Hi. This is Topher with WinningWP. In this video we're going to talk about how
to choose a great WordPress theme. To begin with
we need to define what you're looking for. Now a WordPress theme is simply how
your WordPress site looks, what the design is like. So what do you want? Do
you want a theme with lots of pictures or more text? Do you want something very
configurable or very simple? Do you need support? Do you have a budget? Answering
these kinds of questions can help narrow your search right from the very
beginning and keep you from wasting time just wandering around looking at
everything. Now, that said, you don't have to have the answers to these. Go ahead
and take your time and wander around. Window-shop. Look at everything. Many of
the things that we're going to look at in this video you can download and play
with and then throw away with no cost. So have no fears and let's go find you a
great theme. Once you have some answers to these questions, we want to go looking
at some places that have great themes. One of the best places is right here at
WordPress.org -- we're under the themes section right here in the nav -- and in
here they have many, many themes available and you can sort them by
Popular and Latest. Another great place to find themes is under the commercial
themes tab right here on this very same page. Now, each of these icons is not a
theme; it's a store that sells themes. And there are some advantages to buying
themes that we'll talk about in a few minutes. Another great place to find
themes is called ThemeForest. It's part of
the Envato market. ThemeForest has over 10,000 WordPress themes available for
sale at a variety of prices. These also come with support. There are some other
great places to find themes and in the description for this video you'll find a
link to an entire video just dedicated to those great places. Once you've found
a theme or two or five that you like, there are some
things that you could do to help narrow down which theme it is you're looking
for. For one thing, look at other themes by
the same author or store. For example, if you find a theme on The Theme Foundry
that you like take a look at some of their other offerings. There's Oxford, but
under themes you'll also find Watson and Bailey and Linen. What we're looking for
here is consistent quality. You don't have to like their other themes, but you
want to know that this particular organization can reliably produce good
quality stuff and if you like the look in general, then you're probably going to
enjoy their product. Next, try out the demo if there is one. Right here we can
view the Watson demo and now we're actually looking at the theme. If we go
back to WordPress.org, you can click on any one of these and there's a preview
button and you can see what the theme looks like. Next, try out support. Read
through past tickets. Again, here on WordPress.org, on every theme there's a
button "View support forum". Now, the support on WordPress.org is all
volunteer basis. So some themes have great support and other themes just
don't and that's at the discretion of the author or the community members who
decide to take care of the theme so take a look. If there are many, many answers
then you know that chances are good that you'll get answers to your questions as
well. If it's a barren wasteland of unanswered questions,
maybe support's not so great there. Read reviews about both the theme and the
author or store. If we go back here to this theme here on wordpress.org, you can
see there's a ratings section and you can click on each of
these numbers to read the ratings. The fact that there are our great many
five-star reviews is an indicator that this is a great theme, but the fact that
there are some with one star or two star indicate that maybe there could be
problems and if you click on that number, you can see the reviews. And like all
reviews on the Internet, they should all be taken with a grain of
salt. Bad ones are usually written by somebody who's unhappy and great ones
are usually written by somebody who's just deliriously happy. It's a mixed bag.
But after reading the reviews of several themes, you'll start to get a handle on
which ones are accurate and which ones aren't. Lastly, try them out if you can.
All the themes on WordPress.org are free. You can install them on your
site and try them out. And if you don't like it, delete it. Many premium themes
also have return policies. Again, in the description of this video
we'll make a link to another video that shows you how to install a theme so that
you can try out these themes. Let's review real quick. First, if you can,
define what you're looking for. This will help you save time and keep you from
just wandering around trying everything. On the other hand, there's some value in
wandering around and trying everything. You might see some things that you'd
never anticipated. Next, go looking for your theme. WordPress.org's free theme
repository is great. They also have a commercial theme shop listing that is
also great. And then there's also ThemeForest. There are others. Check the
description of this video for that link. Once you find something you like,
investigate. Look at other themes by the same author or store. See if they're
consistently built. Try the demo, if there is one. Poke around. See if you can break
it. Try out support. Read through past tickets. See if the support is good or
poor or if the support staff communicate well or not. That sort of thing. Then read
reviews about both the theme and the author or store. And then, lastly, try them
out if you can. All the themes on .org are available for
free and you can try them and most commercial themes do have a return
policy. The last thing I'd like to say is to be patient.
Picking a theme can be a very personal thing. It's going to represent you and
your site for a while. Not forever. You can change your theme, but the theme you
pick represents you so look around, try things, test things, and find something
that feels right to you. If you'd like to learn more about WordPress,
check out WinningWP.com.
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