1. Using Commercial
Plugins
Brian Van Nieuwenhoven - WordPress Site Developer
@brianvan
http://485i.com

2. Discussion - Have you ever...
● Purchased plugin modules?
● Subscribed to a service attached to a
plugin?
● Purchased support or installation
services?
● Upgraded from a "lite" or normal
plugin to a "pro" plugin?

3. What is a "commercial plugin"?
(for the purposes of this discussion)
Any code module which requires a purchase
or a license from a software developer
and...
Any code module for which commercial
services or additional products can be
purchased.

4. What does that definition include?
● "Premium" or "Pro" plugins
● Plugins (or parts of plugins) that work only
when you purchase a service, license, or
access key

5. What about all the other plugins out
there?
● There is a vast collection of "free" plugins
(the code is licensed and available for
download and distribution without cost)
● The WordPress Plugin Directory will host
and list anything with a "compatible" free
license
● Some plugin authors offer free code
licenses, but are happy to sell service and
support or premium products related to their
free products or to WordPress in general.

6. The WordPress Plugin Directory is
NOT a commercial plugin
marketplace
● Premium plugins are neither available for
purchase nor listed in the directory
● Premium plugins can't be found if you're
using the "Add new" plugin search feature in
the core WordPress dashboard

7. But what about themes?
Just FYI:
● WordPress.org does list some
commercial/premium themes
● WordPress.org doesn't sell the themes - it
just links to some of them
● Premium themes are not available from the
dashboard's theme search feature
● If you want the most popular premium
framework/parent themes, you would need
to find them on your own

8. The difference between premium
themes and premium plugins
● WordPress.org has a list for some premium
themes
● WordPress.org has no list at all for premium
plugins

9. Will WordPress.org ever add a
plugin marketplace?
::shakes 8 ball::
"Outlook not so good"
● There are currently no plans for this in the
works.
● WordPress is a free software, open source
product under the GPL license; the core
team chooses to keep its directory services
limited to plugins/themes that are similarly
licensed.

10. That said...
● There is nothing stopping you from adding
any code to your WordPress installations
● If you want to purchase a premium plugin,
you'll be able to add it the manual way
● You might not find a premium plugin in the
directory, but you CAN get the benefit of
Automatic Upgrade alerts for premium
plugins (if the author included that feature)

11. Where to find premium plugins
(the type that is not part of the WP directory)
● Author's sites
● Editorial reviews
● User forums, discussions
● Google
(abandon hope all ye who enter here)

12. And in the future...
There is at least one service claiming to offer a
dashboard-integrated plugin marketplace...
It's not finished, yet. Currently in private beta.
Visit http://renku.me to join the mailing list and
receive updates
(I have no affiliation with or recommendation of
their services. But I'm interested...)

13. Adding a plugin manually
(this might be new to some)
● All plugins live on your web server in this
directory (under your WP site root):
● Put your plugin folder in this directory to add
the plugin to the available (but not yet
activated) plugins
● Activate the plugin from the dashboard
(Plugins -> Installed Plugins)

14. Automatic Updates?
● If the plugin has included its own update
server, or is in the WP plugin directory,
automatic updates will let you know when a
new release is available.
● Otherwise, manual updates are required. It's
the same process as manual installation
(overwrite/replace the old version)
● (For advanced users) If you've made direct
code edits, you'll likely lose them. Avoid
direct code edits when possible, or track
your changes and merge them.

15. If you're not using automatic
updates...
It's still really important for you to make sure all
of your plugins are fully updated, for stability
and security purposes!
● Check often
● Set reminders
● Keep your site safe and secure

16. Now, to review...

17. What we've covered so far:
● What ● Commercial plugins
offer or require paid
services or
purchases
● Where ● Sometimes in the
WP plugin directory
(when the code is
free but something
else isn't),
sometimes not
(when the code is

18. What we've covered so far:
● When ● Anytime you
choose
● How
● If it's not in the
directory, you'll
have to use the
manual installation
process to at least
install the first time
You may also have
to manually monitor

19. Which leads us to:
Why?

20. Why would you...
● Spend money on your site's code?
○ especially if there are free alternatives?
○ especially if you're not completely sure you like it or
you haven't used it directly?
● Deal with the hassle of a separate
installation/upgrade process?
● Choose to use a product that doesn't fit the
community code & support model that we're
all used to by now?

21. If a plugin can be an
investment in your site
and can save you costs in
the long run, then...
Why not?

22. Commercial plugins...
● Offer options to consider along with free
alternatives
● Can offer excellent value (depending on how
you'll use it and how well they are built)
● Might save you time and money over using
the "free" alternative

23. Are commercial plugins always
better than free alternatives?
No.
It is important to:
● Define your goals and your budget
● Evaluate on a case-by-case basis
● Test, record, analyze, decide

24. Repeat:
Test, record, analyze, decide
"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of
cure."
&
"By failing to prepare you are preparing to fail."
- a man whose wisdom
was so great that they
put his face on the
$100 bill

25. You can prepare by:
● Using product demos when available
● Testing plugins (and themes!) ahead of time
in a "development" installation
● Reading relevant support forums, reviews,
ratings
By doing this you can avoid:
● Technical headaches
● Growing pains
● Unrealized expectations
● Buyer's remorse

26. Example: simple contact form
Free: Premium:
Fast Secure Contact Gravity Forms ($39 for
Form Plugin personal license)
Analysis:
Gravity Forms is really nice, but I only need a
simple contact form. Fast Secure Contact Form
works and is highly rated.
Decision: Fast Secure Contact Form

27. Example: Highly customizable
contact form for 10 sites
Free: Premium:
Fast Secure Contact Gravity Forms ($199
Form Plugin for unlimited
developer license)
Analysis:
Fast Secure Contact Form isn't as customizable, but I can
get the exact look I want on each site with Gravity Forms.
And also, I've been toying with the idea of selling t-shirts.
GF has a PayPal add-in! I could make the money back in a
month or two...
Decision: GravityForms

28. Example: Site Backup
Free: Premium:
WordPress Backup to VaultPress
Dropbox ($15 monthly)
Analysis:
VaultPress backups are easier to restore if I
end up in-trouble. My developer charges $200
to just LOOK at the site. I'm ok with spending a
little more over the next two years for peace of
mind.
Decision: VaultPress

29. Example: Site Backup on a tight
budget
Premium: Premium:
WordPress Backup to Dropbox with
add-ins for .ZIP backup and email
VaultPress
notifications ($28 total) ($15 monthly)
Analysis:
I can't spend $180 a year on this. I'm a tinkerer,
I'll take my chances with a manual restore if I
need it. I want the notifications & archive files,
though. And I already have a paid Dropbox
subscription, so space isn't an issue.
Decision: WordPress Backup to Dropbox

30. The general idea:
Premium plugins offer additional options for
extending your site.

31. These options are sometimes bad options,
sometimes not-ideal options...
but sometimes, they're really great options.

32. And now you know:
● They exist
● How to install them
● Where to look for them
● Why it's a good idea to
look for them

33. Q&A time
(to be followed by a wonky discussion of any
advanced topics of interest)
Brian Van Nieuwenhoven -
WordPress Site Developer
@brianvan
http://485i.com