No doubt you’ve already heard that people will mostly buy from people they know, like and trust.
Are you searching for simple ideas to sell more products online? Then one of the things you can do, is help prospects get to know, like and trust you, your team and your business better.
Adding a ‘Meet Our Team’ directory to your website is a great way to personalize your organization.
This step-by-step tutorial will show you how to create and add a simple and easy-to-update staff directory in your website.
WordPress Plugin Tutorial: Adding An Employee List Directory To Your WordPress Site
In this tutorial, you will learn how to install, activate and configure a no cost plugin called Simple Staff List.
Simple Staff List Plugin For WordPress
(Simple Staff List WordPress Plugin)
Simple Staff List lets you easily employee (you could also use it to display faculty members, etc.).
The first step is to install and activate the plugin.
Log into the administration and from the admin menu, select Plugins > Add New …
(WP Plugins Menu – Add New)
In the Plugins panel, search for “simple staff plugin”. This brings up the Simple Staff Plugin in your plugin search results.
Click on the Install Now button …
(Plugins – plugin search results)
Click on Activate Plugin …
(Activate plugin)
After your plugin has been installed and activated, a new entry will appear on your main WP menu section called Staff Members …
(Staff Members)
All of the options and settings for this plugin are configured and managed from this menu.
Plugin Configuration
Depending on the size of your team and how you want to structure your staff directory, you can start adding new entries after installing the plugin, or create different groups (i.e. categories) to assign yourmembers into.
Staff Members – Groups
To set up your directory groups go to your dashboard menu and choose Staff Members > Groups …
(Staff Members – Groups)
This opens up the Groups settings screen …
(Groups settings)
Note: Adding groups is similar to working with categories in WordPress …
(Groups work just like categories)
Add a new group by typing in the following information:
- Group Name – Enter your category name here
- Slug – Enter the slug of your group. Note: make sure that all letters are in lower case and use hyphens instead of spaces.
- Parent – Use this section if you plan to set up nested groups
- Description – Enter a category description
- Click Add New Group when done to create a new group …
(Groups settings area)
If you manage a business that employs many people, being able to create categories can be very useful. For example, you can create groups for partners, project teams, faculties, etc.
Create as many categories and nested categories as you want by adding new Groups and then using the Parent drop-down menu to organize these into a directory hierarchy …
(Nested groups)
Remember to click the Add New Group button after creating new items …
To edit or reassign Groups for specific items, hover your mouse over a category title and click on the Edit link …
The category open in the Edit Group screen. Select a new parent group category from the Parent drop-down menu …
(Edit Group screen)
Click the Update button when done …
To edit the Group name or slug, hover over the group name and choose the Quick Edit menu feature …
Click on Update Group when done …
Continue adding groups in this section until you have created your directory structure …
Add as many nested categories as you like …
(Nested categories)
Once you are done setting up your groups, you can start adding staff details to your directory.
Staff Members – Add New
From your WordPress admin menu, click on Staff Members > Add New …
(Staff Members – Add New)
The Add New Staff Member area …
(Add New Staff Member settings screen)
This page provides an easy-to-use interface for adding your staff member details and includes the following fields:
Name Section (1)
- Name: Type your staff member’s name
- Slug: You can modify the slug associated with your employee if you want (this section appears after your first save).
Staff Photo Section (2)
- Photo: Upload a photo in this section
Staff Member Info Section (3)
- Position: The employee’s position
- Email: The employee’s email address
- Phone Number: Your employee’s phone number
- Facebook URL: Add the person’s Facebook URL (note: use the full URL, e.g. http://www.facebook.com/username)
- Twitter URL: Add your company’s Twitter username into this field (note: only enter the username, not the full twitter URL)
Staff Member Bio Section (4)
- Staff Member Bio: Type in a profile description for your staff or faculty member here. This uses the WordPress Text Editor, so you can format content in this section.
Groups Section (5)
- Groups: This section lets you assign the person to a specific group (see the previous section to learn how to set up your groups).
Click on the Screen Options tab at the top of your screen …
(Screen options tab)
You can enable additional features …
(Enable additional fields in screen options tab)
Now that you know what each section does, enter each employee’s details …
(Add Staff Member fields)
After you are done inputting details, assign the new item to a directory group in the Groups feature located in the sidebar …
(Groups feature)
Note: If you have not set up groups before starting to add new staff members, you can add a new group in this screen by clicking on Groups > + Add New Group …
(Add a new group inside your Groups box)
A field for entering your new group name will display, with a drop-down menu to assign your new entry to a parent group. Enter your new directory category and click on the Add New Group button …
A new group will be added. Remember to tick the checkbox to assign your listing to the group …
(Groups box)
Note: Groups cannot be edited when adding or making changes to a staff or faculty member’s details. To edit a group entry, go to the Groups section of the plugin’s settings (see “Groups” section of the tutorial above for details).
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After filling in your employee’s details, click the Publish button …
Click View Post …
You can update the person’s profile by clicking the Edit Staff Member link in the admin toolbar …
(Edit Staff Member link – WP admin toolbar)
If you need help using the admin toolbar , go here:
Note: If errors shows up like the one shown in the screenshot below, check that you have correctly configured your permalinks …
(Not found error – Check your permalinks)
We have written a detailed tutorial on using permalinks in WordPress here:
Keep adding more entries to your employee or member directory until done.
Staff Members – All Staff Members
After entering staff members to your directory, you can view and edit their details by selecting Staff Members > All Staff Members on your menu …
(Staff Members – All Staff Members)
This brings up a table listing all your directory items and the details you have added with each entry …
(Staff Members details)
If you need to modify an individual’s entry, simply hover your mouse over their name, and a menu will appear.
Click on Edit if you need to make changes to their Staff Bio, or Quick Edit to change details such as their name, slug, group, and publish status. You can also delete a member from the staff directory by clicking on the Trash link, or view the entry on your site by clicking on View …
(Edit Staff Members profile)
If you have many entries, your list can become unwieldy.
You can use the Search Staff Members search feature to locate entries …
(Search members)
The plugin also lets you specify which fields can display in this screen. To hide or hide fields on your screen, click on Screen Options …
(Staff Members Screen Options)
Placing a tick in the item’s check box displays the field and unselecting it hides the field. You can also select how many staff members are listed per page. Click the Apply button when done to update your settings …
Staff Members – Order
The Simple Staff List plugin also features a drag-and-drop interface that lets you set the order in which your employee profiles show on your directory pages.
Click Staff Members > Order on your menu …
(Staff Members – Order)
To reorder your entries, click and drag the entry to the desired location …
(Reorder items using drag and drop)
Your list will automatically be reordered …
(Reordered list items)
Once you are done adding staff listing details to the directory, the next step is to make the directory display on your site.
Staff Members – Order
Simple Staff List also features a drag-and-drop interface allowing you to specify the order that listings appear on your directory pages.
Click Staff Members > Order in the main menu …
(Staff Members Menu – Order)
To rearrange the order of your entries, click and drag the item to the desired position …
(Rearrange items using drag and drop)
Your list will be automatically rearranged …
(Reordered list entries)
Once you have added all of your members’ listing details to your directory, the next step is to make your directory show on your site.
Simple Staff List – Additional Notes
The plugin also lets you edit the style and layout of your employee directory entries using template tags and CSS (Cascading Style Sheets).
Templates Menu
To customize the style and layout of your employee directory, select Staff Members > Templates from the WP admin menu …
(Staff Members Menu – Templates)
This opens the Templates page …
(Simple Staff List Templates screen)
To customize your directory listings, reorganize any of the allowable template tags inside the [staff_loop] [/staff_loop] code.
For example, here is the Default Template …
(Default Staff Loop Template)
The above code displays the listing shown below …
(Default Template Listing)
Notice that there are no Facebook or Twitter URLs showing in the above example. To make these fields show in your directory, you will need to include the [staff-facebook] and [staff-twitter] tags in the template loop, as shown in the screenshot below …
(Use template tags to customize your directory page)
Here is what your staff list will now look like …
(Directory listings with social media URLs added)
Note: If you want to customize your directory listings but don’t want to mess around with editing code or are unsure of what to do, please contact us for assistance.
Usage Menu
As well as being able to customize your directory templates, the Simple Staff List plugin allows you to display your listings differently using modified shortcodes.
In your dashboard menu, select Staff Members >Usage …
(Staff Members – Usage)
This opens the Usage screen …
(Simple Staff List plugin shortcodes)
This screen lists all different shortcode variations that the plugin lets you use.
A useful shortcode variation you can select, for example, to display a list of employees belonging only to a specific group is the shortcode [simple-staff-list group=”group name”], (e.g.:[simple-staff-list group=”sales managers”])
You can also make your listings display in ascending or descending order by adding the shortcode [simple-staff-list order=”ASC”] (ascending).
Options Menu
Click Staff Members >Options in your main menu …
(Staff Members – Options)
This brings up the Options page …
(Simple Staff List – Options screen)
This section lets you modify some of the labels used in the plugin
Finally, you can also export your staff members info from the Tools > Export screen …
(Export Staff Members plugin information)
If you need plugin help or support, visit the Simple Staff List plugin website.
Additional WordPress Plugins For Creating Employee Directories
Simple Staff List is not the only WordPress employee directory plugin you can use. For example, here are a few other free WordPress plugins you can use:
Modern Team Staff Directory
(Modern Team Staff Directory – Plugin For WordPress)
This plugin helps you collect your team information and showcase it anywhere on your site in beautiful grids, columns and tables. This premium plugin features over a dozen presets and provides editors that make it easy to edit and update your directory.
(Modern Team Staff Directory – Responsive Templates)
For more details, visit the plugin site here:
Staff Directory
(Staff Directory – WordPress Plugin)
Staff Directory lets you easily display a list of team/faculty/staff members. The plugin supports staff categories and can be used for companies, schools, etc.
This plugin also lets you use custom fields …
(Custom Details Fields. Screenshot source: plugin website)
Learn more about this plugin here:
Faculty And Staff Directory
(Faculty And Staff Directory – WP Staff Directory Plugin)
The Faculty And Staff Directory plugin provides a simple and flexible faculty and staff directory for a small college, school or university.
The plugin also installs a widget that allows you to feature profiles in a widget area.
Go here to learn more:
Company Directory
(Company Directory – WordPress Plugin)
Company Directory lets you easily add your employees to your site. Different layouts are included, including list and customizable single views, as well as fields like position title, email address, phone number, photo and bio, allowing visitors to get to know your company and capabilities.
Visitors can click through from your list, grid, and table views to read more about each staff member in a customizable single view …
(Display your staff and faculty in an easy to view format. Screenshot sourced from Company Directory plugin website)
This plugin uses simple shortcodes.
For more details, visit the plugin site here:
Employee Spotlight
(Employee Spotlight – Plugin For WordPress)
Employee Spotlight displays employees, founders or just a single member of your team in a four-column circle grid page. This page can be easily created with a setup assistant on plugin activation.
Employee Spotlight includes two sidebar widgets which display featured and recent employees selected in the editor, and two responsive views which adjust to the viewer’s screen.
Detailed information about each faculty member can be displayed in their own page, as well as in summary …
(Responsive layout with circle grid. Screenshot source: Employee Spotlight plugin website)
To learn more about the plugin go here:
Staffer
(Staffer – WP Staff Directory Plugin)
This plugin uses custom post types for staff management and supports the display of staff members via a shortcode, allowing you to easily create and manage an online employee directory …
(Staffer archive page. Screenshot source: Staffer website)
Staffer works with almost all WordPress themes, and also allows for custom template use and custom content wrappers.
Go here to learn more:
If the directory plugins listed above aren’t what you’re looking for, search the WordPress plugin directory or go online and search for:
- Add Staff Directory To WordPress
- WordPress Staff Plugin
- Staff Directory WordPress Plugin
- Employee Directory WordPress
- etc.
Congratulations! Now you know how to add a simple directory of staff members to your WordPress site with no coding skills required, so you can better showcase the people in your business, team, or organization.
Images of models used in this tutorial to display sample staff members were sourced under creative commons license from pixabay.com
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