A web directory is a way to organize websites on the same topics. In this article, we’ll show you how to create a WordPress-powered Web Directory in minutes.
The “wordpress directory plugin free” is a web directory plugin that allows users to create a web directory in WordPress. The plugin is available for free on the WordPress website and requires no coding knowledge.
Table of Contents
How to Make a WordPress Web Directory
Are you attempting to develop an online directory for businesses? Web directories are a well-known online business concept that allows you to monetise your websites with user-generated content.
Angie’s List is a well-known online directory that helps homeowners find reputable contractors and service providers. They’re worth more than nine billion dollars.
Whether you’re attempting to generate money online by creating a specialty web directory or a companions directory to list your suppliers, WordPress can help you out.
This post will teach you how to create a web directory in WordPress quickly and efficiently. Learn how to take fees for premium listings in online directories.
What is a Web Directory, and how does it work?
A online directory functions similarly to a catalog, listing businesses or persons along with contact information, services, and features.
Users may explore a database of links grouped by topic, category, and area of interest in the online directory. A yellow page or angi’s list is an excellent example of an online directory.
These are most typically used to assist individuals in locating the location or service they need.
Yelp is another example of a web directory. This enables you to locate excellent local establishments such as restaurants, dentists, hairdressers, and physicians.
There are various WordPress web directory themes that you may use to construct online directories, however we don’t encourage them since they are eternally connected to the theme.
This is why only plugin methods are shown, which may be used in any theme.
Now let’s see How to Make a WordPress Web Directory.
Method 1: Using Formidable Forms to Create a WordPress Directory:
Formidable Forms is the industry’s most powerful WordPress form builder plugin. This will assist you in creating complex forms for your WordPress site, such as surveys, payment forms, registration forms, and basic contact forms.
On the front end of your website, the plugin offers a feature called “views” that enables you to see all of the data supplied by the form. Create directories, real estate listings, job boards, event calendars, and more with this functionality.
Let’s use the Formidable Forms plugin to create a business directory.
1. Make a data collection form for your directory:
Installing and activating the FormidableForms plugin is the first step. For further information, see the WordPress plugin installation guide.
Go to Formidable »Forms and click the Add New button after the plugin is installed and functional.
You now have the option of creating the form in whatever way you want. You may either begin with a blank form or template or import one from an XML file.
Choose the template technique for creating sophisticated forms since it is the quickest. Out of the box, Formidable Forms includes over 20 pre-designed form designs. To make a real estate list, for example, choose Real Estate List. To get started, click Create Form.
A pop-up window displays, requesting you to name and describe the form.
The ready-to-use property submission form will then be loaded.
A simple drag-and-drop interface allows you to evaluate and adjust your form. When you’re finished, click the Update button.
You must link the form to the payment gateway if you want to build a premium online directory with a paid list.
With Formidable, you can accept payments via PayPal, Stripe, and Authorize.net.
This example demonstrates how to accept payments using PayPal. Install the PayPal standard add-on from the dashboard by going to Formidable »Add-ons.
After you’ve installed and enabled the add-on, go to Formidable »Global Settings and choose the PayPal option. Make any necessary changes to your PayPal email address and other settings.
Then, at the top of each form editor, choose the Settings option.
To add a new action, go to the ‘Form Actions’ tab and choose the PayPal symbol.
The next step is to set up your PayPal account. Add the payment amount, the payment type (one-time payment, donation, or subscription), the currency, and the return and cancel URLs after that.
When you’re finished, remember to refresh the form.
Users must make a payment before submitting the property from the form when using the built-in payment option.
2. Upload your form to WordPress and publish it.
After creating a form, the following step is to post it on your website so that people may use it to input their company information.
> Go to the Pages To create a new page, go to your dashboard and click Add New. Then, give your page a name and insert the Formidable Forms widget into the editor.
After that, choose your form.
Following that, it will load the pre-built real estate submission form onto your web page editor.
You may also add a few important content items to the website. Once you’ve finished, pass the test and publish your website.
To collect more form submissions, you can now add the submission form web page to your WordPress navigation menu or launch an e-mail marketing campaign to your e-mail list.
The process of acquiring information through a form might take some time, so it’s much better to prepare ahead of time. You may also manually enter information from your dashboard or import data from a CSV file.
3. Create a Web Directory with Massive Views
You may utilize Formidable Views to generate a web directory once you’ve gathered a lot of data. Go to Formidable »Views on the dashboard and select the Add New button.
After that, give your view a title and choose the form that holds the data you want to show.
The next step is to choose a display format. You have the option of seeing the whole list, a single entry, a list of entries with links to individual entry pages, or adding items to your calendar.
Select the Both (Dynamic) -List entries that link to a single entry page option for this lesson.
In the Before Content section, put the following shortcode to add a search bar to your online directory.
1[frm-search]
Then, in the following structure, you must add material to your directory listing.
|
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 |
For example, if we wish to use the picture submitted through the ‘Main Photo Upload’ field as the home image, we must use the field ID ’63’ instead of ‘home-image.’
After that, go to Formidable » Styles » and paste the following code. To personalize the look of your online directory, use custom CSS.
After that, you may publish and preview your view. Then, in the web directory, create a new page and add your Formidable View to it.
With the basic Twenty Nineteen theme, here is how your real estate directory would appear.
Custom CSS, drag-and-drop WordPress page builder plugins, or styling plugins like CSS Hero may help you further personalize and design your Formidable directory. Method 2: Using a Plugin for a Business Directory:The second option is to utilize the Business Directory plugin directly. Please note that although the basic plugin is free, many features need you to upgrade to the PRO version. To begin, download and install the Business Directory plugin. The plugin will generate a new WordPress page after activation and ask for permission to use the business directory shortcode on it. To make a directory page, click Create needed page.
When you’re finished, the Business Directory plugin will automatically create a new page named ‘Business Directory.’
Do not remove or conceal this page since it is the principal page that the Business Directory Plugin uses to show directories on your website. The Directory Management option on your dashboard will then allow you to adjust your plugin settings. To customize the plugin’s major settings, go to Directory Management »Manage Options. permalink settings, directory search options, reCAPTCHA, registration choices, and more are all included under the “general” settings.
There are options for list, email, payment, and appearance, as seen in the image above. You may go through each one individually and make modifications as required. To modify the form fields, go to Directory Management »Manage Form Fields. You may change or add fields to the directory submission form from this page.
The next step is to construct some directory categories. Go to Directory »Directory Categories to do so. At least one category must be created in order for people to utilize it when submitting a list.
You may add a new entry by going to Directory »Add New Entry once you’ve created the category. The Add New Entry page should now appear, identical to the regular WordPress editor. Fill in the list’s title and a short description.
Then, scroll down to the ‘Directory Listing Fields/Images’ area and enter your company’s information, such as its website URL, phone number, and email address.
You must first click on the Pictures link before you can upload images. Then you may drag and drop photos into the image box or upload them from your computer.
The next step is to choose a suitable category for your listing.
Once you’ve finished, you may publish your directory. You may now get a preview of your website’s web directory page. With the default WordPress theme Twenty Nineteen, your site directory would look like this.
You might manually construct a list from your dashboard as a website administrator. Your clients may also use a form to add a list to your listing. By clicking the ‘Create A Listing’ button, you may go to the submission form.
The user-submitted listing items will be preserved as pending listings on the Directory > Directory page, so you may manually inspect and verify them for quality.
They will display on your business directory page after they are completed. Payments for Directory Listings are AcceptedYou may collect fees for entries in your online directory using the Business Directory Plugin. The plugin only comes with Authorize.net as a payment gateway by default. Other payment gateways, such as PayPal and Stripe, may be bought as independent add-ons from the plugin’s website. Go to the Directory Management »Manage Options page and choose the Payments tab to enable payment options in your corporate directory.
The checkbox to allow payment is the first option on the Payment Settings screen on the Payment Settings page. You may tick the checkbox next to the payment gateway in test mode if your site isn’t ready yet. chance. Select a currency and a thank-you note for your payment in the following step. After you’ve completed customizing payment options, click Save Changes to save your changes. Now you may link your directory to your payment processor. If no other payment gateway add-on plugin is installed, the default payment gateway choice will be Authorize.net. To activate it, click the Authorize.net link and input your login ID and transaction key.
You may wish to set up listing costs if you need payments. This may be done by heading to Directory Admin » Manage Fees and filling out the form. You might build custom list plans, set up charges, and specify the list duration for each plan, then save your adjustments. That concludes our discussion. Your online directory is now set up to accept only paid entries. We recommend that you look into numerous options inside the plugin’s settings for further optimization of your web directory. I hope this tutorial was useful in assisting you in creating a WordPress online directory.
|
WordPress is a very popular blogging platform. One of the best ways to make your blog stand out, is by creating a web directory. This will allow you to list all of your blog’s categories in one place. Reference: wordpress blog directory.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you create a directory in WordPress?
A: Normally, you can create a directory by going to the Add New option in your WordPress dashboard.
How do I create a Web directory?
A: There are many ways to create a directory, but the most important thing is that you need to think about what your intended purpose of this website would be. If its for market research purposes or some other business related project, then consider various search engines so that people can find your site easily. You should also consider registering a URL with Google and Bing in order to get good results from their indexes
What is a directory on WordPress?
A: A directory is a list of websites, categorized by subject. They are often shown in the sidebar or footer on a website that provides users with an easy way to navigate their content.
Related Tags
- how to create a directory website in wordpress
- simple directory plugin wordpress
- best free business directory plugin for wordpress
- wordpress directories
- how to build a website directory
