Build SEO Optimized URLs for MyListing Websites With Permalink Manager Pro

This guide will show you how to use Permalink Manager Pro to easily add new permalink structure capabilities to the MyListing theme, enhance your SEO, provide better navigation, and more.

MyListing includes some excellent options out of the box (WordPress > Settings > Permalinks > Listing Base) for setting up your default permalink structure. However, for some directories, it’s not enough.

For example, you may have noticed that only one Region (the first Region chosen by the Lister) can be included in the URL. This is not good for SEO, as some Regions can have the same name across a country, and the granularity is not enough for directories where Local content distinction (i.e., Local Business directories) is critical.

I highlight the Region taxonomy here, but the same can be said for all other taxonomies (Categories, Custom Taxonomies, etc.) where getting granular and organized is essential.

Implementation

MyListing Listing Base

Since we are using Permalink Manager Pro to set up our permalinks, the MyListing settings under WordPress > Settings > Permalinks > Listing Base can be ignored.

Whatever you set for your Listing Base will not impact the custom permalinks you build with this guide.

Permalink Manager Pro

For these instructions, let’s use a scenario where our directory is for local businesses in a particular city, which in this case happens to be Charlotte, North Carolina.

Core Settings

1. Install and activate the Permalinks Manager Pro plugin.
2. Go to WordPress > Tools > Permalink Manager > Settings
3. Auto-update Permalinks > Enabled

Listing Base

Here is where we will tell Permalink Manager Pro what our default Listing Base (i.e., permalink/URL structure) should be for all Listings. This can easily be adjusted to fit your particular directory, but I’m demonstrating how to recreate the structure below.

/ state / city / neighborhood / listing-type / category / listing-name /

1. Go to WordPress > Tools > Permalink Manager > Permastructures
2. Under Post Types > Listings, append the following to the Listing Base by entering it into the box.

nc/charlotte/%listing_region%/%listing_type%/%listing_category%/%job_listing%

Prevent Duplicate Slugs/URLs

If you run a MyListing website, it is common for Listings to have the same name. When that happens, you will see a ‘-2’, ‘-3’, and so on appended to each Listing URL. To prevent this from happening, you can easily solve this using Permalink Manager Pro by enabling the ‘Use actual titles as slugs’ setting.

WordPress Dashboard > Tools > Permalink Manager > Settings > Slugs Mode: Use actual title as slugs.

Regenerate URLs

If your directory has been around for a while, you undoubtedly have Listings. Rather than manually edit each one to apply the new permalink structure, we can use the Regenerate tool to go through all Listings and apply the structure automatically.

Note: Back up your website before performing the steps below or test in a staging environment.

1. Go to WordPress > Tools > Permalink Manager > Tools > Regenerate/Reset
2. Mode > Regenerate Custom Permalinks
3. Content Type > Post Types
4. Post Types > Select only ‘Listings.’
5. Post Status > Select All
6. Click the Regenerate button.

That’s all there is to it! At this point, the custom Listing Base should be applied to all your Listings.