Menu item link types

Use the archives dropdown in your menu to create an automatic dropdown of links to each month/year of your blog posts.

 In the modal, you can change the "Text," select the number of months in the current year to display, and the rest will be collapsed into each year.

The number of months to show before collapsing into years is not based on elapsed months, rather it is based on each month in which posts were added to the blog. Months with no posts do not count.

Use the Blog link type to take visitors to your site's posts page.

This is the simplest link type because it is automatic. All you need is some text for the link.

Which page is my blog page?

Your blog posts appear in one of two possible locations:

• the 'front' address of your WordPress setup
• a separate 'sub-page' address of your WordPress setup

The page where posts appear (your "blog") is chosen inside the Layouts area of ProPhoto.

Regardless if the blog appears as the front of your site or as a sub-page, this Blog link type will always take visitors to your most recent posts on the blog.

Use the Category link to take visitors to a blog page which is filtered to show only the posts added to the one chosen post category.

 All you need to do is select your Category and the Text field will pre-populate with the category name.

When a visitor clicks to view your category, they'll see a page listing all the posts added to that category in WordPress. Learn how to organize posts with categories if you have not used them before. Create as many category links as you need, one-by-one. If you need to link to many categories, consider using the automatic Categories Dropdown menu item instead.

Use the Category Dropdown menu item to link visitors to multiple post categories in a dropdown menu item.

You may provide the link text, provide an optional URL link address for the dropdown, and omit specific categories from the dropdown menu.

1. Text is what is displayed as the top-level menu item seen in your menu. Hovering over or tapping this link will display a dropdown menu which lists automatically all the post categories in use on your site - including their parent-child hierarchy.
2. The URL field is if you have an optional URL link for the top-level text seen in your menu. Paste a full URL address copied from your web browser address bar into this box, and visitors will be taken there if they click the top-level text. *Be aware that there is no hover on touch screens (tablets, phones, some computers) so this link cannot be accessed on these devices. Instead, tapping on the top-level item will simply open the dropdown list.
3. Simply click to omit any individual categories from the dropdown. Be aware that if you omit a category which is the parent of other categories, those sub-categories will be omitted as well.

New categories you create for your blog will automatically appear in this dropdown unless you edit your menu item and check the box to omit it. If you want to link to only one category, or if you do not want a dropdown, consider using the manual category link menu item instead.

I don't see my category in the dropdown

Since it only makes sense to link your menu to categories which actually have posts added, your category dropdown will not show categories which have been created but have no posts assigned. Simply apply your category to at least one blog post that has been published, and that category will become available in the category dropdown menu link.

Use the Custom link in your menu to link to any URL you want. This can be helpful when wanting to link to a 3rd party site.

In the popup box, complete the Text field for what will be shown in the menu and fill in the URL address of anything you want to link to. Be sure to add the https:// portion of the website address to prevent issues with your link.

When not to use the custom link

If you're trying to link to something on your own site, chances are this isn't the link you want. As you'll notice in the Menu Item popup, there are lots of other menu item types. The most common one to use is the  Page link item which takes visitors directly to the page on your own site. Also, you can use the Custom text item menu item if you want a menu item that does not behave like a link at all, and only serves as a sort of container for other menu items.

Use the Custom Text menu item when you need a parent menu link that does not link anywhere.

In the popup for this menu item, enter any text that you want to appear within your menu. 

When to use the custom text item

If you want to create a custom dropdown menu item, you may not want the top item to link to anything. When this is needed, you can drag other menu items into your custom text item to create a dropdown.

The menu will be created as a dropdown, but the top-level menu item (the "Pricing" in the image above) will not behave as a link in any way - even your cursor will not display as a hand icon.  

An  Email Link is a great if you want viewers to email you directly using their default email client instead of, or in addition to, a contact form.

 After choosing the link type, fill in the link Text and the email address you want to be automatically included in the "to" field inside the email.

When your viewers click this link it will open their default email client and start creating a new message with your email address as target.

Use the Gallery link to allow visitors to directly view a ProPhoto gallery you have published.

All you need to do is provide the link text and select any gallery you've made.

When a visitor clicks to view your gallery, they'll see it appear in a pseudo-page which isn't an actual page of your site, but is simply created as a place to show your gallery.

I don't see my text or content

If you have placed a photo gallery inside a WordPress page, and you don't see the rest of the content from your page, then you probably meant to use a different menu link. Instead of linking directly to your photo gallery, consider using a Page link instead so that your visitor will see the content you've created along with your photo gallery.

Use the Home link to take visitors to the front page of your WordPress setup.

This is the simplest link type because it is automatic. All you need is some text for the link.

There is also a checkbox if you want your Home link to link to a specific element on the front page of your site (block, row or column).  Once you check, you can select whichever block or row you would like the link to scroll to on your home page.

Which page is my home page?

WordPress is setup at a specific address on your server. This address is found in the "Settings > General" screen of your setup. This is the address of your Home page.

You can then use the Layout Editor in ProPhoto to set what is shown on the Home page, either your blog posts, or a static page. 

Use the Page link to take visitors to any WordPress page you have published on your site. This is the most common link type you'll use because it takes visitors to the content you've created in your site - regardless of it's address.

Click the page you want to link to and the Text field will automatically populate with the page title - simple!

Also, if you want to link your Page link to a specific block or column in the page you're linking to, you can check the box provided and select the scroll-to link of the element you want to link to.

I don't see the page I want to link to

Since it only makes sense to link your menu to pages which actually exist to the public, your page selector will not show pages which are not yet published and accessible by visitors. This means that a few types of pages will not be listed:

• draft pages
• pending review pages
• private pages

Simply set your page to be published publicly or password protected and you'll be able to link to it in your menu.

Use a Pages Dropdown link if you want to easily link to a lot of pages in a dropdown.

You may provide the link Text and click to select any specific pages you want omitted from the dropdown menu.

New pages you create will automatically appear in this dropdown unless you edit your menu item and check the box to omit it. So if you want to link to only one or two pages, or don't want new pages automatically showing up in this dropdown, consider using the manual Page link menu item instead.

How do I reorder the pages dropdown?

WordPress will organize pages alphabetically by default. The pages dropdown menu will reflect the normal WordPress order of your pages, so if you want to alter the order of your pages there are two options:

1. Edit the order of your pages in WordPress, using the order number for each page. Learn how in our guide for organizing pages ... OR
2. Replace your pages dropdown menu item with a custom-made dropdown. To do this, change your pages dropdown menu item into another type, like a Custom Text link type. Then, drag other menu items into your top-level item to create a nested hierarchy of menu links. See a demonstration of the drag-and-drop menu items in the next section.

How can I create a dropdown that does not automatically include new pages?

Create a dropdown of a fixed number of pages by creating new page links, and then drag them into a parent menu item, usually a Custom Text link type.

It's likely that you'll use this method more often then a pages dropdown link.

Use the Recent Posts dropdown if you want a dropdown of your of your most recent posts from the menu.

After selecting the menu item type you add link text and choose how many of your recent posts you want to include in the dropdown.

The links in the dropdown will automatically change as you publish more posts so that the most recent ones are there. Use it in a horizontal menu for quick access to recent posts or possibly in a sidebar or footer.

Note: When a recent posts dropdown menu link is used with a vertical menu there will not be a flyout dropdown. The recent posts will appear as 2nd level sub-links under the primary link. Here is an example using the same link as shown above.

Use the Search menu item when you want to display a search bar in your menu area.

In the popup for this menu item, enter the text you want to act as the search button text. 

Want potential visitors to be able to send you a text message directly from your ProPhoto site? It can be done using the SMS Link menu option.

Just title the menu item and enter your phone number, with or without hyphens.

And assuming the visitor is viewing on a device that can send SMS messages, they can click to send you a text message.

The Telephone link menu link option allows customers to be able to click on the link, and make a phone call directly from their device, to the phone number entered. To use, select this option:

Simply enter the Text you want the link to display as, as well as the phone number you want it to link to. The phone number can be entered with, or without hyphens.

Assuming someone is viewing your site from a device that can make telephone call and clicks that link, they'll be able to place a call to that phone number.