WordPress has tens of thousands of themes to choose from, so there is no way you can search through them all. Still, you must be willing to do some digging to find a theme that aligns with your brand and performs well.
Depending on your brand and the products you sell, you may have a lot of options or a few. Either way, we’ll tell you how to narrow down your WordPress choices with a few simple do’s and don’ts. Enjoy!
DO…
- Make a list of the features you want. Only include those that you must have to sell your product or service, such as translation, fully-featured shopping carts or pricing lists. While it may be tempting to choose a theme rich in features, less is more.
- Opt for a responsive theme. More and more themes are responsive these days, but due diligence is still needed. Look for themes that run seamlessly on all devices, have flexible images and contain large menus and buttons.
- Pay attention to color. WordPress allows you to tweak the colors of their themes using plugins like Theme Tweaker, opening up endless possibilities. Regardless, keep your color scheme in line with your brand and logo. Light colored designs, contrasting backgrounds and a cohesive color palette are ideal.
- Test the theme. Before your site goes live, take the time to read through it, test it on multiple devices and ensure that all images load correctly. Use the Theme Check plugin to make sure your theme follows the best standards.
DON’T…
- Choose a bloated theme. It may look appealing to have a theme rich with features, but this only ends up hurting you in the long run. Bloated themes tend to run slowly, lack in security and distract users.
- Limit yourself to the free themes. There is nothing wrong with the free themes, but upgrading to premium gives you a better product. Premium themes tend to come with more support, regular updates and fixes, enhanced security and better coding.
- Overdo it with fancy fonts. The best fonts are those that are simple and easy to read. Some themes have limited customization options, but some allow you to adjust the font using CSS. The fonts I recommend include Verdana, Tahoma and Serifs.
Whether you’re redoing your WordPress website or starting from scratch, Magna Technology can help. We specialize in WordPress sites, and our prices won’t stress your budget. Call us today to learn about your options.
