Tag: Simple Staff List Template

No doubt you’ve heard that people generally buy from those they know, like and trust.

Are you looking for quicker, easier and cheaper ideas to grow your business online and get people to stay longer on your site? Then something you can do, is help visitors get to know your business better.

If you use WordPress, a simple way to help visitors get to know you better is to add a WordPress staff list plugin that will let you add information about your partners, your business team, or your employees.

In this tutorial, we are going to show you how to create and add a simple team members directory in your web site using a free WP plugin.

Plugin Tutorial: Adding An Employee List Directory To Your WordPress Site

In this tutorial, we will install, activate and configure a WordPress plugin called Simple Staff List.

Simple Staff List – WordPress Plugin

(Simple Staff List Plugin For WordPress)

The Simple Staff List plugin is free and lets you easily build a simple staff directory list for.

First, let’s install and activate the plugin.

Log into the WordPress administration and from the admin menu, choose Plugins > Add New …

(WordPress Plugins Menu – Add New)

In the Plugins area, search for “simple staff plugin”. This should bring up the Simple Staff Plugin in your search results area.

Click on the Install Now button …

(WordPress Plugins  – plugin search results)

Click on Activate Plugin …

(Activate plugin)

After the plugin has been installed and activated, a new entry will appear in the WordPress admin menu called Staff Members …

(Staff Members menu)

All of the settings and options for the Simple Staff List plugin are configured and managed from the Staff Members menu.

Plugin Configuration

Depending on how many people are employed in your business and how you want to structure your staff directory, you could just begin adding new staff details after installing the plugin, or create various groups (i.e. categories) that you will assign to your members.

Staff Members – Groups

To set up your directory groups go to your WP dashboard menu and choose Staff Members > Groups …

(Staff Members Menu – Groups)

This takes you to the Groups settings …

(Groups settings screen)

Note: Configuring directory groups works just like categories …

(Groups are like categories)

Create new groups by entering the following information:

1. Group Name – Enter your group category name here
2. Slug – Type in the slug of your category. Note: make sure that all letters are in lower case and use hyphens instead of spaces.
3. Parent – Use this section if you plan to set up nested categories
4. Description – Enter your category description
5. Click Add New Group when done to set up a new directory group …

(Groups settings screen)

If you manage a business that employs many people, being able to create categories can be very useful. For example, you can create a category for partners, project teams, departments, 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 on the Add New Group button after entering new items …

To change or reassign Groups for individual entries, hover over a category title and click on the Edit link …

The category open in the Edit Group page. Select a new group from the Parent drop-down menu …

(Edit Group settings)

Click Update when done …

To edit your Group name or slug, hover over the group name and choose Quick Edit …

Click Update Group after making changes …

Add as many categories as you need to until you have created your directory structure …

You can add as many nested categories as you like …

(Nested groups)

After you are done setting up your groups, the next step is to start to add your people to your directory.

Staff Members – Add New

In your admin menu, select Staff Members > Add New …

(Staff Members – Add New)

This brings up the Add New Staff Member screen …

(Add New Staff Member settings)

This section provides an easy-to-use interface for adding and editing your staff member information and includes the following fields:

Name Section (1)

• Name: Add the employee’s name
• Permalink: Change your employees’ permalink URL (you will see this section after saving your details).

Staff Photo Section (2)

• Photo: Upload a photo in this section

Staff Member Info Section (3)

• Position: Your employee’s role
• Email: The employee’s email
• Phone Number: Enter the employee’s phone number into this field
• Facebook URL: Add your employee’s Facebook URL into this field (note: use the full URL, e.g. http://www.facebook.com/username)
• Twitter URL: Type in your company’s Twitter username here (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 employee here. This uses the WordPress Text Editor, so you can add formatted content in this section.

Groups Section (5)

• Groups: This section lets you assign your employee to a group (see the previous section of this tutorial to learn how to set up groups).

Click on the Screen Options tab at the top of your screen …

(Screen options tab)

You can enable additional page settings …

(Enable additional fields in screen options)

Now that you know what each section does, enter each of your employee’s details …

(Add New Staff Member settings)

After you have entered 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 adding new staff members, you can create a group now by clicking on Groups > + Add New Group …

(Add a new group inside your Groups box)

A field will display allowing you to enter a new group name, with a dropdown menu to assign your new entry to a parent group. Enter your new category and click on the Add New Group button …

A new directory category will be created. Remember to tick the checkbox to assign the employee’s details to the group …

(New group)

Note: You cannot edit groups when adding or editing new employee details. To edit a group 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 filling in the person’s details, click the Publish button …

Click View Post …

You can modify your staff member’s profile by clicking the Edit Staff Member link in your WP admin toolbar …

(Edit Staff Member link – WP admin toolbar)

We have written a detailed tutorial on using the dashboard admin toolbar here:

• Understanding Your WP Control Panel

Note: If ’page not found’ errors shows up like the one shown in the example below, check that you have set up your permalinks correctly …

(Page error? Check your permalinks)

We have written a detailed tutorial about using WordPress permalinks here:

• Setting Up WordPress Permalinks

Repeat the above process to add new members to your employee or team directory.

Staff Members – All Staff Members

Once you are done adding staff details to your directory, you can view and edit their details by choosing Staff Members > All Staff Members on the main menu …

(Staff Members Menu – All Staff Members)

This brings up a list with all your staff profiles and their details …

(Staff Members details)

If you need to modify individual entries, just hover your mouse over their name, and a menu will appear.

Click on Edit to update the item’s Staff Bio, or Quick Edit to change details like name, slug, group, and publish status. You can also delete a list item from the directory by clicking on Trash, or view the entry on your site by selecting View …

(Editing Staff Members profile info)

Depending on what you are using the plugin for, your table can get quite long.

Use the Search Staff Members search field to locate member details …

(Search members)

You can specify which fields can display in this screen. To show or hide fields on your screen, click the Screen Options tab at the top of your page …

(Screen Options)

Placing a tick in the item’s check box displays the field and unchecking a box hides the field. You can also select how many staff members are listed per page. Click the Apply button when finished to save your settings …

Staff Members – Order

The Simple Staff List plugin also features a drag-and-drop interface that allows you to set the order in which listings appear on your directory pages.

Select Staff Members > Order in your menu …

(Staff Members Menu – Order)

To reorder your entries, click and drag the entry to the desired position …

(Rearrange items using drag and drop)

Your staff list will be automatically reorganized …

(Reordered list items)

After adding all member listing details to your directory, the next step is to make your directory display on your site.

Staff Members – Order

Simple Staff List also features a drag-and-drop interface that allows you to specify the order in which listings display on your directory pages.

Choose Staff Members > Order on the main admin menu …

(Staff Members – Order)

To rearrange the order of your items, click and drag the item to a new position …

(Reorder items using drag and drop)

Your staff list will be automatically reordered …

(Reordered listings)

After adding all members’ listing details to your directory, the next step is to display your directory to your visitors.

Simple Staff List – Additional Notes

Simple Staff List also lets you edit the layout and style of your directory entries using template tags and CSS (Cascading Style Sheets).

Templates Menu

To customize the layout and style of your employee directory, select Staff Members > Templates from your menu …

(Staff Members Menu – Templates)

This opens the Templates screen …

(Templates screen)

To customize your directory, reorganize any of the allowed 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 Staff Loop Template)

The The code shown above will display your directory listing as shown below …

(Default Plugin Staff Loop Template Listing)

Notice that there are no Facebook or Twitter addresses showing in the above listing. To make these fields show in the directory, 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)

Here is what your directory will now look like …

(Staff profiles with social media URLs added)

Note: If you want to customize how your directory looks but don’t want to mess around with editing code or are not sure how to edit the template as shown above, please contact us for assistance.

Usage Menu

In addition to being able to customize your directory templates, the Simple Staff List plugin allows you to display your staff profiles differently using modified shortcodes.

In your menu, click on Staff Members >Usage …

(Staff Members Menu – Usage)

This opens the Usage page …

(Simple Staff List shortcodes)

This screen displays all the shortcode variations you can use.

For example, a useful shortcode variation you can decide to use 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 reps”])

Or, you can display listings in ascending or descending order by adding the shortcode [simple-staff-list order=”DESC”] (descending).

Options Menu

Choose Staff Members >Options on the main admin menu …

(Staff Members Menu – Options)

This brings up the Options page …

(Simple Staff List – Options settings)

Here you can edit some of the labels used in the plugin

Finally, you can also export your staff members data by going to your WP admin menu and choosing Tools > Export …

(Export Staff Members info)

If you need plugin help or support, go to the Simple Staff List faq page and request help from the plugin developer.

Other Staff Directory Plugins For WordPress

Simple Staff List is not the only for displaying a directory of your staff. For example, here are other plugins you can use to create an employee directory on your website:

Modern Team Staff Directory

(Modern Team Staff Directory – WordPress Staff Directory 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)

More info:

• Modern Team Staff Directory – WordPress Plugin

Staff Directory

(Staff Directory – WordPress Staff Directory Plugin)

With Staff Directory, you can easily display a list of team/faculty/staff members. The plugin supports staff categories and can be used for churches, schools, etc.

You can also use custom fields …

(Custom Details Fields Screen. Screenshot sourced from plugin website)

For more details go here:

• Staff Directory – Plugin For WordPress

Faculty And Staff Directory

(Faculty And Staff Directory – WordPress Staff Directory Plugin)

The Faculty And Staff Directory plugin provides a simple and flexible faculty and staff directory for a small college or university.

The plugin also installs a widget that allows you to feature profiles in a widget area.

Go here to learn more:

• Faculty And Staff Directory – Plugin For WordPress

Company Directory

(Company Directory)

Company Directory lets you easily add your staff to your website. Different layouts are included, including list and single views, plus as fields like title, email, phone, photo and member bio, allowing visitors to get to know your company and capabilities.

Visitors will be able to click through from your list, grid, and table views to read 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 plugin website)

This plugin also uses simple shortcodes.

More info:

• Company Directory – WordPress Plugin

Employee Spotlight

(Employee Spotlight – WordPress 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.

Employee Spotlight installs with two sidebar widgets that let you display featured and recent employees selected in the editor, plus two responsive views which adjust to the device screen size.

Detailed information about  each employee 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 this plugin go here:

• Employee Spotlight – WP Plugin

Staffer

(Staffer – Plugin For WordPress)

The Staffer 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 a staff directory on your website …

(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 about this plugin here:

• Staffer – WP Plugin

If the above plugins 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 Directory Plugin
• WordPress Plugin Staff Directory
• Staff Plugin WordPress
• etc.

Hopefully, this step-by-step tutorial has explained how to create a simple and easy-to-maintain employee directory in your site.

Models used in this tutorial to display fictitious staff members were sourced under creative commons license from pixabay.com

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