Speaker Management

Create speaker profiles with photos and bios. Assign speakers to events to display on event pages and speaker archives.

Creating speakers

Add a speaker

• Go to Events > Speakers
• Click Add New
• Enter the speaker's name as the title
• Fill in profile information
• Add a photo
• Publish

Speaker fields

Name The speaker's display name. This is the post title.

Photo Featured image used in profiles and event pages. Square images work best.

Bio Speaker biography and credentials. Appears on the speaker's profile page and event pages.

Job Title Professional title or role (e.g., "CEO at TechCorp").

Company/Organization Where the speaker works or their affiliation.

Contact Information

• Email address
• Phone number
• Website URL

Social Media

• Twitter/X URL
• LinkedIn URL
• Facebook URL
• Instagram URL

Speaker categories

Organize speakers by category:

• Go to Events > Speaker Categories
• Add categories like "Keynote", "Panelist", "Workshop Leader"
• Assign categories when editing speakers

Categories help with:

• Filtering speaker lists
• Organizing event programs
• Archive page organization

Assigning speakers to events

In the event editor

• Edit an event
• Find the Speakers section
• Search for speakers by name
• Select speakers to add
• Drag to reorder
• Save the event

Multiple speakers

Events can have multiple speakers:

• Order determines display order
• Each speaker shows with photo and brief bio
• Links to full speaker profiles

Speaker sessions

For multi-session events, add session details:

• In the speaker assignment, add session info
• Enter session title
• Set session time
• This displays in the event schedule

Speaker display

On event pages

Assigned speakers appear on event pages:

• Photo
• Name with link to profile
• Job title
• Brief bio excerpt
• Social links

Speaker archive

View all speakers at /speakers/ (or your configured slug):

• Grid of speaker cards
• Photo, name, title
• Category filtering
• Links to profiles

Single speaker page

Individual speaker pages show:

• Full bio
• Photo
• Contact information
• Social links
• Upcoming events they are speaking at
• Past events

Speaker widget

Add a speaker list to sidebars:

• Go to Appearance > Widgets
• Add EMWC Speakers widget
• Configure:

- Title - Number to show - Category filter - Show/hide photos

Theme integration

Template override

Copy templates to your theme for customization:

templates/archive-emwc_speaker.php
templates/single-emwc_speaker.php

Template tags

Display speaker info in templates:

// In single-emwc_speaker.php
$job_title = get_post_meta( get_the_ID(), '_emwc_speaker_job_title', true );
$company = get_post_meta( get_the_ID(), '_emwc_speaker_company', true );

Styling

Main CSS classes:

.emwc-speaker-card {
}
.emwc-speaker-photo {
}
.emwc-speaker-name {
}
.emwc-speaker-title {
}
.emwc-speaker-bio {
}
.emwc-speaker-social {
}

Managing speakers

Speaker list

Go to Events > Speakers to see all speakers:

• Name and photo
• Categories
• Events assigned
• Quick edit options

Editing

Click a speaker to edit:

• Update information
• Change photo
• Add/remove from events
• Update social links

Deleting

When deleting a speaker:

• Speaker is removed from events
• Events remain unchanged otherwise
• Delete only removes the profile

Use cases

Conference sessions

• Create speakers for each presenter
• Assign to main event
• Add session details for schedule
• Attendees can see full program

Workshop instructors

• Create instructor profiles
• Assign to workshop events
• Show credentials on event pages
• Build instructor credibility

Panel events

• Create profiles for all panelists
• Assign moderator and panelists to event
• Order determines display (moderator first)
• Each panelist linked to profile

Best practices

Complete profiles

Fill in all fields:

• Complete bios convert better
• Photos make events more appealing
• Social links help attendees connect

Consistent photos

Use similar photo styles:

• Same dimensions/aspect ratio
• Professional headshots
• Consistent backgrounds

Regular updates

Keep profiles current:

• Update titles and companies
• Refresh bios for relevance
• Add new social links

Reuse speakers

Create profiles once:

• Assign to multiple events
• Build speaker reputation
• Link past and future events