Have you thought about launching your own student blog or creating a website for your startup? You may be surprised, but there are thousands of students out there who are thinking about it. We all know that blog and website building has long been made simple and accessible thanks to WordPress. So, these days, young people can create their own sites without a hassle.
Nevertheless, even though it is believed to be rather simple, building your own student blog or website with WordPress is still associated with a wide range of challenges. First of all, as a student, you are most likely very limited in time. Luckily, you can always say, “I want to write my essay with EssayPro writers” and get quick academic help that will save you plenty of time. But that’s not the only issue you will face.
One of the first challenges facing WP beginners is the choice of a good theme. Beginners often have no idea where to start and what to watch out for when making their choice. But we’ve got you covered! Read on to learn about the top three things that you should keep in mind to make the right choice.
1. Your Needs and Budget
First and foremost, your own needs and budget should be the most important concern you keep in mind when making your choice. After all, these are the main factors that will influence the final success and profitability of your blog or website.
To get a solid starting point, beginner bloggers need to take enough time to identify their most basic requirements and needs. What kind of blog or website do you want to create? What audiences do you expect to come to it? Will you need to include any special features or an abundance of images or videos? The answers to these questions will help you understand what exactly you need from your WordPress theme.
After you identify the core needs and requirements, take some time to note them down and create a detailed image of your perfect option. Later, you will use these notes to compare different themes and select the one that suits you best.
As for budget, it is also an important thing to consider, especially if you are a student blogger who lives on a tight budget. The good news is that there are quite a few free themes, and not all of them are bad. On the other hand, there are also many paid options. Which one to choose eventually gets down to your needs and budget. So, these are the first two things to consider.
2. Code Quality and Standards
The second core thing to keep in mind when selecting your perfect WP theme is code quality.
One of the biggest mistakes that beginners make is making their choice based solely on superficial factors such as design and basic functionality. But, one thing they often miss out of sight is the fact that some themes can be just poorly coded, and they can kill the success of your website.
If the code is of low quality, there is a direct threat to your blog’s performance. A poorly written code can make your site load slowly, clog your database with junk, and even make it vulnerable to various hacker attacks.
The only way to avoid these issues is to opt for options that adhere to the latest coding and safety standards. But, of course, this is easier said than done. So, how can a beginner make the right choice?
First and foremost, it is crucial that you only buy from trusted vendors who have been around for quite a while and have solid reputations. This will protect you from buying malicious or poor-quality products. Secondly, don’t forget that there are plenty of helpful WP plugins meant for different purposes. One of the essential ones is Theme Check. It scans the theme you select and analyzes the quality of the code that lays at its heart.
3. Support and Updates
The reason why you want the chosen theme to come with at least some support is that it will ensure that you quickly receive the developer’s answer to any question, issue, or other concern that you may face. Being able to receive such support can save you plenty of time and nerves on your blogging path. But, it’s worth noting that not all options provide high-quality support.
If you are planning to purchase a paid product, look for one that offers premium support. However, if you are planning to stick with a free product, it is quite fair that you won’t get 24/7 support for it. In this case, look for free themes that have dedicated forums where developers and other users can guide you and answer your questions. Otherwise, you will have to waste lots of time studying WP yourself.
As for updates, they are important for both free and paid products. Updates should be regular and constantly deliver bug fixes, new security patches, and other improvements. If you look at the changelog of a theme, you can discover whether a particular option is being updated regularly.
Key Takeaways
Now that you know about the key things you should pay attention to when choosing the perfect theme for your blog or website, let’s take another moment to figure out what you should NOT do.
Below is a list of don’ts that can help save you from making common mistakes:
- Don’t bother using security, SEO, or similar features built into the theme of your choice. Most often, there are separate plugins for all these tasks. And, as a rule, plugins do a much better job from this perspective.
- Don’t go with options that are not designed to be friendly to mobile devices. It doesn’t really matter if you are creating a blog or a business website; the truth is that a huge share of your visitors will view your source from some kind of a mobile device. And, if they don’t like how it looks or works on mobile, they will likely never come back.
- Don’t neglect the importance of high-quality support. Even a premium WP theme can turn your (and your users’ too) experience into a total disaster if it is not backed by high-quality support. So, this is something you want to keep at the core.
- Don’t go with options that don’t provide the opportunity to tweak or customize the code files. Many of you will probably never face the necessity to edit any code. But, if you do feel such a necessity, you want to have the opportunity to do so.
- Don’t look up “the best WordPress themes” on Google and stick to one of the first options that you find. Instead, be more careful with your choice. Carefully weigh out all pros and cons of every option and pick the one that suits your needs the most.
- Don’t buy from untrusted vendors. There is no secret that there are plenty of vendors that offer premium WP themes for sale. Some of them, like SKT, are trustworthy and safe to buy from. But, there are also vendors that are not that safe. Some of them can sell products that include malicious code. Thus, it is vital that you carefully choose who you buy from.
Follow these tips to ensure success!
