Author information
Courses and lessons are WordPress posts, so they have an author — and several separate settings decide whether students ever see it.
The four places it can appear
| Setting | Where | Shows |
|---|---|---|
| Display post author link | The page body | A byline linking to the author archive |
| Display author box | The page body | The full biography block |
| Show author avatar | The subheader | The profile picture |
| Show author name | The subheader | The name |
Plus Link author avatar and name in the subheader, which makes both link to the author archive.
Each exists independently for courses and for lessons, under Settings → POM LMS → Course and → Lesson.
Deciding
The question is whether your courses are taught by a person or published by a company.
By a person. The instructor is part of what students buy. Show the avatar and name in the course subheader, and the author box on the course page, where the biography establishes credibility before purchase.
By a company. Turn all of it off. A byline reading admin undermines a paid course, and an author archive listing blog posts alongside courses is not a page you want students on.
Course and lesson need different answers
Even when the instructor matters, the case for repeating their photograph and biography on every lesson is weak. Students already know who is teaching.
A good default:
| Course | Lesson | |
|---|---|---|
| Author avatar and name in the subheader | On | Off |
| Author box | On | Off |
| Author link | Off | Off |
Before turning any of it on
Author information only helps if the profiles are ready. Check the WordPress user profile of everyone who publishes a course:
- Display name — a real name, not a username.
- Biographical info — two or three sentences of relevant credentials. This is the author box.
- Profile picture — a proper photograph.
An empty box with a default avatar is worse than no box.
The author archive
Linking the author sends students to the WordPress author archive, which lists everything that author published — blog posts, courses, and possibly lessons.
Before enabling any of the linking options, open that archive and look at it. If it is a mixed list with no design, leave the author unlinked or link to a page you control instead.
Changing the author
The Author field in the editor sidebar sets it, on courses and lessons alike. Bulk edit can change it for many posts at once, which is useful after a staff change.
Changing the author has no effect on access or progress. It is display only.
Verify
- Complete the profiles of everyone who publishes courses.
- Configure the four settings for courses and for lessons.
- Open a course and confirm the author appears where you intended, once.
- Open a lesson and confirm it is not repeated unnecessarily.
- If anything is linked, follow the link and confirm the destination is presentable.