The cost alone is worth it.  Hiring a web site designer for a custom template can cost a lot of money and, more importantly, time. In today’s market, it is much better to invest the money you would have used for a custom theme, into marketing your website.  After all – if you spend all your money on building your site and then can’t market it – what’s the point?

Pre-Made WordPress Themes – Why And How to Choose Them

Pre-made WordPress themes give you a great jump-start in building your new website. They are time savers since most new WordPress pre-made themes come with all the latest standards and are packed with full functionality that is tried and true.

There are no surprises and no questions that have not already been answered with most templates. You can integrate your own images, videos, brand personality, and content into the layout right off the bat. A good template also has the added advantage of easy navigation built-in.

What To Look For In a WordPress Pre-Made Theme

ThemeForest is one of the best WordPress pre-made theme sites available. When searching for a great theme, look for:

• Functionality:  when searching for a new theme – make sure to always look at the theme in Live Preview to get a true understanding as to what the theme looks like and functions – live!
• Features: Make sure to look through all the “included features”. Look for features such as 100% responsive (mobile-ready), HTML5 and CSS3, Great Documentation, Child Theme Compatible, Multiple Sliders, Unlimited Color Options, Advanced Page Building Capabilities, Custom Page Templates, Advanced Typography, Unlimited Sidebars, and SEO Optimized.
• Shortcodes:  We love shortcodes; they allow you to easily and quickly build out custom pages.  Most features are coming by way of shortcodes which gives you lots of control and flexibility.
• Compatibility:  Make sure the theme is cross-browser tested and working for the latest version of WordPress.  If you are using ecommerce such as WooCommerce – make sure the theme also supports its latest version.
• Update History: No theme is perfect – a great developer will care enough to keep their theme updated and bug fixes in check.  A theme that has recent updates shows the developer cares about their theme and wants to continually improve it as new features are introduced.
• Comments: Are crucial – there is nothing like hearing the truth from the horse’s mouth. These are the actual people that purchased the theme.
• Ratings: 5 stars are key – however there are good 4-star themes as well.  If you can’t find the 5 stars of your dreams – don’t overlook the 4 stars.  The key is to see how responsive the developer is – and if they have improved the theme overtime to work their way towards a solid theme.
• Purchases: The total # of purchases – while it may give an indication of the popularity of the theme – keep in mind – new themes come available daily.

Important Elements You Won’t Want To OverLook

As we mentioned – always look through the set of features.  But a couple of features we always recommend to check for is demo content and a PSD set.

• The demo content will allow you to easily import content so you can see the site as its displayed in the demo.  This allows you to gain a better knowledge of how all the components work and what you’ll need to replace with your own content as you go out and populate your pages.
• The PSD set allows you to have all the original art files so you can easily update graphics and such.  This will require Adobe Photoshop of course but gives you full control to truly customize the look and feel of your new website.

Not Sure You Have The Time Or Patience to Build Your Own Website

No worries – we can assist you.  We’re WordPress experts and would be delighted to help build you an optimized Inbound Marketing website that attracts visitors, converts visitors into leads and nurtures leads into sales.  To learn more about our Inbound Marketing system – explore our site.

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