Adding Social Share Buttons to Your WordPress Site: A Comprehensive Guide

Adding social share buttons to your WordPress site is a practical way to encourage engagement, increase visibility, and drive more traffic to your content. Whether you choose a plugin or opt for manual code insertion, adding these buttons can enhance user experience and improve your site's SEO. In this guide, we will walk you through the process of adding social share buttons to your WordPress site using popular plugins and methods.

Using a Plugin: The Easy Way

The quickest and most user-friendly method to add social share buttons to your WordPress site is by using a plugin. Three popular and highly-rated plugins for this purpose are Jetpack, Pug Social, and Fox Orbit Companion. Below is a detailed guide on how to use these plugins effectively.

Jetpack

Jetpack is a versatile plugin that provides a wide range of features, including the sharing module. To add social share buttons via Jetpack:

Install and Activate: Log in to your WordPress dashboard. Navigate to the Plugins section and search for Jetpack.

Configure Settings: After activating Jetpack, go to its settings page and select the sharing module. Here, you can choose the social networks you want to support, such as Twitter, Facebook, Google , and more.

Save Changes: Adjust the settings as needed and click Save Changes.

Pug Social

Pug Social is a free plugin that allows you to customize social share buttons easily. This plugin supports five major social networks:

Facebook Twitter Google LinkedIn Pinterest

To use Pug Social:

Install and Activate: Search for Pug Social in the WordPress plugin directory and install it.

Configure Settings: Go to the plugin settings page to choose the social networks you want to use and customize the buttons as desired.

Save Changes: Click Save Changes.

Fox Orbit Companion

The Fox Orbit Companion plugin, available for free, includes a Social Media Share Buttons module that offers a wide range of sharing options. This module includes over 20 social sharing buttons provided by Orbit Fox.

Install and Activate: Search for Fox Orbit Companion and install it.

Configure Settings: Go to the module settings to choose the social networks you want to use and customize the buttons.

Save Changes: Click Save Changes.

Alternative Methods: Code Snippets and Manual Insertion

For those who prefer a more customized approach, you can add social share buttons using code snippets. Here is an example using the a link script iframe HTML tags:

Share on Facebook

Or, if you are familiar with using Elementor page builder, you can use the Social Share Widget to add buttons to your pages. This widget supports many social networks, such as Facebook, Pinterest, Reddit, Google , and even email.

Benefits of Adding Social Share Buttons

Adding social share buttons to your WordPress site offers several benefits:

Increased Organic Traffic: Encourage visitors to share your content, thereby driving more traffic to your site. Better User Engagement: Social sharing buttons provide users with a quick and easy way to engage with your content. SEO Optimization: Inclusion of social share buttons can enhance your site's SEO by providing structured data for search engines. Better User Experience: Offering share buttons inline with your content can improve user experience by making engagement more convenient.

Conclusion

Adding social share buttons to your WordPress site is a straightforward and beneficial task. Whether you choose to use a plugin or opt for manual code insertion, the key is to select the right tool and configure it to meet your needs. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can enhance your site's functionality and attractiveness to users, ultimately driving more traffic and engagement.