WordPress Tools for Webmasters

Webmaster Tools Review

I subscribe to many mailing lists, and this article showed up in one of them. 

12 Best WordPress Automation Tools and Plugins 

Compared (2021) 

Last updated on September 3rd, 2021

I believe that WPBeginner is a great resource for WordPress beginners! 

However, I find that WPEginner includes a lot of positive reviews to pro/premium add-ons, and I believe they collect commissions from their recommendations. In other words, I suspect a financial bias. I use their lists as a starting point and do my own due diligence.

Here is this list, and my comments about their review:

[1] - Uncanny Automator 

Their description is "Uncanny Automator is the best WordPress automation plugin in the market. It lets you create powerful workflows to save time and reduce errors without writing any code. Uncanny Automator seamlessly integrates with all the most popular WordPress plugins and third-party tools in the market.

Rick says:
This is the first time I've heard about this tool! I visited the webpage to read about capabilities. I discovered that a free version can be installed from the WordPress.org plugin repository. (https://automatorplugin.com/)

[2] - Constant Contact 

WPBeginer says, "You can use our Constant Contact coupon code to get 20% off your monthly plan. Alternatives: SendinBlue, HubSpot, and Drip are great alternatives for email marketing automation."

Rick says:
I personally prefer "free" and often suggest MailChimp to maintain subscriber lists.

[3] - OptinMonster

WPBeginer says, "Note: You can get a free version of OptinMonster to get started."

Rick says:
The last time I looked at this tool it only had a paid version with a 30-day cancellation. UPDATE: There is a free version from the WordPress.org repository. One of the reviews said, "Not a free plugin if you want to use its features, but it is great once you do subscribe." A month-old review said, "Their 'free' period limits to 500 visits per month, means less than 20 clicks per day. stay away..."

[4]  WPForms 

WPBeginner says, "WPForms is the best contact form plugin in the market used by over 4 million websites. It’s very beginner-friendly and lets you create forms that make it easy for your visitors to get in touch with you."

Rick says:
I really like this product, and agree with every positive statement made by WPBeginner! I am in the process of converting to WPForms from Contact Form 7. So far, I am satisfied with the features in the free plugin.

[5] Chatbot

WPBeginner says, "Chatbot.com is the best AI chatbot software for WordPress. It lets you easily automate live chat on your website by setting up your own chatbot."

Rick says:
I do not need a chatbot right now and had not looked at them.

[6] HubSpot

WPBeginner says, "HubSpot is one of the best CRM software for small businesses. It allows you to manage your leads better and automate aspects of your online marketing."

Rick says:
My prospect/customer base is still small, and I had not considered automating that information.

[7]  TrustPulse

WPBeginner says, "TrustPulse automatically monitors activity on your site. When potential customers are close to buying something on your site, they will see a notification from other customers who have just made a purchase.

Rick says:
I do not see a need for this tool in my world. I am not using sales funnels and shopping carts, so I don't need to 'nudge' prospects toward purchases.

[8] Smash Balloon

WPBeginner says, "Smash Balloon automates your website content by displaying your latest social media activity. This can save you time and keep your website content fresh while keeping visitors engaged on your site." 

Rick says:
I hadn't considered bringing social media content into any of my websites. The plugin is available from the WordPress.org repository, and I've installed it on one site. I'll explore this, later.

[9] RafflePress

WPBeginner says, "RafflePress is the best WordPress giveaway and contest plugin in the market that lets you grow your email list, traffic, and social media followers with giveaways and contests."

Rick says:
I didn't discover any free plug-ins the last time I explored give-away tools. However, there is a free version of this tool available from the WordPress.org repository.

[10]  MonsterInsights

WPBeginner says "MonsterInsights is the best analytics solution for WordPress used by over 3 million websites. It helps you automate tracking on your website with Google Analytics, without having to modify your tracking code."

Rick says:
I'm not sure what additional information this plugin brings that is not available through the 'Site Kit by Google' plugin. I got really tired of the nag screens that continually popped up recommending that I buy the premium (paid) version of MonstInsights.

[11] SeedProd

WPBeginner says, "SeedProd is the best drag and drop WordPress page builder in the market used by over 1 million websites. With SeedProd, you can create beautiful landing pages to automate things like product sales, webinar signups, newsletter subscriptions, and more."

Rick says:
I'm not interested in any page builder, including Divi or Beaver Builder. The WordPress block editor will eventually make all page builders obsolete.

[12] PushEngage

WPBeginner says, "PushEngage is the best push notification software for WordPress. It lets you send automated push messages to your visitors after they leave your website."

Rick says:
I'm not interested. I disagree, on principle, with allowing a website to follow me after I leave! Whenever a site asks, I answer "NO!" I would not subject my visitors to that.

Summary

I found three two tools that I definitely want to explore, and two three tools I would never use.

• New, exciting, and want to try now.
• [1] Automator 
• [3] OptinMonster (free version)
• [8] Smash Balloon
• New, and I may try later
• [5] Chatbot
• [6] Hubspot
• [7] TrustPulse
• [9] RafflePress

• Agree with their recommendation
• [4] WPForms
• Agree with being mentioned but I recommend something else
• [2] Constant Contact
• [10] MonsterInsights
• Something I would never use
• [3] OptinMonster (free version)
• [11] SeedProd
• [12] PushEngage