Websites are a 24/7 business, so you are not always guaranteed to be near a computer when you want to do work on your site. Luckily, there are now a growing range of mobile apps that make it much more convenient for WordPress users to manage, publish, and improve their websites whilst they are on the go. In this article, we’ll take a look at some of the best ones you can use.
Apps for Managing your WordPress site
These apps enable you to check on your website and make updates whilst you are out an about.
- WordPress.com App
Although this is a WordPress.com app, it works for both self-hosted and WordPress hosted websites and gives users the ability to write and publish blog posts from anywhere with a connection. With this app you can make more productive use of your daily commute or even abandon the office for the caf©. In addition to publishing posts, you can also check your site stats, respond to comments and if you have Jetpack enabled, you can even use it to share your posts on social media sites. - The WooCommerce App
Millions of people use WooCommerce to run their WordPress e-commerce store and now you can keep up-to-date with your latest orders and customer enquiries from all your stores – wherever you are. This app has many useful functions: it lets you manage your inventory, keep a close eye on order statuses and shipping details and gives you an overview of sales stats and revenues. You also have full access to your entire stock catalogue. The WooCommerce app has a very user-friendly interface and is a breeze to set up just input your WooCommerce API and it will sync automatically with your online stores. Unfortunately, there is only an iOS version available at the present time. - Google Analytics App
In many ways, the Google Analytics app has a better user interface and is simpler to use than the website version, making it easy to monitor your website’s visitor statistics in real-time. Whilst you do not get all the functionality that the website version offers, there is still access to highly detailed information, much of it presented in a graphic format perfectly suited to a smaller screen. The Google Analytics app is available in both iOS and Android versions. - Apps for publishing to WordPress
Whether you have a lightbulb moment on the bus or need to meet a deadline before leaving the airport departure lounge, the ability to write when on the go is sometimes a necessity. Here are a couple of apps that enable you to write and publish. - Ulysses
This award winning iOS app is a very popular mobile tool for many WordPress users and is ideal for using on iPads and iPhones. Ulysses enables you to write your posts, use HTML mark-up for headings, etc., attach images and then publish or schedule directly to WordPress. It even gives you a live preview. - Desk
Beautifully designed and with an intuitive, user-friendly interface, Desk is another award winning iOS app that lets you blog on the go with ease. Offering a range of features including the ability to change font styles and sizes, use mark-up, edit posts without having to log in to WordPress, and publish to your choice of platform directly from the app. - Apps for social media and email marketing
Mobiles are great not just for browsing social media but also for posting and managing your accounts. To give you the best tools for doing this on the go, check out these apps. - Buffer
Used by over 3 million people, Buffer is a great tool for managing your social media posts. It integrates perfectly with WordPress and lets you create and schedule posts, updates and other messages to all social media platforms. Buffer also works with multimedia posts, letting you share images and videos. You can upload your videos to Buffer for streaming and there’s even an add-on which can be used to edit images before posting. Buffer is available for both iOS and Android. - Disqus
Disqus is designed to help websites build communities through the use of comments, which is perfect for WordPress blogs. However, it also enables you to aggregate all your comments in one place for better management so that you can respond to your readers wherever you are. As an added bonus, Disqus comes with a native ads platform called Reveal that can help you earn additional income from your WordPress site. Disqus is not an app, but a free to use tool that can work on both desktop and mobile browsers. - MailChimp
The most powerful marketing channel at your disposal is your email list and for many WordPress users, MailChimp is the champion of email plugins, offering you exceptional functionality for your email and newsletter marketing campaigns. Now MailChimp has gone one stage further and developed an app that enables you to manage your lists, add new subscribers, send campaigns and view your reports. Simply connect to your MailChimp account and all your existing lists and newsletters will be accessible. One drawback is that, at the present time, you can’t create a new campaign on a mobile phone, however, it is possible to do it using a tablet. MailChimp is available in both iOS and Android versions. - LiveChat
Live chat is becoming increasingly popular on websites for both sales and customer service. It’s a fantastic way to answer questions, solve problems and help customers choose the right product. It’s also a great way to interact and build relationships. However, it never looks good when live chat isn’t live and you have to leave a message. Now, users of the LiveChat plugin can also get a mobile app which enables WordPress website owners to deal with customer enquiries wherever you might be.
Conclusion
Using apps is a great way to free yourself from the desk and give yourself the flexibility to work where and when you want and get things done when you need to. Whilst apps don’t provide every bit of functionality as their desktop versions, they do provide us with the essential features needed to keep our WordPress sites updated and enable us to respond quickly to matters that need dealing with.
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