While many people use WordPress to host their blog, it is a platform that is much more versatile. When you know how to create custom posts and pages, you can create whatever type of content you desire and reach an unknown number of people. The different types of content are referred to as custom post types and with a little bit of practice, you can make them on your own.
What Classifies as a Custom Post Type?
The best place to begin is to fully understand what classifies as a custom post type. You may be creating a post for a blog, but you may also be creating a page, an attachment, a menu, or even a testimonial or product page. This means that if you want to create a business website, you will need to know how to make these different post types benefit you.
Starting Easy
Just because something is custom does not mean you need to be a professional WordPress user to figure it out. There are plugins that help you create a custom post type with little to no effort or knowledge. The best plugin to use is the one specifically for Custom Post Type and is shortened to CPT UI when activated. This simple plugin will allow you to create the taxonomies so your labels will be customized specifically for your site. This means what you see in the admin bar will be what you see on the page. If you want to customize it further, you can use the advanced options;otherwise, you will just label the post type and then describe what it does.
More Permanent Fixtures
With a plugin, the minute the plugin is disabled, everything it does disappears. This means if your post type plugin is deactivated or no longer will works with your site, then you lose the ability to access it as an admin. The best option for skilled users is to create a permanent change by manually coding in the post type into the functions.php file. You will need to make an array that has two parts, one to label and one to act as the argument. By coding directly into the functions.php file, you will be able to customize as much as you want.
There are two distinct methods to making your custom post type visible on your site. The first is to use a template that is found in the appearance section, under menus. You will add a custom link to your menu, which is ideal if you already have permalinks set, that are SEO friendly. However, you can also create a custom template by going into your theme directory and making a new file. You will want to name it “archive-SEOfriendlyname.php” without the quotation marks and put your post type’s name instead of the SEOfriendlyname. If you are creating a single entry, you want to use “single” instead of “archive.”
With custom post types, you can display them in your content, your front page, or as a widget by using different plugins and codes. As you learn more code, you can create even more advanced customization that will allow your readers the ability to customize their RSS feed.