3 Awesome About Author WordPress Plugins
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David
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December 18th, 2012
One great way to increase the reader's connection with the author is to share some of the personality and life behind the words. Where did they come from? What's the writer's back story? Are they from a part of the world like yours? What's their experience level? How can I access their blog, website, and/or social media sites?
But, not all plugins are created equal. Just for your intellectual and professional curiosity (okay, a bit of mine, too), I've dredged up the better-to-best free About Author WordPress Plugins. Dig in!
A Survey of the About Author WordPress Plugin World
It's surprising how few of these plugins out there actually work well and look good. There are free ones that rival the best paid ones, and paid ones that offer little to no satisfaction for your consumption.
These might not all be perfect, but they'll do the job well!
1. Custom About Author
I used this plugin for quite a while as it is highly customizable, easy-to-use right out of the proverbial box, and looks good! But, there are only so many ways you can adjust it before you want something else. The box can get pretty big if you have more than a few words to say. Really though, this is my favorite About Author WordPress plugin out there. If you're looking for a place to start, start here!
2. Fancier Author Box
This is my most current About Author plugin, and there are a few things I really like about it. First, it's pretty petite, rather streamlined, and has quite a lot of functionality. You can say a lot in a small space with this one. For multi-author blogs, the "Latest Posts" tab is genius!
But, I do think it looks a little overly simplistic in some ways, and I'm not settled on it yet. Still, a great option!
3. WP Biographia
This plugin is a shiny bright star in the mix with the potential for extreme customization, versatility, and placement both in sidebars and on posts/pages. You can jam-pack a ton of useful information in this one while also sharing your story.
I really love that the author box in the sidebar changes depending on which article is displayed, which makes this perfect for multi-author sites. Even for solo bloggers, this takes out the need for an image, widget, CSS, or other fuss for the same versatility!
For Fun: Author Bio Widget for Sidebars
Not in the market for an after-the-post kind of affair? If you'd rather keep your author information in a sidebar (great for solo author blogs), consider the Author Bio Widget. It's very clean and tidy, and gets the job done in a nice way.
Personally, I'd go with WP Biographia to get the versatility of the other plugins with the special sidebar feature. If you only need a sidebar blurb though, this will do the trick!
Do you use About Author WordPress Plugins? If so, which? If not, why not? Are you a fan of these plugins? We'd love to know more!