Bear in mind when WordPress was only a running a blog platform?
Properly, it’s all grown up now.
There are round 529 million WordPress-powered web sites stay immediately. The bulk are common web sites. Many don’t even have an energetic weblog.
And that’s not all. WordPress powers every thing from Fortune 500 firm web sites to app-like platforms that generate critical income.
It’s like it might do something.
Okay, that’s an exaggeration, however you is likely to be shocked by all of the completely different initiatives you possibly can run on WordPress these days.
To check the bounds, we went in search of among the most shocking and underrated use instances for the world’s favourite CMS.
Need to see what we discovered? Hold scrolling to see the highest ten!
10 Different Methods To Use WordPress
WordPress has a great deal of nice options, however the actual enjoyable begins while you make the most of the Plugin Listing — basically the App Retailer for web sites.
Listed below are among the most fascinating methods to make use of WordPress and plugins to earn money, promote your trigger, or construct a group!
1. Run a Membership Web site That Pays You Whereas You Sleep
Think about incomes cash when you’re drooling in your pillow.
Getting paid when you sleep may sound too good to be true, however some individuals are actually doing it.
The mannequin is rather like Netflix. You merely create or curate content material, and other people pay you for entry. That might imply a one-off payment for lifetime entry or a recurring membership subscription.
Both means, the scalability is bonkers. Whether or not you’ve 10 or 10,000 members, your upkeep workload stays roughly the identical. Your ongoing time and vitality can go into selling your library.
Many enterprise homeowners who run this mannequin use WordPress. If you wish to comply with of their footsteps, there are a number of plugins made for the aim.
- MemberPress: This premium plugin comes with a bucketload of options, permitting you to host programs, provide downloadable recordsdata, and arrange completely different membership tiers.
- Prohibit Content material Professional: If you wish to keep away from a giant preliminary outlay, this freemium plugin is a superb different. It gives most of the similar options on the free model, and you may improve to unlock electronic mail advertising, free trials, and extra.
- Paid Memberships Professional: One other freemium possibility. This one integrates with a great deal of different platforms, together with Slack, Package, and Zapier. You possibly can pay to unlock additional advertising options.
Our high tip: Create a lead magnet so irresistible that folks will likely be throwing their electronic mail addresses at you like confetti. Then easily transition them to your paid membership.
2. Flip Your Web site Into an On-line Classroom
When you needed to train a university class, which topic would you select?
Perhaps you perceive how you can practice rescue canines. Maybe you’re an Excel ninja, with a black belt in pivot tables. Or possibly your experience lies in baking candy focaccia.
The subject doesn’t actually matter — in case you can bundle your data in an easy-to-follow format, you’ve one thing invaluable. One thing you possibly can promote.
On-line programs are a well-liked passive revenue generator, and so they’re tremendous straightforward to host on WordPress. Listed below are one of the best instruments for the duty:
Toolbox:
- LearnDash: This highly effective premium e-learning plugin is utilized by universities and main coaching organizations. It turns WordPress right into a studying platform, full with full course constructions, superior quiz engines, and strong reporting. It may possibly even deal with certification.
- Tutor LMS: This new child on the block delivers highly effective options by a extremely clear interface. We significantly just like the drag-and-drop course builder. You too can make limitless programs on the free model.
- LifterLMS: One other freemium possibility, Lifter allows you to create complicated studying paths, and gamify the educational expertise with certificates and achievements. As soon as once more, you possibly can create limitless programs on the free plugin.
Our high tip: Don’t launch all of your content material directly. Use content material dripping to launch classes progressively, like a data tease…go away ’em wanting extra!
3. Create the Final On-line Reserving System
Many companies promote time. Hairdressers, landscaping corporations, authorized consultants, and private stylists all match on this class.
Many of those firms have a WordPress web site, however use a third-party platform to deal with scheduling.
Hmm, okay. So, why not simply have every thing in a single place?
Listed below are some instruments for establishing a reserving system in your WordPress website:
- Amelia: The Surprise Girl of reserving plugins — lovely, subtle, and really strong. This premium platform can deal with appointments and occasions, with computerized electronic mail and SMS notifications, and a smooth customer-facing reserving interface. There’s a free lite model, too.
- Bookly: It’s not fairly as fairly, however Bookly gives most of the similar options in a freemium bundle. You possibly can arrange numerous calendars, notifications, and reserving types with out paying a dime. Plus, in case you want extra, the complete model is barely $33 per yr.
- Merely Schedule Appointments: The opposite large freemium contender, this software is flexible and straightforward on the attention. It additionally integrates with a great deal of widespread plugins, and boasts an ideal 5-star ranking on the WordPress Plugin Listing.
Our high tip: All the time ask for a deposit. It’s a digital pinky promise that turns potential flakes into dedicated purchasers.
4. Construct a Personal Shopper Portal
You ship an essential electronic mail. Your shopper says they “by no means obtained” the bill or connected file. Cue the complications.
Each enterprise proprietor is aware of the situation all too nicely.
As a substitute of counting on electronic mail, you might construct your individual shopper portal on WordPress. That means, they haven’t any excuse!
This may sound like a posh challenge, nevertheless it’s really fairly easy. Simply run with certainly one of these plugins:
- SuiteDash: This standalone enterprise administration platform covers every thing from challenge administration to invoicing. The official plugin means that you can convey your knowledge into WordPress, so purchasers get a local expertise in your web site.
- SureFeedback: Aimed toward design professionals, this specialised portal focuses on suggestions and collaboration. Shoppers can go away feedback immediately on web site designs, approve work with a click on, and observe revision historical past.
Our high tip: Use role-based permissions, so that every shopper sees solely what’s related to them. This implies they’re much less more likely to really feel misplaced or overwhelmed — resulting in fewer panicked emails on a Friday evening.
5. Create Your Personal Social Community (Sure, Actually)
Right here’s a secret: you don’t should be a hoodie-wearing Harvard dropout to personal a social community. In actual fact, anybody with a WordPress website can construct one.
And we’re not speaking about outdated message boards right here. Specialised social plugins can deal with profiles, information feeds, non-public messaging, teams, and extra.
You is likely to be questioning what the profit is right here. Why not simply arrange a Fb group?
While you’re in full management of the platform, you can provide customers what they need — which makes your website much more participating. Listed below are one of the best instruments for the duty:
- PeepSo: Meet the rising star of social plugins. PeepSo allows you to construct one thing similar to Fb, and a lot of the options are free. The core plugin is expandable with premium add-ons for occasions, teams, chat, and monetization.
- BuddyPress: Earlier than PeepSo, there was BuddyPress. This open-source plugin has been powering WordPress communities for over a decade, with member profiles, exercise streams, consumer teams, non-public messaging, and notifications.
- bbPress: Don’t want the complete works? This light-weight discussion board answer integrates seamlessly with WordPress, permitting you to construct discussion-focused communities with matters, replies, and consumer profiles. It’s blazing quick, too.
Our high tip: You don’t must construct the subsequent Fb. Give attention to options that your group will discover useful, and be at liberty to ditch the remaining!
6. Construct a Portfolio That Pops
When you work within the inventive industries, you most likely have an Instagram account. Some folks use it as a low-effort, extremely social portfolio.
However let’s be actual — If you wish to impress the large fish, you really want a polished portfolio by yourself absolutely branded web site.
With the fitting plugins and themes, WordPress could be the right content material administration system to energy your portfolio. You simply want to select rigorously:
- NextGEN Gallery: With over 30 million downloads, this versatile freemium plugin is the go-to possibility for displaying visible content material. It gives a great deal of nice options, together with watermarking, e-commerce integration for promoting prints, and password safety for shopper galleries.
- Modula: Whereas NextGEN can generally look a bit dated, Modula is a contemporary and trendy gallery builder. The drag-and-drop interface makes it straightforward to create customized preparations. It even has built-in AI for captions.
- Elementor: If you wish to transcend fairly footage, this freemium web site builder means that you can assemble distinctive web page layouts — excellent for displaying off your greatest work.
Our high tip: All the time add context to your work. It’s the story behind the artwork that may impress purchasers and interact your guests.
7. Promote Stuff (With out Paying Shopify Charges)
Many aspiring entrepreneurs suppose they want a Shopify retailer to begin promoting on-line.
Truly, you don’t. You simply want to put in WordPress on reasonably priced internet hosting and seize a plugin.
Whether or not you’re promoting handcrafted jewellery, downloadable productiveness templates, month-to-month subscription bins, or bodily merchandise with complicated variations — WordPress can deal with all of it whereas holding more cash in your pocket.
It’s like getting the horsepower of a Ferrari whereas paying for a Honda.
Strive these e-commerce instruments for measurement:
- WooCommerce: This one’s a no brainer actually. It’s free, stacked with options, and made particularly for WordPress.
- CartFlows: Billed as a gross sales funnel builder, this premium plugin basically provides additional options to WooCommerce that will help you promote extra. The highlights embody one-click upsells, dynamic gives, and customized checkout pages.
- Straightforward Digital Downloads: In case your merchandise are digital solely, you might do this freemium plugin as an alternative. It handles all of the techy stuff, like safe file supply, license key era, obtain limits, and expiration dates.
- Ecwid: Already bought an internet site, weblog, or a buzzing social media web page? Ecwid is just like the magic “add to cart” button you possibly can stick anyplace. Kick issues off with their free plan (yep, promote as much as 5 merchandise with out paying a dime) after which add your retailer in every single place — Instagram, Amazon, TikTok, WhatsApp, your WordPress website, you title it.
Our high tip: The default WooCommerce web page templates are extremely boring. Seize an internet site builder like Elementor and spice them up with your individual design. Or simply seize a free theme.
8. Launch Your Personal Podcast HQ
Prime podcasters make hundreds of thousands of {dollars}. What’s stopping you changing into the subsequent star of the mic?
Not a lot. However you’re going to wish an internet site to advertise your present, and possibly appeal to some sponsors.
Enter our favourite visitor, WordPress. Given the latest growth in podcasting, there at the moment are a great deal of nice themes and plugins made for hosts.
Right here’s the decide of the bunch:
- Significantly Easy Podcasting: Light-weight and completely free, this plugin makes podcasting very easy — even for full freshmen. It robotically generates podcast feeds for all main directories, embeds gamers in your posts, and handles media file internet hosting.
- PowerPress by Blubrry: When you’re critical about podcasting, you may need to seize this premium plugin. It brings a wealth of options to the desk, together with superior web optimization and detailed listener conduct stats.
- Castos: The corporate behind Significantly Easy Podcasting. This paid platform integrates with the free plugin so as to add additional options, similar to auto-transcription, non-public podcasting choices for members, and customized embedded gamers.
Our high tip: New listeners usually bounce in together with your newest content material. So, make navigation straightforward by organizing episodes with classes and tags primarily based on matters, visitors, or sequence.
9. Construct a Crowdfunding Web site (With out the Charges)
Websites like GoFundMe and Kickstarter make it easy to boost cash in your thought. The draw back is that they take a giant chunk (usually 5%–8%) out of your pre-orders or donations.
So…why not make your individual model on WordPress?
Even in case you consider transaction charges, you might avoid wasting critical cash.
Past the monetary advantages, having your individual crowdfunding website means full management over branding, donor relationships, and marketing campaign length.
Right here’s your toolbox:
- WP Crowdfunding: This specialised WooCommerce add-on converts your website right into a full-featured crowdfunding platform. It helps each “all-or-nothing” and “keep-what-you-raise” marketing campaign fashions, with reward tiers and marketing campaign deadlines.
- GiveWP: This highly effective freemium plugin is made for nonprofits and cause-based fundraising. It has really lovely donation types, and there’s even a text-to-give characteristic.
- Charitable: An ideal open supply different. It’s light-weight, with a streamlined interface and versatile marketing campaign sorts.
Our high tip: Individuals like to really feel one thing after they donate. Use visible milestone trackers and reward tiers to gamify the giving expertise. Even one thing easy like a progress bar can create a way of urgency.
10. Rejoice Life’s Huge Moments
Some occasions are essential sufficient to deserve a devoted web site.
No, we don’t imply Coachella.
We’re speaking about weddings, child showers, once-in-a-lifetime reunions. Any occasion that includes RSVPs, instructions, and gown codes.
You possibly can simply construct an internet site with WordPress and ship a hyperlink through electronic mail. That may work… kinda.
However with somewhat additional effort, you may make the digital lead-up higher for everybody. Right here’s what you want:
- SeedProd: This premium plugin is definitely made for constructing touchdown pages. You recognize, these layouts that folks use to promote books and programs. The built-in templates and easy controls additionally work completely for creating occasion sign-up pages.
- Elementor: It’s an apparent alternative, however an excellent one. This freemium web page builder means that you can create customized occasion web sites with pre-designed blocks for maps, galleries, countdown timers, and call types.
- The Occasions Calendar: This devoted (free) occasion administration plugin handles the sensible facet of celebration planning. Options embody customizable RSVP monitoring, visitor listing administration, occasion schedules, and integration with Google Maps for instructions.
Our high tip: Don’t simply give attention to the logistical info – use your occasion web site to inform your story. For weddings, share the way you met, your proposal story, and introduce your marriage ceremony celebration. For child showers or gender reveals, share the journey to parenthood.
Do Extra With WordPress
This submit actually simply provides you a style of what WordPress can do.
If you wish to dive deeper, we’ve a complete library of tutorials and guides to discover!
Improve Your WordPress Host
No matter you resolve to construct, WordPress needs to be as much as the job.
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