No doubt you already know that people often tend to buy from those they know, like and trust.
If you are looking for quicker and easier ideas to sell more products online or get people to stay longer on your site, then something you can do, is make it easier for visitors to get to know your business better.
If your site is powered by the WordPress Content Management System, a simple way to help visitors get to know you better is to display information about your key people, your faculty, or your employees using a WordPress staff list plugin.
This step-by-step tutorial explains how to create an easy-to-update staff directory in your site.
Adding A Staff Directory To Your Site
In this tutorial, you will learn how to install, activate and configure a plugin called Simple Staff List.
Simple Staff List Plugin For WordPress
(Simple Staff List – WordPress Plugin)
Simple Staff List is a free plugin that lets you easily staff (you could also use it to display faculty, etc.).
The first step is to install and activate the Simple Staff List plugin.
Log into your administration and from the admin menu, select Plugins > Add New …
(WP 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 – plugin search results)
Click on the Activate Plugin link …
(Activate plugin)
After the plugin has been installed and activated, you will see that a new entry will have been added to your WordPress admin menu called Staff Members …
(Staff Members)
Here is where you will configure and manage all of the settings for the Simple Staff List plugin are configured and managed in this menu.
How To Configure The Plugin
Depending on the size of your business and how you want to structure your employee directory, you can start to add new staff member details at this point, or create several groups (i.e. categories) that you will assign to your group members.
Staff Members – Groups
Let’s start by configuring your groups. From your WP dashboard menu, select Staff Members > Groups …
(Staff Members Menu – Groups)
This brings you to the Groups screen …
(Groups area)
Note: Adding directory groups is just like setting up categories in WordPress …
(Groups are like categories)
Create a new group by entering the following information:
- Group Name – Type in your group name
- Slug – Enter 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 if you plan to set up a directory hierarchy
- Description – Enter the category description in this field (optional)
- Click the Add New Group button when done to create your new category …
(Groups section)
If you manage a larger organization, the ability to create groups can be very useful. For example, you can create categories for partners, developers, faculties, etc.
Create as many categories and nested groups as you want by adding new Groups and then using the Parent drop-down menu to assign these to a directory hierarchy …
(Nested categories)
Remember to click on the Add New Group button after entering each item …
To edit or reassign Groups for individual entries, hover your mouse over a category title and select the Edit link …
The selected group open in the Edit Group page. Select a new group category from the Parent dropdown menu …
(Edit Group settings)
Click Update when done …
To change your Group name or slug, hover over the group name and select the Quick Edit menu feature …
Click Update Group when done to save your changes …
Add as many groups as you need to until you are done creating your directory structure …
You can add as many nested groups as you like …
(Add nested groups to your directory)
After you are done setting up your groups, you can begin adding staff details to your directory.
Staff Members – Add New
From your WP admin menu, choose Staff Members > Add New …
(Staff Members Menu – Add New)
This brings you to the Add New Staff Member section …
(Add New Staff Member settings)
This section provides you with an easy-to-use interface for adding your staff member details and includes the following fields:
Name Section (1)
- Name: Enter your employee’s name
- Permalink: Modify the slug for your staff member if required (you will see this section after your first save).
Staff Photo Section (2)
- Photo: Upload a photo in this section
Staff Member Info Section (3)
- Position: Your employee’s position
- Email: Type the employee’s email here
- Phone Number: Type in your employee’s phone number into this field
- Facebook URL: Type in your company’s Facebook address here (note: use the full URL, e.g. http://www.facebook.com/username)
- Twitter URL: Enter the staff member’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 employee here. This uses the WordPress Text Editor, so you can use HTML in this section.
Groups Section (5)
- Groups: Assign the person to a specific group (see the previous section of this tutorial to learn how to set up your groups).
If you click on the Screen Options tab …
(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 your staff member’s details …
(Add New Staff Member fields)
After you have entered each of you staff member’s details, assign the new entry to a directory group in the Groups box in the sidebar …
(Groups box)
Note: If you have not set up groups before starting to add staff member details, you can add a new group in this screen by selecting Groups > + Add New Group …
(Add a new group inside your Groups box)
A field will appear allowing you to create a new group name, with a drop-down menu to assign your new entry to a parent group. Enter your new group and click on the Add New Group button …
The new category will be added. Make sure that the check box is ticked …
(New group)
Note: You cannot edit groups when adding or making changes to a staff member’s details. To edit an item, go to the Groups section of the plugin’s settings (see “Groups” section above for details).
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After entering your employee’s details, click the Publish button …
Click View Post …
To edit your member profile, click on the Edit Staff Member link in your WP admin toolbar …
(Edit Staff Member link – admin toolbar)
If you need help using the admin toolbar, see this tutorial:
Note: If an error like the one shown in the screenshot below shows up, check that your permalinks have been configured correctly …
(Check your permalinks if you get ’not found’ page errors)
We have written a detailed tutorial on using permalinks here:
Repeat the above process to add more members to your staff or team directory.
Staff Members – All Staff Members
After entering employee details into your directory, you can view and edit their details by choosing Staff Members > All Staff Members on the menu …
(Staff Members – All Staff Members)
This brings up a table listing all your directory items and details you have added for each entry …
(Staff Members table)
If you need to change individual details, just hover over their list name, and a submenu 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 someone from your employee directory by clicking on Trash, or view the entry on your site by selecting View …
(Editing Staff Members profile)
If you have many names to add, your list can get quite long.
Use the Search Staff Members search field to locate listing items if necessary …
(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)
Selecting a check box displays the field and unchecking a box hides the field. You can also choose how many staff members are shown per page. Click Apply when finished to update your preferences …
Staff Members – Order
The plugin also features a drag-and-drop interface that lets you arrange the order that entries show on your directory page.
Choose Staff Members > Order in your menu …
(Staff Members Menu – Order)
To reorder your items, click and drag the entry to its desired location …
(Reorder listings using drag and drop)
Your directory will be automatically rearranged …
(Reordered listings)
Once you have added all of your staff listing details to the directory, the next step is to display your directory on your site.
Staff Members – Order
The plugin also features a drag-and-drop interface allowing you to set the order in which entries display on your directory page.
Click Staff Members > Order on your menu …
(Staff Members Menu – Order)
To reorder your entries, click and drag the item to the new position …
(Rearrange listings using drag and drop)
Your directory will be automatically reorganized …
(Reordered list)
After adding all staff details to your directory, the next step is to display your directory on your site.
Simple Staff List – Additional Notes
The Simple Staff List plugin lets you create the style and layout of your employee directory items using template tags and CSS (Cascading Style Sheets).
Templates Menu
To customize the style and layout of your directory, select Staff Members > Templates from your menu …
(Staff Members Menu – Templates)
This brings up the Templates screen …
(Templates page)
To customize your directory listings, reorganize any of the permitted template tags inside the [staff_loop] [/staff_loop] code.
For example, below is a screenshot of the default template used for displaying directory listings …
(Default Simple Staff List Staff Loop Template)
The This code displays your listing as shown below …
(Default Staff Loop Template Listing)
Notice that there are no Facebook or Twitter URLs showing in the above example. To make these fields show in the directory, you will need to add the [staff-facebook] and [staff-twitter] tags to the template, as shown in the screenshot below …
(Template tags can be added to the Staff Loop Template to customize your listings page)
Your directory listings will now appear with Facebook and Twitter addresses as as shown below …
(Staff profiles with social media URLs)
Note: If you want to customize your directory listings but don’t want to mess with editing code or are not sure how to edit the template as shown above, please contact us for help.
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 menu, choose Staff Members >Usage …
(Staff Members – Usage)
This opens the Usage screen …
(Usage shortcodes)
This screen lists all different shortcode variations you can use.
For example, a useful shortcode variation you can insert in your page to display only members of a specific group is the shortcode [simple-staff-list group=”group name”], (e.g.:[simple-staff-list group=”Gold Level associates”])
Or, you can make your listings display in ascending or descending order by inserting the shortcode [simple-staff-list order=”ASC”] (ascending).
Options Menu
In the menu, select Staff Members >Options …
(Staff Members Menu – Options)
This opens the Options page …
(Simple Staff List – customizable fields)
Here you can edit labels like Staff Members URL Slug and Staff Member titles
You can also export your staff members data by going to the menu and clicking Tools > Export …
(Export Staff Members info)
If you need specific help with this plugin, go to the plugin website.
Other Employee Directory Plugins For WordPress
Simple Staff List isn’t the only adding a directory of your staff. For example, here are other plugins you can use:
Modern Team Staff Directory
(Modern Team Staff Directory – WP Plugin)
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)
For more details, visit the plugin site here:
Staff Directory
(Staff Directory – WP Staff Directory Plugin)
The Staff Directory plugin lets you easily create a directory of faculty/team/staff members. The plugin supports staff categories and can be used for churches, teams, etc.
You can also use custom fields …
(Custom Details Fields. Screenshot source: Staff Directory website)
For more details go here:
Faculty And Staff Directory
(Faculty And Staff Directory – Plugin For WordPress)
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 installs a widget that allows you to feature profiles in a widget area.
To learn more about this plugin go here:
Company Directory
(Company Directory – WordPress Staff Directory Plugin)
With Company Directory, you can add your employees to your site. Different layouts are included, including grid and customizable single views, as well as fields like title, email address, phone number, pic and member bio, allowing you to present your company and capabilities.
Visitors can 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 sourced from Company Directory website)
This plugin uses simple shortcodes.
Learn more about this plugin here:
Employee Spotlight
(Employee Spotlight – WordPress Staff Directory Plugin)
Employee Spotlight displays staff members, founders or just one single member of your team in a four-column circle grid page. This page can be easily created with a setup assistant upon plugin activation.
This plugin includes two sidebar widgets which display featured and recent employees selected in the editor, and 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 employee circle grid. Screenshot sourced from Employee Spotlight plugin website)
For more details, visit the plugin site here:
Staffer
(Staffer)
This 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 a staff directory on your website …
(Staffer archive page. Screenshot sourced from Staffer website)
Staffer works with almost all WordPress themes, and also allows for custom template use and custom content wrappers.
For more details go here:
If the above plugins 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
- Staff Directory WordPress Plugin
- Staff Plugin WordPress
- etc.
Hopefully, this step-by-step tutorial has shown you how to add a simple and easy-to-manage staff directory to your website.
Images used in this tutorial to depict fictitious staff members were sourced under creative commons license from pixabay.com
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"This is AMAZING! I had learnt about how to use WordPress previously, but this covers absolutely everything and more!! Incredible value! Thank you!" - Monique, Warrior Forum