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Kyle Cash / Last Updated October 31, 2022

How to Build a Business Directory in WordPress [3 Steps!]

Wondering how to build a business directory in WordPress? We'll show you how in this step-by-step tutorial. With the right tools, it's not as hard as you think!

How to Build a Business Directory in WordPress

Many people think there’s no need to create a business directory in WordPress.

But, when 97% of people look up local companies using the internet. And that includes directories. So, business directories are still alive and well.

Formidable Forms is the best WordPress Form Builder plugin. Get it for free!

But that leads to how to build a business directory in WordPress. And that’s exactly what we’ll show you in this step-by-step guide.

So, let’s get started.

  • What is a WordPress business directory?
  • How do I create a web directory for my business?
    • Take your website up a level with Formidable Forms

      👉  Read more: Need a WordPress custom application plugin?

      What is a WordPress business directory?

      A business directory is a list of businesses visitors can search through to find the information they’re looking for.

      It’s like having a Yellow Pages, only online and with more information.

      A business directory website makes it easy to find business information

      Whether a list of local businesses or international, real estate, or anything in between, having a web directory is a great way to get traffic to your WordPress website.

      But, how to create a directory website is a little more complicated. Do you use a WordPress directory theme? How do you set custom fields?

      Luckily, you can solve this with a simple business directory plugin. 

      And Formidable Forms is that plugin.

      How do I create a web directory for my business?

      To start, you want to install and activate the Formidable directory plugin.

      With Formidable’s drag-and-drop builder, you can easily create a directory website you’re proud of.

      Head over to our directory plugin pricing page and grab the plugin. You’ll see a subscription, but you get a lot for that price. Not only do you get everything the Formidable directory offers, but you also get everything the Formidable plugin offers.

      Plus, there’s a 14-day money-back guarantee. Try it out, and get your money back if you don’t like what you’re using. No questions asked.

      Once you’re set-up, the fun begins!

      Here are the steps to follow:

      1. Set up the directory add-on
      2. Follow the Directory setup wizard
      3. Check the auto-generated forms & pages

      Step 1: Set up the directory add-on

      After installing the plugin, go to your WordPress admin, Formidable → Add-Ons, and click Install on the Directory plugin.

      Click install on the Directory add-on

      Next, go to Formidable → Global Settings → Directory, and you’ll see the Formidable Directory setup wizard.

      Follow the Directory setup wizard

      Follow the wizard to set up your directory.

      Step 2: Follow the Directory setup wizard

      So, now we’re going to start building the forms, Views, and pages you need for your business directory website.

      Choose Business under the view you would like to create

      In the setup wizard, choose the Business option. On this same page, you can add your page name and your directory page name.

      Step 3: Check auto-generated forms & pages

      Last, you’ll want to check your auto-generated pages before you publish them. They’ll be saved as drafts by default when using the setup wizard.

      Click on the View Page button to visit your business directory listing page.

      View your pages before publishing

      You can check your other pages if you’d like, or you can publish them, and you’re good to go!

      And that’s how to create an online business directory website in WordPress.

      🤔 Did you know?


      You can also use our sister plugin Business Directory to easily create directories of all kinds!

      Take your website up a level with Formidable Forms

      Formidable Forms Business Directory add-on makes things simple

      As you can see, making a business directory with Formidable Forms is pretty straightforward.

      And that’s because it’s one of the best WordPress plugins around. And we think 300,000+ active users proves that!

      But, it’s also the features you get that take it up. Here are some of the top features:

      • Views. Use form data to build websites. When a business owner fills out a form, Formidable generates their listing & profile pages.
      • Free and paid listings. Whether you want to show listings for free or make a little extra income, the choice is yours.
      • Top-notch support team. Having troubles on your site? Most other plugins don’t offer great support. That’s not the case with Formidable Forms. We’re here to help.

      What's included with the Formidable directory plugin?

      WordPress user directory example

      With the Formidable directory plugin, you get everything in Formidable Forms, plus the directory builder add-on. 

      Swing by the directory pricing page, and you'll see you can choose from two plans: Business or Elite.

      Formidable Forms by itself includes a lot: every form building feature you could ask for, plus all the integrations you need to build your directory site. The directory builder add-on makes building directory listings sites a simple affair.

      Although this is not a free WordPress directory plugin, as the old saying goes: you get what you pay for.

      Take a look at the WordPress.org plugin directory. You'll see there are free solutions available, but none allow for paid listings. 

      But, how flexible Formidable is what makes it worth the price.

      Create business directory websites that get visitors

      WordPress Team and member directory plugin example

      We mentioned earlier that Formidable's directory builder could help you build your directory site automatically. 

      This is true no matter what type of directory you are building. However, Formidable includes three specific directory templates:

      • Business directory
      • Team directory
      • User directory

      Since we are learning how to create a business directory, let's see what's included if you choose that option. Here's what's included with a Formidable business directory:

      • Embedded maps
      • Reviews & ratings
      • Listing owner contact
      • Customizable forms & styles
      • Front-end submissions
      • Paid or free listings
      • Multi-page listing submission form

      The truth is there's actually a lot more included than that, but if we listed it all, we would run out of space quickly!

      Other layout options for your business directory

      By itself, the Formidable directory plugin makes it easy to submit listings and display them in a grid style.

      But what if you’d prefer another layout? Like a table layout for your WordPress directory.

      Adjust the layout of your listings to a table view

      You can quickly grab the Posts Table Pro plugin and connect it with Formidable. The two work hand-in-hand to make your directory listings searchable, sortable, and filterable. For huge directories, this is essential.

      Ultimately, you get complete control over what to display and how to display it.

      What about a WordPress theme?

      Many people opt to use a WordPress theme to solve their problems simply.

      But, we think this is a bad idea. Why? Let us explain:

      • Lack of support: WordPress themes don’t have great support. It’s not a big deal if you buy a well-known theme, like Astra. But smaller, more niche themes could leave you hanging.
      • Plugin compatibility: Plugin conflicts are as common as the sun rising. It’s better to find something that’s stable and has broad compatibility. Fewer conflicts, fewer headaches.
      • Not updated often: Themes don’t change a whole lot. Even the best ones are only updated a few times a year. Ultimately, you’re stuck with what you get, including any issues you may have.

      For these reasons, if you choose a theme, choose something tried and tested.

      But, to avoid all these issues, we recommend using a business directory plugin because it checks all the boxes above and more.

      And the best of these is Business Directory.

      Get Formidable Forms now!

      Wrapping up

      And that’s all it takes to create a business directory website in WordPress. Pretty simple, huh?

      With this post, you learned how to build a business directory website in WordPress and why Formidable Forms is the best tool to help you get the job done.

      If you enjoyed this article, let us know your thoughts in the comments.

      And, if you’re on social media, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube for the latest WordPress tips and tricks!

      Read more about directories!

      • How to Create a Membership Directory How to Create a WordPress Member Directory (In 4 Steps)
        Read More
        The best WordPress custom application plugin Formidable Views: The Best WordPress Custom Application Plugin
        Read More
        How to build a job board with WordPress How to Build a Job Board Website With WordPress (In 4 Steps)
        Read More

      Using WordPress and want to get Formidable Forms for free?

      Get Formidable Forms Lite Now

      This article may contain affiliate links. Once in a while, we earn commissions from those links. But we only recommend products we like, with or without commissions.

      Comments

      1. JoroVelev says

        May 28, 2015 at 3:20 pm

        Steve,
        Thanks for posting this tutorial.

        However, I think it would be great if you dig a little bit more into details and make it more advanced. For example, I miss a Payment step if directory site is paid. And how to allow users to edit their entries while in paid period without prompting users to pay again (I don't believe people will submit once and forget. They might want to fine tune, etc. How to prevent double payment when people update entries during paid period?)

        If you put more details like this one, I think it will be really helpful to your customers.

        Good luck,
        George

        Reply
      2. Bendy says

        May 29, 2015 at 3:00 pm

        Love the tutorial, I hope to see many more coming in the future. While this is a great overview of the capabilities of formidable, I'd love to see more explanatory steps of how to design the view and the detail pages with screenshots and code.

        Keep up the great work!

        Reply
        • Steve Wells says

          May 29, 2015 at 5:02 pm

          Thanks! This post was intended to be more of an overview, but more posts in the future will detail out how to customize and style a view.

          One great thing about our demos, is that you can see all the code used to create them by clicking the "view code for this page" link. Or you can even download the xml file and import all the forms and views needed to replicate the demo on your own site.

          Reply
      3. WasabiBoy says

        May 30, 2015 at 3:41 pm

        Nice demo. It would be great to see the next page (actually same page dust next data) change via Ajax rather than the whole page. I actually thought your demo went on further until I realised it was the next rows of data.

        Reply
        • Steve Wells says

          June 1, 2015 at 10:06 am

          I see your point. I have changed my views to only show 5 entries without pagination to prevent this confusion.

          Reply
      4. Beth says

        June 26, 2015 at 9:06 am

        Thanks for this! I have a spreadsheet of information to upload to my database - is it possible to do this in one go rather than filling in the form over and over?
        Thanks!
        Beth

        Reply
        • Steve Wells says

          June 26, 2015 at 11:03 am

          you can import entries from a csv file using the import/export tool. Please post in our helpdesk if you need more help with this.

          Reply
          • Beth says

            July 9, 2015 at 4:01 am

            Thank you!

            Reply
      5. Holly says

        July 29, 2015 at 8:11 pm

        Can the view performm and display the result of a calculation? For example, the first entry shows that the number of classes a student has remaining is 20, then the second shows that they have 19. I really need this. Thanks.

        Reply
        • Steve Wells says

          September 4, 2015 at 9:48 am

          Sorry for the delay in responding to this. Yes, you could do this in a couple ways. Please contact us in our help desk for help getting this implemented.

          Reply
      6. Holly says

        July 29, 2015 at 8:12 pm

        I should add that this is for my teaching business. I give private lessons and want students to be able to track how many classes they have taken out of their package.

        Reply
      7. Leo says

        August 26, 2015 at 2:09 pm

        Hey guys!

        Keep up the awesome job with Formidable! Heard about the upcoming add ons 🙂 Would be a great thing to have. The site needs a redesign and prices should go up 🙂 Looking forward to see Formidable around for the long run

        Reply
        • Steve Wells says

          September 4, 2015 at 9:46 am

          Thanks so much! We are working on a site redesign and some big new features and initiatives for our developer community.

          Reply
      8. zumkalle says

        September 4, 2015 at 3:21 am

        Hello,

        I tried to build a small directory, it works. Just one thing, its possible to upload a logo-file and show it on the listing page? Up to now I just see the URL to the picture after upload with the form, how I can show the picture?

        thanks, Peter

        Reply
        • Steve Wells says

          September 4, 2015 at 9:45 am

          Yes, this can be done. Please contact us in our HelpDesk for help getting this implemented.

          Reply
      9. Mathias says

        October 19, 2015 at 9:40 am

        Hello,

        I would like to build a business directory maybe with the help of formidablepro. Because I can not find complete solution.

        Can you tell me a live site where someone is running a business directory with formidablepro (up and running)?

        Thank you so much for your support.

        Reply
        • Steve Wells says

          October 24, 2015 at 8:13 am

          I can't think of a customer's site with a directory right now, but have you seen our demos page? The job listing demo and star rating demo might help you see the plugin in action.

          We are working on a new marketplace where solutions like the one you linked to above can be built and sold, but that marketplace isn't quite ready.

          Additionally, we do offer a full 30 day refund. So you should have time to check out the plugin and make sure it does what you are hoping.

          Reply
          • Mathias says

            October 26, 2015 at 10:23 am

            Thanks a lot for your answer.

            So you say that the directory website which I posted in my first posting can be replicated with formidable pro?

            Do you know a developer who is very familiar with this plugin and who could create a directory with the help of formidable pro?

            Are the outputs (views) responsive? Or does this depend on the theme that I use?

            Thank you very much.

            Reply
            • Steve Wells says

              October 26, 2015 at 3:31 pm

              Yes, this can be done with Formidable. Responsiveness will depend mostly on the theme, and the code used to build the View.

              Reply
              • Mathias says

                December 22, 2015 at 10:15 am

                Hi Steve,

                thanks for your answer. Another thing that I would like to do with formidable pro is to create review system (star rating). Customer should rate their experience that they had with our service.

                Is there a way to make this system support schema.org microformat, so that google will show the ratings in the SERPs together with our website?

                Does formidble pro support with schema.org, if not how can make it work with schema.org (for reviews)

                thank you so much for your time

                best
                Mathias

                Reply
      10. Deborah Nelson says

        October 29, 2015 at 6:24 pm

        I am seriously thinking of buying Formidable forms, but I am not sure where to address my question...I have tried the following forms software:

        GRAVITY
        CONTACT 7
        VISUAL FORM BUILDER
        BREEZING FORMS
        NINJA
        FORM MAKER
        and some others...

        Yours seems to have everything I need, except....

        The contact us, does not have an option for sales questions. I have downloaded the "free" version, but that does not answer my question because my question is with an add on.

        The question is, if I use the Mail Chimp add on, am I able to create professional auto-responder emails, because the email function that the software gives us is pretty ugly looking ... not professional at all. Most of the other softwares have this problem too.

        This is the thing that most of these forms software seem to be missing...

        Deborah S Nelson

        Reply
      11. Oliver Osswald says

        November 29, 2019 at 11:43 pm

        What would be the best way to add geolocation to the directory list? So that a visitor could search for and display a specific location and see all listed service providers nearby on a map?

        Reply
      12. John Phipps says

        September 4, 2020 at 9:11 am

        Is there a demo of the business directory?

        Reply
        • Ryan Cordoni says

          September 4, 2020 at 12:40 pm

          Hi John, we are working on that as we speak - we will be releasing the business directory demo next week! Stay tuned 🙂

          Reply
          • Brandon Pence says

            October 5, 2020 at 9:37 am

            Any update on this? I'm having a hard time finding a demo as well. Your "Business Directory" demo here https://formidableforms.com/demos/ links here: https://formidableforms.com/demos/directory/. There isn't a demo there.

            Thanks!

            Reply
            • Ryan Cordoni says

              October 7, 2020 at 5:55 pm

              Sorry about that! Here’s a demo: https://sandbox.formidableforms.com/business-directory-demo/

              Reply
      13. Chris Andrews says

        January 1, 2021 at 10:35 pm

        Another vote for profile schema to be added to the profile pages. That's going to be a critical component for what I am working on.

        Reply
      14. John C Corbin says

        December 15, 2021 at 2:29 pm

        Is it possible to create a directory that can be sorted by KIND of business? Like the old Yellow Pages? Looking up plumbers or painters or developers would show all the businesses that do those things. RIght now, I've got to search, but might miss a valid busienssifi use the wrong search term.

        Thanks

        Reply
        • srwells says

          December 16, 2021 at 4:35 pm

          Yes, this sounds like a good use case for Formidable Forms + Views

          Reply

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