UX Guide: How to Improve WordPress Admin Dashboard

User experience (UX) is a term used to convey the semantic feedback of a user about a website while browsing it or using it. For an ideal website, a favorable UX would mean that the users find the website easy to understand and navigate through. When considering setting up a website using WordPress, a good UX would mean that upon logging in, the dashboard is simple and self-explanatory so that the user can browse through it effortlessly.

 

Importance of user experience

A lot of emphasis is given to the content of the websites, but UX is something that needs an equal consideration. The following points indicate the importance of a high UX:

• An excellently designed website is useless if people are not satisfied with their website experience.
• UX determines whether people will come back to a website or not.
• UX matters especially to start-ups and new businesses because their website is their first impression to the clients.

The popularity of WordPress, in general, is an indication of the ease of its use, but first-time users may need some help to find their way through the dashboard.The UX of a WordPress based website is directly related to the popularity and success of that website, and the Dashboard can contribute to improving the user experience of a WordPress based website. It is essential to know the quick and easy tips and tricks that help the admin to improve the UX of the WordPress Dashboard. Some of these are discussed below.

 

White-labelling your site

This means that you can remove the logos of WordPress from the dashboard of your website and keep the logo of your business. Having too many different logos can be quite confusing for the user. Also, having only your logo generates more trust in your website. Both these factors ultimately improve the UX.

Just go to the functions.php file for your current theme by following the Appearance > Editor and place this code. It will hide the logo.

/*Remove WordPress menu from admin bar */
add_action ('admin_bar_menu', 'remove_wp_logo', 999);
function remove_wp_logo ( $wp_admin_bar ) {
		$wp_admin_bar->remove_node('wp_logo');
}

 

Adding a welcome message

Upon logging into WordPress Dashboard, we see a “Howdy” message. It is very easy to change this message to a widget or a more personal message. It may even have your name and contact details so that the users can contact you directly if they feel the need to do so. This simple step can go a long way to enhance user experience. If you wish to modify the welcome message for your WordPress Dashboard, you can use one of the many Change howdy plugins or overwrite the ‘Howdy’ message by adding the following lines to the functions.php file.

function howdy_message ($translated_text, $text, $domain){
	$new_message = str_replace ('Howdy','Welcome', $text);
	return $new_message;
}
add_filter('gettext', 'howdy_message', 10, 3);

 

Modifying the dashboard footer 

Just like the welcome message, the WordPress Dashboard footer message can be easily modified to include a more personal text and links.All you will have to do is:

• Login to the Admin dashboard of your WordPress website.
• Follow the ‘Appearance’ tab on the left and go to the ‘Editor’ section. You will see a ‘Footer’ option. Click to the edit the footer.php page.
• Locate the footer code and add the code for the change you would like to implement in the footer text.
• Save the changes by clicking ‘Update’

This small change will make the user feel more welcomed to the website and lead to an improvement in the UX.

 

Including custom fields to organize and display data

Organising the data in custom fields makes it very easy for the user to fill in relevant information effortlessly. At the same time, the user provides all the information that is listed. By making some of the fields mandatory, you can extract the most relevant information from the users without burdening them. This will surely lead to an improved UX because the users do not have to think too much before filling in all the required information.

 

Not including the unnecessary details and fields

Out of the plethora of options given on the dashboard, one must only keep the most relevant ones visible to the user. Doing this will make the interface much less confusing for the user. This will save a lot of the time and effort because they won’t have to think about what to fill in those fields.

 

Adding descriptions to fields

This simple step will make sure that the user gets to know what kind of information has to be put in a particular field. In case of multiple sections, these descriptions will help the user understand the main aim of that particular section. This will lead to an enhanced UX.

 

Creating custom post types

Keeping the requirements of the user in mind, it is a good idea to use custom post types instead of the default ones. This will make the website content type more relevant to the clients and make it easy for them to fill up the information. One can also create custom taxonomies for the different types of clients. For example, for an e-commerce website selling clothes, taxonomies like brand, fabric, color, size etc. will be more relevant than simply saying ‘product description’.

  

Adding icons where possible 

It is not sufficient to include custom post types only. The user experience is enhanced much more of those custom post types have an accompanying icon. Assigning icons to post types make the user spend the much lesser time to locate the post because of the photographic association. Reading the text, in contrast, takes longer.

 

Displaying custom fields in column format

The appearance of columns for displaying custom fields is much more informative and less confusing for the user. The user will not have to browse inside each post to read the information and this saves a lot of time and effort. Also, keeping a provision for uploading pics makes it very easy for the users to describe their products. These factors also enhance the user experience.

 

Giving the clients an Editor account

Once a new client starts using a WordPress website, too many options and control settings can be intimidating and confusing. It is better to provide them with an Editor account, by which they have access to all vital functions. This will give them a better experience of being able to manage and customise the website in their preferred way without being overloaded with too many options that they don’t require.

 

Including support forms

A very good way to increase interaction with the user is to use admin support forms. This way, the users will know how to reach you and send their messages across whenever they need. Including a Help button also serves the same purpose, making the user feel important. This improves the user experience tremendously.

The above points illustrate how flexible can WordPress be when catering to different needs of its users. One just needs to know the effective ways of bringing about these changes. Keeping the above tips and tricks in mind, it is possible to make the WordPress Dashboard more user-friendly. This will improve the user experience associated with the WordPress product and ultimately result in its popularity and success.

 

Author:
Kiera Hayes is a passionate Blogger and Web Developer. She is currently working for WPCodingDev, a WordPress Development Company. She enjoys reading and writing articles whenever she gets time from her work.