Do a Google Search and you will find numerous results and topics telling you that you need to get some kind of costly premium template if you want to be successful. Whether it’s WordPress or any other website software script. You will find that they are often rambling on about how good this theme or framework is because they are trying to make some affiliate sales. Nothing wrong with that and I don’t blame anyone for trying. Everyone wants to make a little money.
I do sometimes wonder if these people or sites that recommend the particular fancy (costly) premium template theme really know much about it or not. Are they just trying to make money, or have they actually tested and used the thing themselves. I guess it could go either way. Some people really don’t care they will just tell you how great it is, while others will give a more accurate and honest opinion and review.
This brings me to the whole Free Template Themes vs. Premium Template Themes. Do they really help or make a difference? If so how, or by what means? I have a difficult time believing that a premium paid template theme is going to bring about a sudden surge in traffic or revenue. I am leaning towards the whole “Don’t judge a book by its cover” saying or concept.
You can spend a lot of money on a fancy template theme, but it doesn’t mean anything if the content is plain, boring, or doesn’t appeal to anyone. On the other hand, you could have a free and simple website design with great content that people keep coming back to. It is possible that the design (cover) is very catchy, but the inside is so boring people will leave as fast as they arrived. There are plenty of designs (covers) that are simply not that exciting or catchy, but once you check them out you can’t stop reading.
There is no doubt that a nice design can draw attention and spark someones interest, but it doesn’t help any if you don’t have content that will keep the visitor interested. I don’t leave a site just because the design is simple and basic. I actually prefer simple, fast loading, and easy to navigate sites without all the fancy stuff taking forever to load up.
We could go on and on making comparisons to different template themes. Of course we could have simple sites with bad content, or appealing well designed sites with great content too.
Ultimately it doesn’t necessarily matter to me whether a site is using a free or paid premium template theme. Content and information is the number one reason I visit a site. Some of them just happen to be more visually appealing than others.
Anyone that tells you that a premium WordPress or other theme is necessary to get more traffic and make more money is full of it. I am aware of quite a few sites that make decent money and have a lot of traffic with fairly simple designs.
I am not saying don’t spend the cash on a nice template, framework, or both if you can afford it. Just don’t spend your last dollar on them because someone told you they are a must in order to make big bucks.
If you have the money to spend, then by all means go out and get yourself a nice template theme. Just be sure to do some research and make sure the one you decide to go with is really something you want and one you can handle.
Boonex Dolphin, Wordpress, Seo, Technology, Web Server and Hosting Specialist.
Usually I take into consideration reviews and recommendations that also mention at least a tiny disadvantage of the product.
Fernando recently posted..What Blender Models Look Good This Year?
Sometimes it is difficult to find an honest opinion, and of course everyone has different opinions and expectations.
No, I don’t think you need a premium WP template. You can pretty much adjust a free one to your needs, but you should avoid strong, neon colors, and texts that are blinking or hard to read. Choosing a theme can be a big pain in the …, I’ve been there too.
Julie recently posted..dentistry cosmetic
Sometimes I spend a lot of time with a theme editing, changing, and recoding which is a big pain. Then, I decide I don’t like it after all, and then it becomes an even bigger pain.
I have tried many themes over the years but so far avoided using Premium ones. Sometimes the premium ones seem too bloated with features. If you buy from a solid web design company then you should be OK for a while, but if the company folds you may find that a WordPress update or two down the line your theme suddenly stops working. I mostly find basic ones and tweak the CSS – although I do think I could probably do with a better theme!
Jon recently posted..How To Lose Weight
Good point. If you are going to spend the money make sure it’s from someone that has been around a while and provides updates and support. You never know when an individual or company will be here today and gone tomorrow.
No! No! No! Those paid themes seem to be able to bring a blog to that much higher level of professionalism but if there’s no content on it, who cares how pretty it is right?
Peter Lee @ Computer How To Guide recently posted..How to Deal With iPhone When It Gets Damaged
I admit there are some very pretty template themes and sites out there. You can tell someone went through a lot of work or paid quite a bit of money for some of them. You would think if they went to that much effort they would do the same with content and information, but that isn’t always the case.
Hi there,
No matter what your are trying to do with your site, the most important aspect of it is it’s content. I would think the next most important thing is speed. Some of the themes are really beautiful and might be something to look at when you have a successful site and have the funds to upgrade it. Good review of the reviewers.
Ann@Debt Settlement recently posted..Best Debt Settlement Companies
Nothing wrong with starting out free or cheap to see how things go before dropping a lot of money into things. Good idea.
Well i only used free templates! Because now a days so many web sites give a free premium templates!
Steven@New Web Templates recently posted..Curiumite
There certainly are a lot of free ones out there that’s for sure.
A premium theme is good if you have the money to spend on it. But if you don’t that shouldn’t be a hindrance for you to become a successful blogger. There are those that have the most generic design but are still successful because of the content that they deliver.
Free templates and themes are a good starter to see how things will go before spending a lot of money. I don’t see them as absolutely necessary. If someone has the money to spend than great. If not that is OK too.
I tend to use premium themes for a couple of reasons.
1) More functionality
2) Support and upgrades
3) Tend to be coded better
I am not saying that free themes are not coded well. I have bought premium themes that had plenty of bugs as well. In my case, I build websites for clients and premium themes are the way to go.
Adrian Lee recently posted..The Fundamentals of Strategic Success In 5 Steps
I have used a number of different scripts along with premium template themes and free ones. To me the functionality can vary considerably from one to the next. A little research, and testing or demos can be very helpful when picking one.
No matter premium or free theme, I think website theme better to be easy to navigate, clean and clear.
Tan@food journal template recently posted..Food Journal Template For Weight Loss
Some of the premium themes can have a confusing backend administration too. Some people like this, and other like it simple.
I think with a nice premium template the conversion can be a lot hihger then when you use a simple one.
The one time I used a free theme for a client was for a fishing boat charter. I tried to make the website as simple and plain as I could because I honestly believe that was the way to go. The results – while others in the industry complained about slow business, my client was booked months in advance.
Of course, his operation and customer service was great which contributed to his success. But since most of new clients found him online, I haven’t tried to update his website to something prettier.
Adrian Lee recently posted..Cherry Picker, Access Platform and Boom Lift
Sometimes simple is the way to go. I know of a few sites that are very basic and not much to them, and yet they are extremely popular.