Something that is generally well known in business and marketing circles, is that people will buy from those they already know, like and trust.
If you are looking for cost-effective ways to sell more products online or get people to interact more on your site, then help visitors get to know, like and trust your organization better.
Adding a directory to your website can generate increased trust, boost your credibility online and get interested prospects considering using your services.
This step-by-step tutorial explains how to create and add an easy-to-update directory of staff to your web site.
How To Add A Staff List Directory
In this tutorial, we will install, activate and configure a plugin called Simple Staff List.
Simple Staff List Plugin For WordPress
(Simple Staff List WordPress Plugin)
Simple Staff List lets you easily employee.
The first step is to install and activate the plugin.
Log into your WordPress administration and navigate to Plugins > Add New …
(Plugins Menu – Add New)
In the Plugins area, search for “simple staff plugin”. This will bring up the Simple Staff Plugin in your search results area.
Click on Install Now …
(Plugins – Add Plugins screen)
Click on Activate Plugin …
(Activate plugin)
After your plugin has been installed and activated, a new entry will appear in the main WP menu bar called Staff Members …
(Staff Members)
All of the settings and options for this plugin are configured and managed from the Staff Members menu.
Configuring The Plugin
Depending on how many people are in your organization and how you want to structure your employee directory, you could just start to add new staff members after installing the plugin, or create several groups (i.e. categories) that you will assign to individual members.
Staff Members – Groups
To configure your groups go to your dashboard menu and select Staff Members > Groups …
(Staff Members – Groups)
This opens up the Groups area …
(Groups settings screen)
Note: Adding directory groups works in the same way as configuring WordPress categories …
(Groups work like WordPress categories)
Add a new group by entering the following information:
- Group Name – Enter your group category name here
- Slug – Type in the URL-friendly version of your category name. Note: make sure that all letters are in lower case and use hyphens instead of spaces.
- Parent – Use this drop-down menu if you plan to set up a directory hierarchy
- Description – Type in a category description in this field (optional)
- Click the Add New Group button when done to set up the new group name …
(Groups screen)
If you work with a business that employs many people, being able to create categories can be very useful. For example, you can create a category for investors, developers, departments, etc.
Create as many categories and nested categories as you need by adding new Groups and then using the Parent drop-down menu to assign these to a directory hierarchy …
(Nested groups)
Remember to click on the Add New Group button after entering new items …
To edit Groups for an individual entry, hover your mouse button over a category title and click on the Edit link …
The category details open in the Edit Group page. Select a new parent category from the Parent drop-down menu …
(Edit Group screen)
Click the Update button to save your changes …
To change your Group name or slug, hover your mouse over the group name and choose Quick Edit …
Click on Update Group after making changes …
Add as many groups as you need to until you have created your directory structure …
You can add as many nested categories as you like …
(Add nested categories your staff directory)
After you are done setting up your hierarchical structure, you can begin adding your people to your directory.
Staff Members – Add New
In your WordPress admin menu, choose Staff Members > Add New …
(Staff Members Menu – Add New)
The Add New Staff Member section …
(Add New Staff Member settings)
This section provides you with an easy-to-use interface for adding and editing your staff member information and includes the following fields:
Name Section (1)
- Name: Your employee’s name
- Slug: Edit the slug associated with your employee if required (this section appears after saving your details).
Staff Photo Section (2)
- Photo: Add a photo in this section
Staff Member Info Section (3)
- Position: Your staff member’s role
- Email: Enter the person’s email address
- Phone Number: Type in the person’s phone number
- Facebook URL: Add the staff member’s Facebook URL (note: use the full URL, e.g. http://www.facebook.com/username)
- Twitter URL: Enter the employee’s Twitter username (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 employees 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 above to learn how to set up groups).
Click on the Screen Options tab at the top of the screen …
(Screen options tab)
You can enable additional features …
(Enable additional fields in screen options)
Now that you know what each section does, enter each employee’s details …
(Add Staff Member settings)
Once you have entered details, assign your item to a directory group in the Groups feature in your sidebar …
(Groups box)
Note: If you have not set up categories before adding staff member details, you can add a new group by selecting Groups > + Add New Group …
(Groups > + Add New Group link)
A field for entering a group name will display, with a dropdown menu that lets you assign your new entry to a parent group. Type in the name of your new directory category and click on Add New Group …
Your new directory category will be added. Remember to tick the check box to assign a person’s details to the group …
(New group)
Note: You cannot edit groups when adding or editing a staff member’s details. To edit an item, go to the Groups section of the plugin’s settings (see “Groups” section of the tutorial above for details).
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After entering the person’s details, click the Publish button …
Click View Post …
To modify your member profile, click on the Edit Staff Member link in the admin toolbar …
(Edit Staff Member link – admin toolbar)
We have written a detailed tutorial about using the dashboard admin toolbar here:
Note: If errors like the one shown in the screenshot below shows up, check that you have correctly set up your permalinks …
(Check your permalinks if you get an error)
If you need help setting up permalinks in WordPress, go here:
Continue adding more entries to your staff or team directory as described above.
Staff Members – All Staff Members
After entering staff details into your directory, you can view and edit details by selecting Staff Members > All Staff Members on your dashboard menu …
(Staff Members Menu – All Staff Members)
This brings up a table listing all the listing entries and details you have added for each entry …
(Staff Members list)
If you need to make changes to individual entries, simply hover over their name, and a menu will appear.
Click on Edit to make changes to the Staff Bio, or Quick Edit to change details such as their name, slug, group, and publish status. You can also remove a member from the employee directory by clicking on Trash, or view the entry on your site by clicking View …
(Edit Staff Members profile)
If you have added many employees to this section, your list can get quite long.
You can use the Search Staff Members search feature to locate listing items …
(Search members)
You can specify which fields can display in this section. To hide or hide fields on your screen, click on Screen Options …
(Staff Members Screen Options tab)
Selecting a check box displays the field and unselecting it hides the field. You can also choose how many staff members are listed per page. Click the Apply button when finished to save your preferences …
Staff Members – Order
Simple Staff List also features a drag-and-drop interface that lets you specify the order that your staff details appear on your directory pages.
Select Staff Members > Order on the menu …
(Staff Members – Order)
To reorder your listings, click and drag the item to the desired location …
(Reorder items using drag and drop)
Your list will be automatically rearranged …
(Reordered list items)
Once you have added all of your staff details to your directory, the next step is to display the directory to your visitors.
Staff Members – Order
Simple Staff List also features a drag-and-drop interface allowing you to specify the order that listings display on your directory pages.
Select Staff Members > Order on your menu …
(Staff Members Menu – Order)
To reorder your entries, click and drag the item to the new position …
(Reorder employee listings using drag and drop)
Your directory will be automatically reordered …
(Reordered list)
Once you have added all of your employees’ listing details to your directory, the next step is to display your directory on your site.
Simple Staff List – Additional Notes
Simple Staff List also lets you customize the style and layout of your staff list listings 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 – Templates)
This brings up the Templates screen …
(Templates page)
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 used for displaying directory listings …
(Default Simple Staff List Template)
The above code displays the listing shown below …
(Default Simple Staff List Staff Loop Template Listing)
Notice that there are no Facebook or Twitter URLs showing in the above listing. To display these fields, we will need to include the [staff-facebook] and [staff-twitter] tags in the template loop, as shown in the screenshot below …
(Template tags can be added to Staff Loop Template)
Your directory listings will now display as shown in the screenshot below …
(Employee profiles with social media URLs added)
Note: If you want to customize how your directory looks but don’t want to mess with template tags or are not sure what to do, please contact us for assistance.
Usage Menu
As well as allowing you to customize your directory templates, the Simple Staff List plugin allows you to display your staff profiles differently using modified shortcodes.
In your main menu, select Staff Members >Usage …
(Staff Members Menu – Usage)
This opens the Usage screen …
(Usage Shortcode section)
This screen provides a list of all different shortcode variations that the plugin lets you use.
A useful variation you can choose, for example, to display only members of a specific group is the shortcode [simple-staff-list group=”group name”], (e.g.:[simple-staff-list group=”technical engineers”])
Or, you can display listings in ascending or descending order by using the shortcode [simple-staff-list order=”ASC”] (ascending).
Options Menu
Choose Staff Members >Options in the menu …
(Staff Members Menu – Options)
This opens the Options screen …
(Simple Staff List – Options settings)
This section lets you modify labels like Staff Members URL Slug and Staff Member titles
You can also export your staff members data by going to the menu and selecting Tools > Export …
(Export Staff Members plugin info)
If you need plugin help or support, go to the plugin faq page and contact the plugin developer.
Other WordPress Plugins For Creating Employee Directories
Simple Staff List isn’t the only for displaying a directory of your team members in WordPress. Here are a few other plugins you can check out:
Modern Team Staff Directory
(Modern Team Staff Directory – Plugin For WordPress)
Modern Team Staff Directory 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)
Go here to learn more:
Staff Directory
(Staff Directory – WP Staff Directory Plugin)
This plugin lets you easily display a list of faculty/staff/team members. The plugin supports staff categories and can be used for churches, schools, etc.
You can also create custom fields …
(Custom Details Fields Screen. Screenshot sourced from plugin website)
For more details, visit the plugin site here:
Faculty And Staff Directory
(Faculty And Staff Directory)
This plugin was developed to provide a simple and flexible faculty and staff directory for a small college, school or university.
The plugin also includes a widget that allows you to feature profiles in a widget area.
Learn more about the plugin here:
Company Directory
(Company Directory – Plugin For WordPress)
Company Directory lets you easily add your employees, team or faculty to your site. Different layouts are included, including list and single views, as well as fields like job title, email address, phone number, pic and bio, allowing you to present your company and capabilities.
Visitors will be able to click through from your list, grid, and table views to learn more about each employee in a customizable single view …
(Display your staff and faculty in an easy to view format. Screenshot source: Company Directory website)
This plugin also uses shortcodes.
Go here to learn more:
Employee Spotlight
(Employee Spotlight – Plugin For WordPress)
Employee Spotlight displays team members, founders or just one single member of your team in a 4-column circle grid page. This page can be easily created with a setup assistant on plugin activation.
With Employee Spotlight, you also get two sidebar widgets that let you display featured and recent employees, and two responsive views which adjust to the screen in the viewer’s device.
Detailed information about each team member can be displayed in their own page, as well as in summary …
(Responsive layout with employee circle grid. Screenshot source: plugin website)
For more details, visit the plugin site here:
Staffer
(Staffer – Plugin For WordPress)
The Staffer plugin uses custom post types for staff/employee management and supports the display of staff members via a shortcode, allowing you to easily create and manage an employee directory on your site …
(Staffer archive page. Screenshot sourced from plugin website)
Staffer works immediately with almost all WordPress themes, and also allows for custom template use and custom content wrappers.
Learn more here:
If the directory plugins listed above aren’t what you’re looking for, just go online or visit the WordPress plugin directory and search for:
- Add Staff Directory To WordPress
- WordPress Staff Plugin
- WordPress Plugin Staff Directory
- Staff Directory Plugin WordPress
- etc.
Hopefully, this step-by-step tutorial has helped you learn how to create and add a simple and easy-to-maintain directory of staff to your web site.
Images of persons used to depict fictitious staff members in this tutorial were sourced under creative commons license from pixabay.com
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"I am beyond impressed with what you have put together. I can tell that you put a ton of hard work into building what you have. You have the absolute best content on WordPress I have ever seen!" - Robert T. Jillie