One of the best ways to get traffic to your website is through the use of social sharing buttons. The problem, however, is that while many social sharing options exist, their features vary. Some offer fewer sharing options, some only work on WordPress, and some require more technical expertise to install and configure.

Here is a list of 10 social sharing alternatives that I have tested and recommend. A few are plugins designed specifically for WordPress, but others can be used on almost any website.

1. ShareThis

Used by thousands of sites, ShareThis is one of the most popular sharing tools. It is not limited to WordPress either. Practically any site can embed ShareThis buttons.

Many button styles are offered, small to large, and can display social reach numbers — i.e., the number of times a post has been shared. ShareThis also has one of the largest selections of social sites, including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, StumbleUpon and many others. However, one drawback is that it does not support Pinterest.

ShareThis includes the capability for both static and "floating" sharing widgets, in either vertical or horizontal orientations.

2. Socialize

According to its website, Socialize — a WordPress plugin — was designed to make managing and adding actionable social sharing buttons easier and more efficient.

Buttons can be added either inside a blog post or in a box below. The box contains text that encourages readers to subscribe to the blog and leave comments. Additional text can be included, such as calls to action or product mentions.

Socialize offers 12 of the most popular buttons including Pinterest and Buffer, a relatively new app that enables readers to schedule sharing times in order to increase reach and visibility.

3. AddThis

AddThis works on most any website, not just to WordPress. Buttons can be personalized to show users the services that they use most often, and integration with over 300 services — Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, many more — is available. AddThis also includes Pinterest as a sharing option.

4. Sharexy

Sharexy gives users the capability to customize not only the look of sharing buttons, but placement either at the top or bottom of the post, as well. Users can choose from over 20 social networks to share with, and sharing via email is also included.

Like ShareThis and AddThis, Sharexy can be used on any type of site. A WordPress plugin is also available.

Sharexy offers both static or floating sharing widgets that can be positioned on the left or right hand side of the page, or at the top and bottom, depending on the user's preference.

5. Digg Digg

Digg Digg is a WordPress plugin created by Buffer. Users can display all the popular social sharing buttons such as Twitter, Buffer, Facebook (both Share and Like), LinkedIn, Google +1, Reddit, Pinterest and many others.

Customization choices include a floating bar that resides on either the left or right hand side of the page, or at the top or bottom of the blog post. Support for email and print are also included.