Tools & Recommendations
Here are some tools —plugins, WordPress themes, hosting — that I rely on and recommend to clients. Of course, not every solution will be the right one for everyone, so do your research and ask a trusted source.
(This list may contain affiliate links, which means I get a tiny bonus if you click the link and make a purchase.)
For the last several years, I’ve been using the Kadence WP suite of tools: their free theme, their set of widgets for building block elements, and the Pro versions of both. Kadence Shop Kit also makes building beautiful woocommerce shops much simpler. I love Kadence for so many things!
SiteGround offers reliable, reasonably-priced web hosting for WordPress with a range of plans to suit the needs of individual and small business sites.
If you’re an author who wants to explore a high-quality self-publishing option or to find a good free-lance editor, check out Reedsy.
I host lots of my own and client sites with Green Geeks. They have excellent support and are reasonably priced for small-to-medium sized websites. They have a real commitment to eco-friendliness and have hosting plans to suit most everyone, from small businesses to entrepreneurs to resellers.
I use MailerLite to manage my small mailing list, to create newsletters and client communications. Easy to use and packed with features…even the free version.
Spam is a huge problem on-site that use contact forms or accept comments on blog posts. It feels like a necessary evil, but I’ve found that CleanTalk helps with a lot of the spam without being too aggressive with weeding out “good” submissions.
The guys at Two Dudes Photo in Walnut Creek did my headshots a few years ago, and they turned what could have been a terrible experience for me (camera shy and not at all photogenic!) into a really nice adventure. I loved them and, more important, I loved the results I got. If you need headshots for your site, I recommend them highly.