Snippet or code snippet is a portion of a text or source code that is inserted into a programming code. This is used when programmers have to repeat the same text or code without having to type them again using a context menu, snippets can be copied and pasted. In other words, it is reusable.
If you are hosting your site through WordPress hosting, there are a lot of good snippet plugins you can use. Some are paid while others are free. To help you start with free snippets, here are 10 good free snippets plugins you can use:
1. Tracking Code Manager
This plugin allows you to manage all your scripts and tracking codes in just one platform or page. Using tracking code manager plugin, you won’t have to worry where you should place your codes. You can place them anywhere you want. There is no restriction. This is because tracking code manager will help you organize them.
With this plugin, you can easily locate codes, scripts, and snippets when you need to reuse them. The plugin also automatically detects another plugin such as an e-commerce plugin. Every time there is a competed sale in your store, tracking code manager will automatically convert pixels.
2. Rich Reviews
Rich Reviews plugin helps you organize and optimize how a review section of your page appears to your visitors. Your goal is to make visitors give their reviews, and this plugin will help you increase such a probability. There is no question why reviews are important. Aside from strengthening your credibility, reviews are also preferred by Google because of the presence of genuine user interaction. This functionality is built around short codes.
Using this plugin, your positive reviews will appear in SERP as rich snippets that calls the attention of search engine users to open your site because it offers great products or services as what the reviews and ratings have suggested.
3. Author hReview
Author hReview plugin will help you get more traffic by making your rich snippets more attractive in SERP. The reason why site owners must have good snippets in SERP is because Google wants to select websites with complete information. Snippets are the first available information users can find upon searching Google. This is why even author reviews may be seen as attractive snippets. Contrary to typical reviews, this plugin does not actually allow visitors or customers to review. This is a type of review from an editorial standpoint. Nevertheless, this type of review will make your site more credible in SERP.
4. Code Snippets
Usually, sites that host snippets would ask you to add snippets to your theme’s functions.php file. Using this method normally ends up in a mess. Furthermore, it takes a while to do it. Even most web developers find this task daunting. With this plugin, you can immediately see changes through GUI interface without performing coding on functions.php file but completing the same task. In other words, this plugin will give you graphical interface while in the process so you won’t have to worry whether or not you did the right thing. This plugin is very lightweight, too.
5. SEO Wizard
Writing snippets wouldn’t be difficult with the use of this plugin. It will allow you to choose how your snippets will appear in SERP by simply typing the snippets in appropriate boxes. You can choose to make snippets not only for SERP but also for social media shares. This means you can easily control how your post should appear different in different networks. Using SEO Wizard, you are also able to create meta titles or meta descriptions as if you are only typing them on a notepad without the need to insert them within codes. Aside from that, you can also use this plugin to choose whether or not a page should be indexed by Google.
6. Cleverwise Daily Quotes
Some website owners are not satisfied with permanent snippets. They want their sites to actively feed snippets as daily quotes. However, it is difficult to keep on doing this everyday over and over again. With Cleverwise Daily Quotes plugin, you will be able to easily add changing content the way a image slides shows different photos without a need to keep on adding images. You can add a series of quotes once and for all or add a batch periodically. There is no limit as to how many quotes you add and how many times a quote changes.
7. GenerateWP oEmbed
GenerateWP oEmbed plugin offers another way to add snippets to your site. Traditionally, snippets are inserted within codes. There are still people who are more comfortable dealing codes. If you are one of them, this plugin is for you. Nevertheless, it will also help you in many ways as this plugin will automatically generate a code that you can embed. What you have to do is to select a snippet in your dashboard if you have already created some. Copy the url of the snippet. Afterward, paste it into your text editor. Check the visual editor to see if it loads correctly.
8. Pastebin Embed
Pastebin is a web-based service that offers developers capability to share large text content for a certain period of time. It works like cloud services, but it has a plugin that must be installed to sites that are using WordPress hosting. Using the plugin, you can simply choose your Pastebin item like snippet, copy its url, and paste it into your text editor. After pasting it, you can proceed again to your visual editor to check if everything turns out right. This works like GenerateWP oEmbed. The difference is that your content and other source codes are not in your dashboard but in a third-party cloud service provider. This will save much more space.
9. WP Customer Reviews
This is simply another plugin that works exactly like Rich Reviews. Nevertheless, it is better to have at least two options so you can find out yourself what works better for you.
10. WP Attention Boxes
If you want a more flashy white or yellow box that pops up to call attention for your message, this plugin will keep it in a snippet library and is readily available when you want to edit.
Conclusion
There are a lot of snippet plugins you can choose for your website. You don’t have to use them all. You can select a few or even start with the only one that fits your need. Nonetheless, the above plugins are proven to be useful.