AI Social Booster is a free add-on for Easy Social Share Buttons that uses artificial intelligence to generate high-engagement social media titles, descriptions, tweets, Pinterest descriptions, post ideas, and share messages directly from your WordPress content.
Requirements #
- Easy Social Share Buttons for WordPress with a direct Freemius license
- An API key from a supported AI provider (OpenAI recommended)
Important: This add-on works only with direct licenses purchased via our website https://socialsharingplugin.com and issued by Freemius. If you purchased Easy Social Share Buttons from CodeCanyon, you need to migrate your license first. Learn how to migrate →
Installation #
- Upload the
essb-ai-boosterfolder to your/wp-content/plugins/directory - Activate the plugin through the Plugins screen in WordPress
- Navigate to Easy Social Share Buttons → AI Social Booster in your admin menu
You can also install the add-on directly from the Add-ons menu inside Easy Social Share Buttons for WordPress. This method lets you browse, install, and activate available extensions without leaving your WordPress dashboard, making the setup process faster and more convenient.
Settings Overview #
The plugin settings are organized into tabs. Let’s walk through each one.
General Tab #
This is where you configure your AI provider connection and content preferences.
AI Provider Section #
Provider
Select which AI service to use for content generation. OpenAI is the recommended and most stable option. Other providers are available in alpha and may have limited functionality.
Model
Choose the specific AI model for your provider. For OpenAI, GPT-5.5 is recommended for the best balance of quality and cost. If you need more precise results, GPT-5.5 Pro offers enhanced accuracy. For cost-sensitive workflows, GPT-5 Mini provides good results at a lower token cost.
The model dropdown updates automatically when you change providers, showing only models available for that specific service.
API Key
Enter your API key from the selected provider. Each provider has its own dedicated key field that appears when you select that provider. Your API key is stored securely and never displayed in plain text after saving.
Test Connection
After entering your API key, click this button to verify the connection is working correctly. A success message confirms your key and endpoint are properly configured. If the test fails, check your API key and ensure your account has available credits.
Content Settings Section #
Max Content Length
Sets the maximum number of characters extracted from your post content and sent to the AI. The default is 500 characters. Lower values use fewer tokens but may produce less relevant results. Higher values provide more context but cost more per generation.
Default Tone
The tone of voice the AI will use when generating social media content. Available options include:
| Tone | Best For |
|---|---|
| Professional | Business content, formal announcements |
| Friendly | Community engagement, casual brands |
| Humorous | Entertainment, lighthearted content |
| Enthusiastic | Product launches, exciting news |
| Informative | Educational content, how-to guides |
| Casual | Lifestyle blogs, personal content |
| Witty | Brand personality, creative campaigns |
| Formal | Corporate communications, press releases |
| Inspirational | Motivational content, quotes |
| Urgent | Limited-time offers, breaking news |
This is the default value used when generating content. You can always change the tone when generating individual posts.
Default Content Type
Tells the AI what kind of content it’s working with. This helps the AI tailor its output more precisely. Options include:
- Post, Product, Page, Event, Course, Recipe
- Guide, Tutorial, Review, Interview, Case Study
- News, Announcement, How-To, Listicle, Deal
- Story, Webinar, Podcast, Comparison, Newsletter
Display Options Section #
Enable Customizing Content
When enabled, a text area appears in the editor popup allowing you to enter custom content instead of using the post content automatically. This is useful when you want to generate social media text from a specific excerpt, summary, or external text rather than the full post.
Leave this disabled if you always want to use the post content as-is.
Show Optimization Button
Controls whether the AI Social Booster button appears on post edit screens. When disabled, the button is hidden everywhere.
Debugging Section #
Enable Debug Log
When enabled, all API requests and responses are logged to wp-content/essb-ai-booster/debug.log. This is invaluable for troubleshooting if generations aren’t working as expected. The log keeps the last 100 entries and automatically rotates older entries.
When logging is enabled, a Debug Log tab appears in the navigation where you can view and clear log entries.
Post Types Section #
Select which WordPress post types should display the AI Social Booster button. By default, Posts and Pages are selected. You can enable it for any public post type including custom post types like Products, Events, Courses, and more.
Simply toggle the switch next to each post type you want to include.
Prompts Tab #
This tab lets you customize the exact instructions sent to the AI for each social media component. Each prompt template can include variables that are automatically replaced with real values:
| Variable | Replaced With |
|---|---|
{content} | The post content (or custom content) |
{tone} | The selected tone of voice |
{content_type} | The selected content type |
{max_length} | The max content length setting |
Available Prompt Templates:
- Social Media Title — Generates the Open Graph title
- Social Media Description — Generates the Open Graph description
- Tweet — Generates the tweet text
- Pinterest Description — Generates the Pinterest pin description
- Post Idea — Generates a social media post idea
- Share Message — Generates a share message for mobile messaging apps (WhatsApp, Viber, Telegram)
- Combined Prompt — Used when generating multiple components at once (saves tokens)
Each prompt field has a Default button that restores the original template if you’ve made changes you want to undo.
AI Generate Tab #
This is a standalone content generator available directly in the plugin settings. Unlike the editor integration, it doesn’t require a post — you paste or type any content and generate individual social media components.
Component
Select which type of content to generate:
- Social Media Title
- Social Media Description
- Tweet
- Pinterest Description
- Post Idea
- Share Message
Social Network (appears when Post Idea is selected)
Choose which platform to optimize the post idea for:
- General, Facebook, X (Twitter), Pinterest, Instagram, LinkedIn
Each platform gets specific optimization instructions to maximize engagement on that network.
URL to Include (appears for Post Idea, Tweet, and Share Message)
Enter a URL to be naturally included in the generated message.
Content (required)
Paste or type the content you want to generate from. The more detailed and relevant the content, the better the AI result will be.
URL Sources (optional)
Enter one URL per line to provide additional context. The AI will fetch and read these pages for more information.
⚠️ Warning: Reading URLs consumes significantly more tokens and may quickly deplete your API balance.
Tone & Content Type
Same options as the General settings — select the appropriate tone and content type for better results.
After clicking Generate, the result appears in an editable text area below with a Copy button.
Generated Data Tab #
This tab displays all cached AI generations. Every time you generate social media content — whether from the editor or the AI Generate tab — it’s stored here for future reference and to prevent redundant API calls.
Filter Bar
Search by post ID, post title, or content text. You can also filter by component type (Title, Description, Tweet, etc.). Click Filter to apply or Clear to reset.
Table Columns:
- Post — Shows the post ID (or “AI Generated” for standalone generations) and post title
- Component — The type of content generated
- Generated Content — A preview of the generated text
- Date — When it was generated
- Actions — View and Delete buttons
View Button (eye icon)
Opens a modal showing the full generated content along with post details, component type, generation date, and source (Editor or AI Generate Tab). Includes a Copy to Clipboard button.
Delete Button (trash icon)
Removes individual cached entries. Useful for cleaning up old or unwanted generations.
Clear Data Button
Removes all cached entries from the table at once. Requires confirmation.
Pagination
Use the page numbers and rows-per-page selector at the bottom to navigate through large datasets.
Debug Log Tab #
Only visible when debug logging is enabled in the General tab. Shows the last 100 API request and response entries, color-coded by type:
- Blue — Requests sent to the AI
- Green — Responses received from the AI
- Red — Errors
Each entry shows the timestamp, type, message, and detailed data. Use this to troubleshoot issues with API connectivity or unexpected generation results.
The Clear Log button removes all entries.
Options Tab #
Export / Import Settings
- Export Settings — Downloads all plugin settings as a JSON file for backup or migration between sites. API keys are masked in the export for security.
- Import Settings — Restores settings from a previously exported JSON file. If API keys were masked in the export, your existing keys are preserved.
Danger Zone
- Reset All Settings — Restores all plugin settings to their factory defaults. Generated data, logs, and database tables are not affected.
- Delete All Plugin Data — Removes everything: settings, generated content cache, debug logs, and the database table. Requires typing “DELETE” to confirm. This action cannot be undone.
Generating Social Media Content on Posts #
The main workflow is generating social media content directly from your post edit screen.
Opening the Generator #
- Edit any post or page (or any post type you’ve enabled in settings)
- Make sure the post is saved — the button only appears for saved posts
- Click the AI Social Booster button
In the Classic Editor, the button appears in the Publish meta box. In the Block Editor, it appears as a panel in the Document sidebar.
Selecting Components #
The popup opens with toggle switches for each component:
- Social Title — On by default
- Social Description — On by default
- Tweet — On by default
- Pinterest — On by default
- Post Idea — Off by default
Toggle on the components you want to generate. The AI will generate all selected components in a single request to save tokens.
Custom Content (Optional) #
If you enabled “Customizing Content” in settings, a text area appears where you can paste custom content. Leave it empty to use the post content automatically. This is useful for generating from a specific excerpt or when you want to refine what the AI works with.
Tone and Content Type #
Adjust the tone and content type for this specific generation. The defaults from your settings are pre-selected.
Generating #
Click Generate Content. The AI processes your request and returns the results. For reasoning models like GPT-5.5, this may take a few extra moments.
Understanding Results #
The results screen shows each generated component in a card layout:
- Cached badge — Appears if the data was retrieved from cache rather than freshly generated
- Fresh badge — Appears for newly generated content
Each result card contains:
- The component name
- The generated text in an editable text area (you can modify it before saving)
- A save toggle (enabled by default) — turn off any component you don’t want to save
- Copy button — Copies the text to your clipboard
- Regenerate button — Generates a fresh version of just this component
Saving to Post Meta #
Click Save to Easy Social Share Buttons to write the generated content to your post’s social media meta fields in Easy Social Share Buttons for WordPress.
Only components with the save toggle enabled are written. Post Idea is never saved to meta — it’s for inspiration only.
Cached vs Fresh Data #
When you generate content for a post, the results are cached in the database. If you open the generator again for the same post with the same components, you’ll see the cached data immediately — no API call needed. The results screen shows a “Cached” badge to indicate this.
To force a fresh generation:
- Use the Regenerate button on any individual component
- This ignores the cache and makes a new API call for that specific component
Tips for Best Results #
- Use descriptive content — The more context the AI has, the better the output. Posts with rich, detailed content produce better social media text than short or vague posts.
- Choose the right content type — Selecting the correct content type (News, Product, Recipe, etc.) helps the AI tailor its language appropriately.
- Adjust the tone — Match the tone to your brand voice. Professional for business, friendly for lifestyle, enthusiastic for launches.
- Review before saving — AI-generated content is a starting point. Edit the text in the results screen before saving to add your personal touch.
- Use the AI Generate tab for standalone content — When you need social media text for something that isn’t a WordPress post (emails, external articles, product descriptions), use the AI Generate tab.
- Monitor your API usage — Each generation consumes tokens from your AI provider account. The combined prompt (generating multiple components at once) is more token-efficient than generating components one at a time.
- Enable debug logging when troubleshooting — If generations aren’t working as expected, enable the debug log to see exactly what’s being sent to and received from the AI.