It’s not exactly news, but choice of template for your WordPress site is extremely important WordPress has an expansive collection of free and premium templates to choose from. But how can you decide which is the right one for you? Some websites, like TemplateMonster.com for example, have helpful filters that separate themes into categories and sort them by functions or features. But even if you do have specialized search capabilities to aid you in your endeavor, it still helps to have a comprehensive idea of your criteria.
Said criteria will be determined by the type of website you’re looking to launch. Will it be a business? A news blog? A station for content curation? Or are you just looking for a space to share your thoughts? Whichever happens to be your M.O. it will have a determining effect on the type of functionality your website will require. Today we’ll go over the basics of picking and choosing among the many potential templates subject to your scrutiny.
Universal Concerns
While template choice is often a very subjective experience, in this day and age there are certain interdisciplinary “must haves” that every website owner needs to take under consideration.
How much do you want to Spend?
Budgetary concerns are invariably near the top of the list in regards to priorities. You can always go the basic route and download a free template, but don’t expect any bells and/or whistles. You get what you pay for, and if you’re getting a free downloadexpect the bare minimum.
Therefore it might be wise to loosen your purse strings a bit. Fortunately, most premium WP themes don’t hit the wallet too hard. You can usually procure just about any theme you like for between $50 and $80. The only time you’ll really have to stretch your dollar is while shopping for a custom theme.
Custom themes are built from scratch by a developer, and since you’re paying for labor, it won’t be so easy on the bank account. Depending on what you want in terms of looks, function, and complexity a custom theme can be quite costly. You can save a little bit of dough by starting out with a premium theme and then having your hired help tweak it to a minor degree, rather than building from scratch.
Support
We all need a little help here and there, and purchasing a premium theme usually goes hand in hand with excellent support. Though you shouldn’t just assume that this is the case. Do your research: read reviews and see what the brand perception of a theme provider looks like before committing.
SEO
Search Engine Optimization is always an important consideration when establishing any sort of web presence. The way your website is organized, the keywords you use to attract attention, and a myriad set of other factors all combine to make your website scannable and easily indexible to search spiders.
The obvious goal is to make the front page, and that’s completely impossible if your template doesn’t have a framework that’s compliant with the latest Google SEO standards.
WordPress usually comes SEO friendly out of the box, but you need to be careful if you’re paying to build a custom theme. This is another reason why support is so important. With an active support community, you can be sure that your template will be updated to match the latest web standards.
Responsive
Responsively designed websites are those that display attractively across multiple devices, regardless of screen size, and without any mobile redirects. Web templates need to be built responsive these days because mobile use is so extremely prevalent.
Unless you’re positive that your visitors won’t be browsing your site on a smartphone or tablet, it’s best to take care of this concern from the get go by purchasing a responsive template.
Specifics
Now that we’ve covered some of the universal concerns, it’s time to speak with specificity. This choices described in this section will largely be determined by your personal preferences, as well as your unique needs.
Aesthetics
You know what’s useless? A WordPress template that you don’t find attractive. If it doesn’t look good, then what good is it? Your web presence needs to say something about your company, and your company should be a reflection of your personality. So make sure you actually like the look of your template.
That’s not to say that as long as you like it, it’ll be perfect. Certain things are expected from different types of websites. Corporate sites are generally reserved, minimalist, clean, and adhere to a color scheme that promotes trust, calm, and tranquility. Whereas templates dedicated to design are far more artistic, colorful, and fancy.
Read up on design basics if you’re not already familiar and make some informed decisions.
Needed functionality
Here we arrive at the really important stuff. What do you absolutelyneed your website to do? If you’re opening an online store, then you’ll need a usable system for product imports and exports, featured products on a slider, an opt-in form to gain new leads, and so much more. If you’re web presence is all about event promotion, then you’ll need a calendar function. Do you need to interact with your visitors? Then you’ll have to have sections for them to comment on your content, live chat boxes, etc.
All of your WP template’s needed functionality is completely determined by your personal needs, so carefully consider what you want and need from your theme.
Flexibility
Finally, you want your WP theme to be flexible. The World Wide Web is constantly in flux, and so are expectations regarding webpages. It shouldn’t have to be a problem to alter or edit according to your shifting priorities. For example, you should be able to change the color of a banner or background without much trouble. You don’t want to be buried underneath lines of complex code for the simplest of aesthetic choices.
Nor should it be an issue to add widgets/plugins as you see fit. Sometimes the addition of certain plugins can slow a website down or seriously hinder some vital parts of its functionality. If this is going to be the case for your chosen template, then you’ll want to know up front. The idea is to look for seamless backend editing.
These are just a few of the concerns you’ll want to look out for when choosing the perfect theme. If you’re ready to begin browsing, then take a look at some of the powerfully functional premium templates here.
