It’s often said in business and marketing that people generally tend to buy from those they already know, like and trust.
If you are searching for quicker, easier and cheaper ways to sell more products online, then help visitors get to know your business better.
If your web presence is powered by the WordPress CMS platform, a simple way to help visitors get to know you better is to use a directory plugin that lets you add information about your key people, your business team, or your staff.
This tutorial explains how to create and add an easy-to-update employee directory in your WordPress site.
How To Easily Add A Staff Directory To WordPress
In this tutorial, we will install, activate and configure a free plugin called Simple Staff List.
Simple Staff List
(Simple Staff List WordPress Plugin)
The Simple Staff List plugin is free and lets you easily staff members (you could also use it to display faculty, etc.).
The first step is to install and activate the Simple Staff List plugin.
Log into the WP administration and from the admin menu, select Plugins > Add New …
(WordPress 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 Activate Plugin …
(Activate plugin)
After the plugin has been installed and activated, a new entry will display on the main WP admin menu called Staff Members …
(Staff Members)
All of the options and settings for this plugin are configured and managed from this menu.
How To Configure The Plugin
Depending on the size of your team and how you want to structure your staff directory, you can start to add new employee entries after installing the plugin, or create various groups (i.e. categories) to place yourstaff into.
Staff Members – Groups
Let’s start by configuring your directory categories. In your dashboard menu, select Staff Members > Groups …
(Staff Members – Groups)
This opens up the Groups settings …
(Groups settings)
Note: Setting up directory groups is just like setting up WordPress categories …
(Groups work just like categories)
Add new groups by typing in the following information:
- Group Name – Type in your group category name
- 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 drop-down menu if you plan to set up nested categories
- Description – Enter a group description in this field
- Click the Add New Group button when done to create your new group …
(Groups screen)
If you run a business that employs many people, having the ability to create groups can be very useful. For example, you can create a category for investors, developers, faculties, etc.
Create as many groups and nested categories as you want by adding new Groups and then using the Parent drop-down menu to assign these to a directory hierarchy …
(Nested groups)
Remember to click the Add New Group button after entering new items …
To change Groups for a specific item, hover over a category title and click on the Edit link …
The group open in the Edit Group screen. Select a new group 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 choose Quick Edit …
Click the Update Group button after making changes …
Continue adding group names in this section until you have created your directory structure …
You can add as many nested groups as you like …
(Add nested categories your staff directory)
After you have finished setting up your groups, you can begin to add staff details to your directory.
Staff Members – Add New
In your admin menu, click on Staff Members > Add New …
(Staff Members Menu – Add New)
The Add New Staff Member settings …
(Add New Staff Member settings screen)
This section provides you with an easy-to-use interface for adding and editing your staff member details and includes the following fields:
Name Section (1)
- Name: Your staff member’s name
- Slug: Modify each staff members’ slug (you will see this section after saving your details).
Staff Photo Section (2)
- Photo: Upload a photo here
Staff Member Info Section (3)
- Position: Enter the person’s role into this field
- Email: Your employee’s email address
- Phone Number: The staff member’s phone number
- Facebook URL: Type your staff member’s Facebook address (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: Enter a profile description for your employee or team member here. As this uses the WordPress Text Editor, you can use HTML into this section.
Groups Section (5)
- Groups: This section lets you assign a staff or faculty member to a group (see the previous section of this tutorial to learn how to set up groups).
If you 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 of your employee’s details …
(Add Staff Member settings)
Once you are done entering each staff member’s details, assign your item to a directory group in the Groups box in the sidebar …
(Groups box)
Note: If you did not set up categories before starting to add new staff members, you can create a group now by clicking on Groups > + Add New Group …
(Groups > + Add New Group link)
A field for creating a new group name will display, with a dropdown menu to assign your new entry to a parent group. Type in the name of your new group and click on the Add New Group button …
Your new group will be created. Make sure that the check box is ticked …
(Groups box)
Note: Groups cannot be edited when adding or editing employee 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 …
You can edit the person’s profile by clicking the Edit Staff Member link in your admin toolbar …
(Edit Staff Member link – admin toolbar)
If you need help using the admin toolbar , go here:
Note: If you get errors like the one shown below, check that you have configured your site permalinks correctly …
(Page error? Check your permalinks)
We have written a detailed tutorial on using permalinks in WordPress here:
Repeat the above process to add more details to your employee directory directory.
Staff Members – All Staff Members
After entering employee or faculty members into your directory, you can view and edit details by clicking Staff Members > All Staff Members in the menu …
(Staff Members – All Staff Members)
This brings up a table displaying all your directory items and the details you have added related to each entry …
(Staff Members details table)
If you need to change an individual’s entry, hover your mouse over their name, and a submenu will appear.
Click on Edit to update their Staff Bio, or Quick Edit to edit details like name, slug, group, and publish status. You can also delete an entry from the employee directory by clicking on the Trash link, or view the entry on your site by clicking on View …
(Edit Staff Members profile details)
If you have many entries, your list can get quite long.
You can use the Search Staff Members search feature to find a member if necessary …
(Search Staff Members search feature)
The plugin also allows you to specify which fields to display in this section. To hide or hide fields on your screen, click the Screen Options tab at the top of your page …
(Staff Members Screen Options tab)
Placing a tick in the item’s checkbox displays the field and unchecking a box hides the field. You can also select how many staff members are shown per page. Click Apply when finished to update your preferences …
Staff Members – Order
The Simple Staff List plugin also features a drag-and-drop interface that lets you arrange the order in which entries show on your directory pages.
Choose Staff Members > Order on your menu …
(Staff Members Menu – Order)
To reorder your listings, click and drag the item to its desired position …
(Reorder listings using drag and drop)
Your directory will automatically be rearranged …
(Reordered list)
After adding all member details to your directory, the next step is to make the directory display to your visitors.
Staff Members – Order
The Simple Staff List plugin also features a drag-and-drop interface allowing you to set the order in which your employees appear on your directory pages.
Choose Staff Members > Order on your main menu …
(Staff Members Menu – Order)
To reorder your items, click and drag the entry to its desired position …
(Reorder listings using drag and drop)
Your staff list will be automatically reordered …
(Reordered list items)
Once you have added member listing details to your directory, the next step is to make the directory show to your visitors.
Simple Staff List – Additional Notes
Simple Staff List lets you edit the style and layout of your staff directory 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 menu …
(Staff Members Menu – Templates)
This opens the Templates page …
(Simple Staff List Templates page)
To customize your directory listings, reorganize any of the allowed template tags inside the [staff_loop] [/staff_loop] code.
For example, below is the default template used for displaying directory listings …
(Default Staff Loop Template)
The This code displays your listing as shown below …
(Default Simple Staff List Staff Loop Template Listing)
Notice that there are no Facebook or Twitter addresses showing in the above listing. To display these fields, you will need to add the [staff-facebook] and [staff-twitter] tags to the template loop, as shown in the screenshot below …
(Use template tags to customize your listings page)
Your staff details will now display as as shown below …
(Directory with social media links)
Note: If you want to customize your directory listings but don’t want to mess around with code or are unsure of what to do, please contact us for help.
Usage Menu
In addition to allowing you to customize your listing templates, the Simple Staff List plugin allows you to display your staff profiles differently using modified shortcodes.
In your WordPress admin menu, choose Staff Members >Usage …
(Staff Members – Usage)
This opens the Usage screen …
(Usage Shortcode section)
This screen provides a list of all the shortcode variations you can use.
For example, a useful variation you can add to display a list of staff members belonging only to a specific group is the shortcode [simple-staff-list group=”group name”], (e.g.:[simple-staff-list group=”partners”])
You can also make your listings display in ascending or descending order by adding the shortcode [simple-staff-list order=”DESC”] (descending).
Options Menu
Click Staff Members >Options in the menu …
(Staff Members – Options)
This brings up the Options page …
(Options settings)
Here you can modify labels like Staff Members URL Slug and Staff Member titles
Finally, you can also export your staff members details from the Tools > Export page …
(Export Staff Members plugin information)
If you need plugin support, visit the plugin support page and contact the plugin developer.
Additional WordPress Plugins For Creating Simple Staff Directories
Simple Staff List isn’t the only plugin you can use to display a listing of your faculty members in WordPress. Here are some other free WordPress plugins you can check out to create a directory on your website:
Modern Team Staff Directory
(Modern Team Staff Directory – WP Staff Directory Plugin)
The Modern Team Staff Directory 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 – Plugin For WordPress)
The Staff Directory plugin lets you easily display a list of staff/faculty/team members. The plugin supports staff categories and can be used for companies, teams, etc.
You can also create custom fields …
(Custom Details Fields. Screenshot source: plugin website)
For more details, visit the plugin site here:
Faculty And Staff Directory
(Faculty And Staff Directory – WP Staff Directory Plugin)
The Faculty And Staff Directory 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 a profile in a widget area.
For more details, visit the plugin site here:
Company Directory
(Company Directory – WordPress Staff Directory Plugin)
With the Company Directory plugin, you can easily add your employees to your website. Different layouts are included, including grid and customizable single views, as well as fields like title, email, phone, pic and staff 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 staff member 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 a simple shortcode system.
For more details go here:
Employee Spotlight
(Employee Spotlight – Plugin For WordPress)
Employee Spotlight displays team members, partners or just one single person in a four-column circle grid page. This page can be easily created with a setup assistant on plugin activation.
With the Employee Spotlight plugin, you get two sidebar widgets which display featured and recent employees selected in the editor, plus 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: plugin website)
Learn more here:
Staffer
(Staffer)
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 onsite staff directory …
(Staffer archive page. Screenshot sourced from Staffer website)
Staffer works with many popular WordPress themes, and also allows for custom template use and custom content wrappers.
More info:
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
- Employee Directory WordPress
- etc.
Hopefully, now you know how to easily add an easy-to-maintain directory of staff members to your web site.
Models used to display sample staff members were sourced under creative commons license from pixabay.com
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