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You are here: Home / Design Stuff / The right (and wrong) way to choose a WordPress theme

The right (and wrong) way to choose a WordPress theme

August 26, 2015 By Kate Bacon 22 Comments

Mac PowerBook and iPhone on table

With 19,801 premium (paid for) themes on Themeforest alone, it isn’t suprising that you are feeling totally overwhelmed at the thought of finding a theme for your WordPress website!

Of course you could just stick with the latest free theme that comes with the install of your WordPress software, but it won’t help you stand out from the crowd online, and your website will end up looking very similar to thousands of others on the web.

My favourite themes come from Studio Press and even they have 49 to choose from – so I’m here to give you some pointers in the right direction.

The first thing to think about is what you want your website to do

This might sound like an odd question, as obviously on the most basic level it is the online home that promotes your heart-centered business, but let’s drill down into what you are actually offering…

3 questions to ask BEFORE you buy a premium WordPress theme
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1. Do you want visitors to be able to purchase your products or services directly from your website? Do you need an online shop, which can be as simple as having PayPal “Buy Now” buttons embedded in your site?

2. Do you need a gallery or portfolio of your work on your site? Do you want to show visitors examples of your work, be it photography, graphic design, jewellery, meditation cushions etc?)

3. Are you on social media and need to connect your profiles to your site? You ARE on social media right…?

All these are important factors in choosing a theme for your website, as not all of them will have the features you need. (For example, from first hand experience it is much easier to choose a theme that has a built in porfolio page than trying to tweak code to develop one yourself!)

Then there are the 4 ‘non-negotiables’ which apply to EVERY site…

1. Mobile responsive – ensuring your site can be viewed easily on mobile devices from Smart Phones to Tablets, as well as laptops and desktop computers. Google have recently essentially made this mandatory, as they will rank your website lower in the searches if it is NOT responsive!

I am currently working with a client whose site I built a number of years ago. At the time, mobile responisveness was not as important as it is in 2015, and the theme we used was not best viewed on the tiny screen of a Smart Phone. This just shows how quickly themes (even ones that are built by developers with great reputations) can go out of date.

2. Search Engine Optimised (often referred to simply as SEO) so that you are found easily on Google and the other search engines.

Well built themes will allow you to add your own SEO terms when editing each page and blog post, as well as optimise your home page – without having to delve into the mysterious world of coding! Check out LocalViking.com for expert tips!

3. Easy to navigate – enabling your visitors to find out who you are, what you offer, if it’s a good fit for them, and how to take the next step (book an appointment, or buy a product or service).

This is partly to do with how the theme is set up (some are so “arty” that finding different pages on a website is completely elusive!) It is also partly down to how you create your navigation menu and order your content – something we will be covering in the online group course “I Wish I Loved My Website” starting next January.

4. List Sign Up built in – so that visitors can keep in contact with you (and you them!)

I’ve written about the importance of having a “List” here. To summarise, if you don’t make it super easy for visitors to sign up to receive updates you are potentially losing them as they may not bookmark your site, and if they do there is no guarantee they will come back any time soon.

Support and cost

And last (but certainly not least), do check on the support you get when you purchase a theme. If you have nowhere to go for help if you get stuck with simply setting up your theme, let alone doing any customisation, it is probably not worthing paying for. (One of the reasons I love Studio Press so much is that the support is excellent, both directly from Studio Press by email, but also from the forum of developers who use their suite of themes).

Theme costs vary immensely, and if you are looking at a theme that is more than a few pounds or dollars I’d advise looking at how it has been used for other sites (any good developer will have “live” examples of their theme in use) before you buy.

A cost effective way of having access to a number of different themes is to buy the entire suite and simply download the ones you wish to try. Elegant Themes do just that and offer 87 themes for $69 – and their latest theme: Divi, is proving super popular.

So now that you are clear on what you require from a theme you can go off and choose something that is also pretty, knowing what to look for in terms of your own heart-centred business!

Over to you

What themes have you tried, tested and love in WordPress. We’d love to hear from you, as recommendations go a long way when there are so many to choose from!

Have you struggled with a theme that just didn’t do what you needed it to? Did you resolve this, or simply give up?

We will be looking at different premium themes (and I will be recommending those I have tried and like myself) as part of the online group course “I Wish I Loved My Website”.

Click here to find out more and sign up to be “front of the queue” when registration opens.

Photo credit: Luke Chesser on Unsplash

Filed Under: Design Stuff, How To Understand Tech Stuff, Website Strategy, WordPress

About Kate Bacon

Kate helps small businesses connect with their perfect clients through her creative approach to web design. She supports solopreneurs to re-ignite the spark of passion that drew them to set up their business in the first place – and amplify it into an online home that’s in alignment with the core of who they are. Her coach training combined with a decade of experience in online business are the foundations of her work: Helping her clients dig deep into who they are, why they’re in business, and how they can express that authentically online.

Comments

  1. Miriam Linderman says

    August 26, 2015 at 3:06 pm

    I love finding out about the things that matter about websites because as a user, it’s important to have some idea of how they work and what to look for. Knowledge helps. Thanks for helping us. Glad you had a good time in Spain.

    Reply
    • Kate Bacon says

      August 30, 2015 at 8:01 pm

      Thanks Miriam, I’m glad my “techie” posts are useful!

      Reply
  2. Silvia Meredith says

    August 30, 2015 at 5:52 pm

    Thanks Kate for the really useful info. I am still working on the “List building”…but will have to get it done soon. You make a great point : without List building I could be losing potential customers.

    Reply
    • Kate Bacon says

      August 30, 2015 at 8:02 pm

      Thanks for stopping by Silivia. Yes, I do believe your “list” is your golden ticket 🙂 Good luck with your own list building, I can’t wait to see your results – your work is so important I’m sure there are many parents who would really benefit from keeping in touch with you.

      Reply
  3. Emma Cameron says

    August 30, 2015 at 5:53 pm

    I love StudioPress themes – at the moment I’m using the Beautiful Pro theme. Your great article made me think – at some point I may need to change to a theme that has a built-in portfolio so that I can display more artwork on my website, http://www.emmacameron.com. But for now it does what I need and I love the fact that it really is mobile-responsive.

    Reply
    • Kate Bacon says

      August 30, 2015 at 8:10 pm

      Ahhh another Beautiful Pro “devotee”! It’s a great theme and you’ve done a lovely job with your own site – I particularly like the images with links to your posts in the sidebar. Mobile responsive is essential these days (not only because Google will “demote” your site if it doesn’t work as well on smartphones and tablets).

      Reply
  4. Sandra Pawula says

    August 30, 2015 at 7:20 pm

    Great points about choosing a theme, Kate. I’m very particular about themes so it’s not easy for me to find one that works for me out of those thousands of choices. And, I just get overwhelmed on theme forest.

    I’m using Beautiful Pro, a Studio Press theme and I think it meets all the requirements you’ve laid out. The one drawback of a Studio Press theme is that it comes as it is and doesn’t allow for tinkering with colors, fonts, and the like. I use the Design Palette Pro plug-in so I can make design changes on my Studio Press theme. Without that, it would be challenging for the Studio Press themes to meet my wishes without hiring a designer.

    Reply
    • Kate Bacon says

      August 30, 2015 at 8:13 pm

      Hi Sandra, thanks for visiting. I think Beautiful Pro is getting a big “thumbs up” overall! I agree the Design Palette Pro plug-in is super helpful (the only StudioPress theme I’ve not needed to use it with is Prose, which like Thesis has lots of customisability built in. (Oh dear, I’m getting all “techie” on you!)

      I love what you’ve done with your “background image” in the theme, it’s really striking.

      Reply
  5. Tara says

    August 30, 2015 at 7:37 pm

    I used to have Beautiful Pro, which I loved, and is very versatile, given the wide range of sites I’ve seen using it. Currently I’m using Simple Mag which I also really love. The support is great – very responsive. I’m also running a private blog on the Brasserie theme, which is free – lovely, clean and simple.

    Reply
    • Kate Bacon says

      August 30, 2015 at 8:16 pm

      Hi Tara, thanks for stopping by. Simple Mag (http://themeforest.net/item/simplemag-magazine-theme-for-creative-stuff/4923427) looks great – I wonder how you found it amongst the 1000s of themes on Theme Forest? I know you can search by theme functions, but there is still so much choice! Thanks for the recommendation.

      Reply
      • Tara says

        September 1, 2015 at 2:37 pm

        I actually found it because I was going through an obsessive travel-blog-reading phase and one of them I loved so much I found out what theme she was using, and it was Simple Mag. 🙂 I never went to Theme Forest at all.

        Reply
        • Kate Bacon says

          September 2, 2015 at 10:37 pm

          Ahh, the best way to find a theme you like is often to stumble upon it…I’ve done the same 🙂

          Reply
  6. Liz Smith says

    August 31, 2015 at 4:30 am

    Kate I can only speak to one theme and it’s another vote for Beautiful Pro. It’s the only theme I’ve ever used (18 mths now) and it currently meets my requirements.

    I came into it all very green and chose my theme based solely on the visual aesthetic…not a recommended technique I’m sure! Thankfully it’s all worked out for the best. I guess the only down side is that due to its popularity, it feels a little less original than I would like but in a sea of millions, I don’t think it really matters.

    Reply
    • Kate Bacon says

      August 31, 2015 at 4:51 pm

      Hi Liz, you may be using a popular theme, but you have really made it your own. Your site reflects the peacefulness I’m sure your clients achieve working with you. (I’ve just signed up for your 14 day free eCourse!) Thank you for stopping by.

      Reply
      • Liz Smith says

        September 1, 2015 at 12:50 pm

        Thank you Kate, Beautiful Pro has been really user friendly.
        Great to have you on board mapping the many pathways to your heart, enjoy the course!

        Reply
        • Kate Bacon says

          September 2, 2015 at 10:39 pm

          Looking forward to the savouring the course slowly Liz…

          Reply
  7. Caroline Hearst says

    August 31, 2015 at 6:58 am

    Thanks for this article Kate, even though I don’t use WordPress, I found it useful as I do have a website and need to think about it more clearly as it is a bit of a mess. I found your clear instructions as to what to consider very helpful.

    Reply
    • Kate Bacon says

      August 31, 2015 at 4:53 pm

      Hi Caroline, thanks for commenting, and I’m glad (even though you don’t use WordPress) you found the article helpful.

      Reply
  8. Susan says

    August 31, 2015 at 4:33 pm

    Good article, Kate. I just picked a premium theme and wish I read your article first! I went with Thrive Themes and am still deciding if I like it. It has a forum, video tutorials; although not much direct e-mail support. I can’t say I love it. It’s too early to say either way. I chose it because it is has pages and templates set up which would be challenging for me and it has a front end content builder. When you use the front end content builder the content doesn’t appear in the wordpress back end. I am still in the 30 day trial period. So if you have any knowledge about Thrive Themes, please let me know! btw my current site is on weebly while I am building my wordpress site

    Reply
    • Kate Bacon says

      August 31, 2015 at 4:56 pm

      Hi Susan, thanks for stopping by. I’m not familiar with Thrive but theme forums are often very helpful for WordPress themes. Previously I’ve used Elegant Themes and they only have a forum (no direct email support) and I got all my techie coding questions answered. Good that you have a 30 day trial period, as you can always switch if you really don’t get on with it. Wishing you best of luck with developing your new site.

      Reply
  9. Gail Corbett-Smith says

    September 1, 2015 at 12:05 pm

    This post has really brought a lot to my attention, Kate. Many thanks for the information and insights. I wasn’t aware that there were so many themes to choose from and as I get closer to starting to create my own website I am not sure what way to turn! Gail

    Reply
    • Kate Bacon says

      September 2, 2015 at 10:36 pm

      Hi Gail, thanks for stopping by. It can be a little daunting when you find out there are so many themes. One trick is to bookmark sites that you like and then put the link through here: http://whatwpthemeisthat.com. As long as it’s a WordPress site you will then find out which theme has been used! Hope that helps 🙂

      Reply

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It's my mission to live in a world where as a heart-centred solopreneur you don't feel stuck with a website that doesn't reflect who you truly are...

I bring clarity as the starting point when working with you. Helping you reconnect with your Big Why, the passion which leads your work with your perfect people. I take the time to really hear you, delve deep into your story so that you can re-ignite and amplify the spark at your core.

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