For whatever reason, if you find yourself in need of a WordPress theme, here are five things you should consider before selecting or purchasing a WordPress theme.
1. Credibility of the Theme Author
Your theme is your visitor’s image of your website.
I would always advise against the use of free themes or nulled premium themes.
Most times, Free themes don’t come with support. This means you do not get regular updates to the theme. Some of these updates block existing security flaws in the theme, If you do not update the theme, your site becomes vulnerable.
It is not uncommon for Hacked premium themes to contain malicious code or exploit which could be used to gain unauthorized access to your website.
Some of these themes automatically inject spammy links or ads into your website. This could hurt your website’s search engine rankings and you could loose the trust of your visitors.
This is why it is always a good idea to go for premium themes.
Always research the theme author before purchasing a theme. This would give you and idea of the quality of the theme before you part with your hard earned money.
Credibility of the author is one of five things you should consider before purchasing a WordPress theme
2. Speed & Seo Optimization of your Theme
Ensure your theme loads fast. Speed has become an important ranking metric for search engines and most importantly, everyone loves a fast-loading webpage.
Ensure the theme uses clean codes & it is well optimized for SEO. You can check how fast your theme’s demo page loads by using GTmetrix.com.
3. Niche
If you’re going to be running a news site, I recommend you purchase a Magazine Theme. if you want to run a photography blog, use a Tumblog theme or a portfolio theme. If you want to do reviews, use a theme that has review capabilities.
Your niche is essentially one of the things you should consider before purchasing a WordPress Theme
4. Ease of use
“Quality in a product or service is not what the supplier puts in. It is what the customer gets out and is willing to pay for”. – Peter Drucker
WordPress is a Content management system that makes things easy by providing a user-friendly interface. Any theme you’re using shouldn’t be too difficult to navigate or use irrespective of how much it costs or how advanced it’s functions are.
A theme should be easy to use for both you and your site user. Always consider this before you purchase a WordPress theme.
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5. Quality of support
The Quality of support you receive for a theme is very important. If you have an urgent problem with the theme, how long would it take for you to get a solution?
Change is constant.
There is always an improvement on old ways. Security practices are constantly updated as flaws and bugs are discovered. If your author isn’t proactive or doesn’t offer a good level of support, it could leave your website vulnerable.
If you can afford it, always go for the membership package. This would grant you access to several themes. You would be able to test several options until you find what works for you.
