Upgrade your post feed with the WordPress Post Descriptions plugin – WordPress Tavern

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Tom de Visser, a developer from Amsterdam, released the Post Descriptions plugin last week. This was his first submission to the WordPress.org plugin repository. It allows users to write short descriptions on a per article basis, which are then displayed on the post management screen.

For a first release, it already seems to be a hit with its small user base. It has already racked up several five-star reviews and over 100 active installs. Admittedly, one of these opinions comes from his employer, Mediaversa. While it might not sound like much from the outside, anyone who has created plugins knows that this is a successful launch for an individual developer’s first plugin submission.

The purpose of the plugin is simple: leave little notes, reminders, to-do’s or longer descriptions for posts. This might be an ideal solution for a small team, but isolated bloggers might need it as well.

Post Descriptions works with both the standard WordPress post editor or the classic editor by adding a meta box to the side of the edit screen. Currently, it only allows descriptions for posts or pages. Maybe the developer will add a post type support flag or filter hook for custom post types in the future.

Posts descriptions plugin meta box.

In addition to the description entry box, users can check the “Make your description important” box to highlight a particular note. This option gives the text display a red color and makes it bold when viewed.

The descriptions are visible via the management screens of the articles or the pages. By default, they appear as a “status”, similar to pending or draft reports next to the title. The plugin also displays them under a “Description” column. Users can turn off status display through the plugin’s settings screen and toggle the additional column through the WordPress built-in Screen Options tab.

Publish the reports via the Post Descriptions plugin on the publications management screen.
Descriptions as “states” of publication.

One of my favorite features of this plugin is the flexibility to select where the notes appear on the post-management screen. Those who prefer one or two words can choose to display them as states. Those who prefer longer descriptions can display them in a separate column. Or do both.

Description column on the publications management screen to display the notes.
Column to display job descriptions.

Users can also add descriptions via the Quick Edit link on the post-management screen.

From a user experience perspective, this touches on some of those strengths of usability and simplicity. Under the hood, the code is solid. The developer doesn’t seem to think too much and make the plugin more complicated than necessary.

For small teams, I plan to create a labeling system around this plugin that could solve workflow issues. Adding short notes like Editor Review, SEO Review, etc. alert the right team members to approve a post.

While the flexibility to display notes as statements or descriptions is welcome, it does not allow for a third type of user. My ideal workflow would be to have separate entries for states and descriptions. I could create a shorter state that catches my team’s attention. Then if more information is needed I could add a longer description.

Post management screen showing short notes in the form of post states and longer notes under a description column.
Idea: Separate state and description text.

The downside of such a system is that it puts yet another input field in front of the end user. Sometimes the route with the least amount of effort is the best. And, for a quick release note plugin, it’s hard to beat the plugin’s current solution.



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