No doubt you’ve heard that people tend to buy from those they know, like and trust.
Are you searching for cost-effective ideas to sell more products online? Then help your prospects get to know, like and trust you, your team and your organization better.
If your site runs on WordPress, a simple way to help people get to know you better is to use a directory plugin that lets you display a directory listing with information about your key people, your business team, or your staff.
In this step-by-step tutorial, you are going to learn how to create and add a directory of staff members in your web site without using code.
Step-By-Step Tutorial: How To Easily Add A Staff Directory
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 Plugin For WordPress)
Simple Staff List lets you easily display information to visitors about your staff members on your website.
The first step is to install and activate the plugin.
Log into the admin and go to Plugins > Add New …
(WordPress Plugins Menu – Add New)
In the Plugins panel, search for “simple staff plugin”. This should bring up the Simple Staff Plugin in your plugin search results.
Click on the Install Now button …
(WordPress Plugins – plugin search results)
Activate the plugin …
(Activate plugin)
After installing and activating your plugin, you will notice that new menu entry will appear on your main WP admin menu called Staff Members …
(Staff Members menu)
This menu is where you will configure and manage all of the settings for this plugin are configured and managed from the Staff Members menu.
Configuring The Plugin
Depending on the size of your business and how you want to structure your directory, you can start adding new staff details at this at this stage, or create different groups (i.e. categories) that you will assign to individual employees.
Staff Members – Groups
Let’s start by setting up your directory groups. From your WordPress dashboard menu, select Staff Members > Groups …
(Staff Members – Groups)
This takes you to the Groups settings screen …
(Groups area)
Note: Adding directory groups works in the same way as configuring categories …
(Groups are like WordPress categories)
Create a new group by typing in the following information:
- Group Name – Enter your group category name here
- Slug – Type in the slug of your category. Note: make sure that all letters are in lower case and use hyphens instead of spaces.
- Parent – Use this section to set up a directory hierarchy
- Description – Type in a group description in this field (optional)
- Click the Add New Group button when finished to set up the new directory category …
(Groups area)
If you work with a business that employs many people, being able to create categories can be very useful. For example, you can create categories for investors, developers, faculties, etc.
Create as many groups and nested categories as you need by adding new Groups and then using the Parent drop-down menu to build a hierarchical structure …
(Nested groups)
Remember to click on the Add New Group button after creating new items …
To edit or reassign Groups for an individual item, hover your mouse button over a category title and select the Edit link …
Your selected group will display in the Edit Group screen. Select a new group category from the Parent dropdown menu …
(Edit Group screen)
Click the Update button when done …
To change the Group name or slug, hover over the group name and select Quick Edit …
Click the Update Group button to save your changes …
Add as many group names as you need to until you have created your directory structure …
You can add as many nested groups as you like …
(Nested groups)
After you have finished setting up your groups, you can start adding names to your directory.
Staff Members – Add New
In your WordPress admin menu, click on Staff Members > Add New …
(Staff Members – Add New)
This loads the Add New Staff Member settings screen …
(Add New Staff Member settings screen)
This section provides you with an easy-to-use interface for adding and editing your staff member profile and includes the following fields:
Name Section (1)
- Name: The staff member’s name
- Permalink: Modify the slug associated with your employee if required (this section appears after saving your details).
Staff Photo Section (2)
- Photo: Add a photo of your staff member
Staff Member Info Section (3)
- Position: The employee’s role
- Email: Your employee’s email address
- Phone Number: Type your staff member’s phone number into this field
- Facebook URL: Enter your company’s Facebook address into this field (note: use the full URL, e.g. http://www.facebook.com/username)
- Twitter URL: Type in your company’s Twitter username (note: only enter the username, not the full twitter URL)
Staff Member Bio Section (4)
- Staff Member Bio: Enter a profile description for your employees here. This uses the WordPress Text Editor, so you can add formatting to the content entered in this section.
Groups Section (5)
- Groups: You can assign your staff member to a group (see the previous section of this tutorial to learn how to set up your groups).
Click on the Screen Options tab at the top of the screen …
(Screen options)
You will see options to enable additional page settings …
(Enable additional fields in screen options)
Now that you know what each section does, enter each staff member’s details …
(Staff directory settings)
After you are done inputting each staff member’s details, assign your new item to a directory group in the Groups box located in the sidebar …
(Groups section)
Note: If you did not set up categories before starting to add staff member details, you can create a new group by selecting Groups > + Add New Group …
(Groups - + Add New Group)
A field for creating 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 Add New Group …
The new group will be created. Remember to tick the checkbox to assign an individual to the group …
(New group added via Groups feature)
Note: You cannot edit groups when adding or editing a staff member’s details. To edit a group item, go to the Groups section of the plugin’s settings (see “Groups” section above for details).
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After filling in the person’s details, click the Publish button …
Click View Post …
To make changes to the person’s profile, click on the Edit Staff Member link in the WordPress admin toolbar …
(Edit Staff Member link – WP admin toolbar)
If you need help using the WP admin toolbar, refer to this tutorial:
Note: If ’not found’ page errors like the one shown in the screenshot below shows up, check that your permalinks have been set up correctly …
(Check your permalinks if you get a ‘page not found’ error)
We have written a detailed tutorial about using WordPress permalinks here:
Continue adding new details to your staff directory directory until done.
Staff Members – All Staff Members
After entering staff or faculty members to your directory, you can view and edit their details by choosing Staff Members > All Staff Members in the menu …
(Staff Members Menu – All Staff Members)
This brings up a table displaying all the employees and details you have added related to each entry …
(Staff Members details list)
If you need to modify individual entries, simply hover over their listing, and a submenu will appear.
Click on Edit to edit the item’s Staff Bio, or Quick Edit to change details like name, slug, group, and publish status. You can also remove someone from the directory by clicking on the Trash link, or view the entry on your site by selecting View …
(Edit Staff Members details)
If you have many names to add, your table can grow quite large.
Use the Search Staff Members search feature to find a member …
(Search Staff Members search field)
The plugin also lets you specify which fields can display in this screen. To hide or hide fields on your screen, click the Screen Options tab …
(Staff Members Screen Options tab)
Placing a tick in the item’s 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 done to update your screen options …
Staff Members – Order
Simple Staff List also features a drag-and-drop interface that lets you specify the order in which entries display on your directory pages.
Choose Staff Members > Order in your main menu …
(Staff Members – Order)
To reorder your listings, click and drag the entry to the new position …
(Reorder items using drag and drop)
Your directory will automatically be reorganized …
(Reordered list)
After adding your member listing details to your 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 set the order that entries display on your directory page.
Click Staff Members > Order in your dashboard menu …
(Staff Members – Order)
To rearrange the order of your entries, click and drag the entry to a desired location …
(Rearrange listings using drag and drop)
Your directory will be automatically rearranged …
(Reordered list entries)
After adding your staff details to the directory, the next step is to add the directory to your visitors.
Simple Staff List – Additional Notes
Simple Staff List lets you edit the style and layout of your directory items using template tags and CSS (Cascading Style Sheets).
Templates Menu
To customize the layout and style of your directory, select Staff Members > Templates from the menu …
(Staff Members – Templates)
This brings up the Templates page …
(Templates screen)
To customize your directory, insert any of the allowed template tags inside the [staff_loop] [/staff_loop] code.
For example, here is the Default Staff Loop Template …
(Default Simple Staff List Staff Loop Template)
The above code displays the listing shown below …
(Default Plugin Staff Loop Template Listing)
Notice that there are no Facebook or Twitter URLs showing in the above listing. To display these fields, you will need to include the [staff-facebook] and [staff-twitter] tags in the template, as shown in the example below …
(Use template tags to customize your listings page)
Your employee profiles will now display as as the screenshot below shows …
(Employee profiles with social media URLs)
Note: If you want to customize your directory listings but don’t want to mess with template tags or are not sure how to edit the template as shown above, please contact us for assistance.
Usage Menu
As well as being able to customize your listing templates, the Simple Staff List plugin allows you to display your listings differently using modified shortcodes.
In your menu, choose Staff Members >Usage …
(Staff Members Menu – Usage)
This opens the Usage screen …
(Simple Staff List shortcodes)
This screen displays all the shortcode variations allowed by the Simple Staff List plugin.
A useful shortcode variation you can decide to use, for example, to display a list of individuals belonging only to a specific group is the shortcode [simple-staff-list group=”group name”], (e.g.:[simple-staff-list group=”Asia Pacific Region”])
You can also make your listings display in ascending or descending order by inserting the shortcode [simple-staff-list order=”ASC”] (ascending).
Options Menu
In your menu, select Staff Members >Options …
(Staff Members Menu – Options)
This brings up the Options page …
(Simple Staff List – Options settings)
This section lets you change labels like Staff Members URL Slug and Staff Member title
Finally, you can also export your staff members data by going to the menu and choosing Tools > Export …
(Export Staff Members info)
If you need plugin help or support, visit the plugin support page and contact the plugin author.
Additional WordPress Plugins For Creating Simple Employee Directories
Simple Staff List isn’t the only WordPress staff directory plugin you can use. Here are a few other free plugins you can check out to create an employee directory on your site:
Modern Team Staff Directory
(Modern Team Staff Directory – WP Plugin)
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 go here:
Staff Directory
(Staff Directory – WordPress Plugin)
Staff Directory lets you easily create a directory of team/faculty/staff members. The plugin supports staff categories and can be used for churches, teams, etc.
You can also create custom fields …
(Custom Details Fields. Screenshot source: plugin website)
Learn more here:
Faculty And Staff Directory
(Faculty And Staff Directory – WordPress Plugin)
Faculty And Staff Directory 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 here:
Company Directory
(Company Directory)
Company Directory lets you easily add your staff to your website. Different layouts are included, including list and customizable single views, as well as fields like position title, email address, phone number, pic and bio, allowing visitors to get to know your company and capabilities.
Visitors can 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 members in an easy-to-view format. Screenshot source: Company Directory website)
This plugin uses a simple shortcode system.
More info:
Employee Spotlight
(Employee Spotlight – WordPress Staff Directory Plugin)
Employee Spotlight displays team members, founders or just one individual member of your team in a four-column circle grid page. This page can be easily created with a setup assistant on plugin activation.
This plugin comes with two sidebar widgets that let you display featured and recent employees selected in the editor, plus two responsive views which adjust to the screen size of 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 circle grid. Screenshot sourced from 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 onsite employee directory …
(Staffer archive page. Screenshot source: plugin website)
Staffer works immediately with many popular 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 List
- Staff Directory WordPress Plugin
- Staff Plugin WordPress
- etc.
Hopefully, this step-by-step tutorial has helped you learn how to add a simple and easy-to-maintain directory of employees to WordPress.
Models used to display staff members were sourced under creative commons license from pixabay.com
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"If you're new to WordPress, this can stand on its own as a training course and will stay with you as you progress from beginner to advanced and even guru status." - Bruce (Columbus, Ohio)