like multiple portfolio shots and multiple categories but it would make surfing (see what we did there?) the website a fun experience.
Sentio
If your clients use their WordPress page predominantly for blogging or content marketing, this is a theme you should suggest them to consider. They might be producing fantastic content by the hour but unless the spotlight shines on them it’s useless.
Ad a great way to do that – on not just recently published pieces but also formerly uploaded ones – is by choosing a theme like Sentio. With maximum exposure to content and a sleek interface, this theme has been downloaded thousands of times already.
A responsive theme that would also be a great fit to display your own portfolio, Sentio is a pertinent theme for every person who expects to earn a gig through maximum portfolio visibility.
A Free WordPress Theme from CyberChimps
CyberChimps is a known name among designers and SEO guys, so when they come out with a theme, it’s bound to be a hit. And a hit it is, with 1.5 million downloads, this theme is simplistically sophisticated.
The eponymous Responsive theme is a powerhouse of features – from being SEO friendly and WooCommerce compatible to complete CMS control – and is also customizable as per the website’s objectives.
There’s no need to go deep into coding as its fluid and stackable grid system does all the major coding work for you, so you save time and effort while creating a website that has a superior sleek and professional look to it.
Home Remodeling
Another of our themes that’s not just surprisingly loved by a lot of designers but also downloaded a good number of times. Perhaps it is its specific design that makes the Home Remodeling theme a clear winner in its niche.
You mightn’t be flooded with requests to design a Home Remodeling website but don’t think you might never be approached for one. Although unique as it is, it’s pretty much gaining popularity with the complementary boost it gets from the rising real estate scenario.
The theme can also be worked into a website centered around an interior or exterior designing business, and boasts of a range of deluxe features like a grid portfolio section, built in AJAX/PHP form, different skin color options and a lot more.
PhotoLab
Bill Gates got a lot of things right, one of them – and one the credibility for which isn’t generally attributed to him – is proclaiming that ‘Content is King’. It definitely is, whether you are just sharing content to become an authority in your industry, to share your thoughts or as a part of your content marketing objectives, the power of content cannot be sidelined.
And when you need to push important content, you need to do so with the voice in the background muted, or at least tuned to a soothing white noise. In that case, the website theme shouldn’t overpower your content. Whether it’s a portfolio platform you seek to create for a client or simply a blogger’s page with a lot of relative and subjective content, PhotoLab is the right guy for the job.
Holding its own in terms of design and functionality, it lends the perfect platform for your content to shine. And its flat layout ensures that you tune it for every project, thus giving an overall personalized feel.
Free WordPress Countdown Timer Plugin
Most websites who claim to value their readers keep them in the dark. You might think that hey I’m going to put my website on temporary hold and then come back better than before. And I should definitely send out a mail to keep my readers informed. Good move but what if they ignore your mail (there’s an 80% chance of that happening), and then they key in your sites URL and are presented with a 404.
So what happened? Did the website got pulled down, is it gone forever, will they come back, why leave them in the dark? Traffic is important, and even if you aren’t an SEO guy, you should know that it could make or break a website. So the next time a client asks you to revamp a website, suggest putting up a countdown timer, not only would this make you more than just a designer to them – they’d consider you to be someone who cares about their work– but it would strengthen your position as someone who knows their mettle.
And the countdown timer plugin also comes handy when you have to announce a sale or the end of one, or if you have to count down to an event.
WordPress Newsletter Plugin- Lite
A lot of web masters include e-mail marketing as an important content marketing strategy but not a lot of them are reaping the expected benefits out of it. To start with, you need to organize your subscribers’ list into different categories – are they hot prospects, someone who just subscribed, an existing customer, a miffed customer – then you have to work on creating the perfect e-mail, then how many posts to integrate in an e-mail?
That’s a lot of work, instead of hiring someone to do it, just install the Newsletter plugin that will make your e-mail marketing campaigns so much easier and superior.
WP-DaVinci Premium WordPress Theme
Want to emulate Dan Brown and whip your own literary bestseller, albeit one post at a time? The DaVinci theme would fit like a glove for any blog or magazine-based website.
A de-cluttered and exceptional layout with the perfect background color would make your posts stand out. Attract the right traffic and be found in search engine result pages with in-built SEO features or simply use the custom setting option to personalize it as you deem fit.
SlideShow Gallery Plugin for WordPress
Is your portfolio on WordPress? Then take advantage of this plugin to make your portfolio work stand out. From stunning images to video thumbnails, use your work to impress prospects who chance upon your site.
With tons of configuration settings, create beautiful slideshares, wow them, and get more work!
Which is your favorite freebie on the list?
Excellent WordPress Comments Plugins
By The Editorial Team
On July 26, 2021
In Plugins
Here in this article, we have showcased the best of WordPress commenting plugins.
Safe Report Comments
This plugin gives your visitors the possibility to report a comment as inappropriate. Once a threshold is reached the comment is put into moderation where the moderator can decide whether or not to approve the comment or not. If a comment is approved by a moderator it will not be auto-moderated again while still counting the amount of reports.
More Info | Download
GD Star Rating
The plugin allows you to set up advanced rating and review system for post types and comments in your blog using single, multi and thumbs ratings.
More Info | Download
In-Context Comment
The plugin lets readers leave comments right next to the content being commented, instead of only at the bottom of the blog post.
More Info | Download
Comment Timeout
This plugin extends the comment closing functionality in WordPress to allow you to extend the discussion time when older posts have recent comments accepted, or to override the comment closing time on a post by post basis.
More Info | Download
IntenseDebate Comments
The plugin enhance and encourage conversation on your blog. It will let you build your reader community, increase your comments, & boost pageviews.
More Info | Download
Comment Guestbook
The plugin will let you add a guestbook site which uses the WordPress integrated comments.
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Greg’s Comment Length Limiter
The plugin provides a configurable limit on the length of comments left in the comment form, with a dynamically updated character count displayed for the user.
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Quote Comments
This plugin adds a tiny link that says “Quote” on each comment on your posts. Click it, and the contents of the comment are copied to the comment area, wrapped in blockquote tags.
More Info | Download
WP Ajax Edit Comments
Ajax Edit Comments allows users to edit their own comments for a limited time. Administrators can edit all comments on the front-end.
More Info | Download
WP Comments Manager
The plugin will let you manage your WordPress based blogs comments on the go from your Windows Phone 7 and get notifications on every new comment anywhere you are. Approve, unapprove, mark as spam, edit, delete, trash or just reply to comments right from your pocket.
More Info | Download
Livefyre Comments 3
Livefyre Comments 3 replaces your default comments with real-time conversations. Comments 3 centralizes conversations from around the social web back to your site, and encourage engagement between readers on your site to build community around your content.
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Ultimate Facebook Comments Email Notify
This plugin will only work if you have Facebook Social Comments box already installed on your blog. The plugin will listen for an event when you click comment/reply on your Facebook Social Comments Box. After clicking the comment button it will post the message, Facebook Profile id , Facebook Profile Name of the commentator using AJAX and a beautiful email notification will be sent to the administrator and the post author.
More Info | Download
Top Commentators Widget
The Top Commentators Widget a sidebar widget which shows the top commentators in your WP site. This widget is easier to manage via the control form (no need to edit the PHP file); additional options are also available to make it more flexible.
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WordPress Move Comments
WordPress Move Comments simplifies this process by enabling users to easily change the comment’s post or page, the parent comment, and the comment author. Edits can be made via both Quick Edit and the simpler single-comment edit screen.
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SEO Facebook Comment
This plugin will insert a Facebook Comment Form, Open Graph Tags and also insert all Facebook Comments into your WordPress Database for better SEO.
More Info | Download
Google+ Comments for WordPress
Google+ Comments for WordPress makes the comment section tabbed seamlessly adding tabs for G+ Comments, Facebook, Disqus, WordPress, & More
More Info | Download
Mention comment’s Authors by Wabeo
The plugin that improves the WordPress comments functionality, adding a response system between authors. When adding a comment, your readers can directly mentioning the author of another comment, like Facebook or twitter do, using the “@” symbol.
More Info | Download
Social Comments
This plugin adds Google Plus Comments system, Facebook comments and / or Disqus Comments to your site.
More Info | Download
Facebook Comments
It is a social plugin that enables facebook user commenting on your site. Features include moderation tools and distribution.
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Better WordPress Recent Comments
This plugin displays recent comment lists at assigned locations. The comment list is updated on the fly when a visitor adds a comment or when you moderate one. No additional queries are needed for end-users.
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Comment Rating Widget
This plugin is an add on to the Comment Rating plugin. It displays ratings along with the most recent comments in the sidebar in formats of your design. The comment rating and images on display can be “Likes only”, “Dislikes only”, or Both.
More Info | Download
Comment Form Message
The Comment Form Message plugin allows you to add a custom message above or below your WordPress comments form on a site-wide and/or per post/page basis.
More Info | Download
Comment Images
Comment Images gives readers the ability to upload an image to their comment right from the comment form.
More Info | Download