Perhaps one of the most important questions to ask yourself when selecting a WordPress Theme is how much time and effort you wish to spend customising it to fit your needs. There are free themes and premium themes and you can also have a customised theme done as well.
If you are very comfortable working with CSS style sheets and code, then you may not require much in the way of a template already set up with your desired design and colours. However, if you are just starting out with a blog and do not understand the code driving the images and design, then you will probably feel much less stressed by going with a theme that has everything already in place.
The following are some components to consider when finding, and selecting, just the right theme for your WordPress blog.
Colour And Design
Think about the image you are trying to portray with your site. Do you specialise in writing blog posts about crafting or quilting, sewing or painting or the like? These themes lend themselves well to soft pastels with a lot of creative embellishments like curlicues and floral designs. If your blog posts cover scientific topics, then a stark black and white colour scheme with linear blocks may be more appropriate.
Besides the content, think of the type of visitor you wish to attract. Someone who enjoys reading about how to create handmade gifts will also enjoy an eclectic combination of hues and patterns.
Layout
The layout of the page is another consideration. Most WordPress templates come with the option of including one or two columns in addition to the middle section of posts, a header and a footer. If you want more than that, or a special type of layout, you will either have to tweak the code yourself or spend some time looking for a theme that is a bit out of the ordinary.
For most applications, the simple two-column layout works best, however. If the page becomes too busy, your posts tend to get lost. And with your WordPress blog, the posts are (or should be) the most important feature.
Your Target Audience
Remember the particular demographics and browsing environment of your target audience. Ensure that your WordPress Theme will look just as great on a small computer screen as it will on a large one. Make sure that the site and its features works equally well on any browser, many templates are created specifically for use with either Internet Explorer or Firefox and often present problems for users with alternate browsers.
SEO Ready WordPress Themes
There are many WordPress Theme templates available for hosted domains that come SEO ready. These can be ideal, particularly for the new blogger. They may also come with some nifty widgets and plug-ins just a click away from becoming useable or visible to your visitors.
SEO friendly themes are usually the easiest to monetise, as well. Often they are created with the necessary options and space to add links and banners and such.
When looking for a template that is SEO ready, include those terms in your search: “SEO ready” or “SEO friendly” should be part of the theme’s description.
Getting started blogging with a WordPress site can be quite simple and quick, particularly if you choose the right theme. There are many options available but it will take a bit of time and research to find just the right one for your needs.
About Sean Rasmussen
Quite a bit to think about. I have a theme on one of my sites that has the option of inner sidebars as well as the outer sidebars. I haven’t activated them yet.
Thinking about whether it would be better to use all of them to get more above the fold.
What do you think Sean?
I’m not sure about how many different themes there are and how many are similar.
I changed the theme recently and will still have to configure the change.
Hi Sean,
I have the most trouble finding a theme I like that’s easy to use. I’ve found that one’s that work straight ‘out of the box’ are the easiest to use. I’ve never really used any coding so it’s really daunting to find a theme I like but which requires a little setting up. I can never seem to get it just right.
Do you have any advice on the easiest themes to use for beginners?
I find that they are all quite easy Jazz. I think a lot of people get too stuck up on trying to customise themes when they are not experienced. It is best to leave customisation up to the pros which can be very inexpensive through the right sources.
Hello Sean,
I am not great with html, and so I find WordPress blogs are user friendly. They are already basically set up, just need to choose a theme that they provide. Of course if you do not like any of there themes then you need to look else where. Its all a matter of style for topic, and style for personality.
Cheers
Lisa
Hi Sean
A wonderfully informative article. I have learned heaps here already. For me though, it’s baby steps at present with setting up blogs.
I like a theme that has everything already in place. It makes it easy for me to get stuck into selecting categories and write up posts to load onto the blog.
I found out that I can actually tweak the code if I want to specialise the layout ( I will ask how to in the YOTA forum)
I already have a theme for my blog but I am tempted to have a look now for an SEO ready one in WordPress if it is possible.
I will hold on to my notes on this and be better prepared for the next blog. Thankyou
What a great article – especially as I am looking into choosing themes at the moment. I was aware of Colour etc (I prefer the ones with a customizable header), but I didn’t know that there is a difference in SEO friendliness.
I will definitely check the SEO part to make sure I am choosing the right wordpress theme for my blogs!
This is a very timely article on my part. I have just registered a new domain and was actually looking at themes to match my niche. Thank you for giving us the advice of putting in seo ready into the search box. I will be writing that tip down in my ever expanding note book.