There is an ever-increasing use of pre-built WordPress themes on the web, and with prices starting from under £30, the allure is obvious. It may be that you are keen to buy WordPress themes yourself and have a go at building the website in your own time, or it may be that you have contacted a web developer willing to buy one of these themes on your behalf, bringing the cost of your website down.
There is even a chance that an unscrupulous web developer will buy one of these without telling you – if someone is promising you a WordPress website for less than £2,000, then it is quite likely they will be starting the build from a theme they have purchased.
On the surface, the only drawback is that your site will look and operate like lots of others around the web. The truth is the pitfalls run much deeper than that. There can be major issues with loading times, page errors, search engine optimisation, usability and security, to name but a few.
Our Head of Production, Phoebe, explains why at Nu Image we avoid pre-built WordPress themes and why you should too!
Firstly, what is a WordPress pre-built theme?
For those that aren’t familiar, let’s lay it down in simple terms before we launch into things. Essentially, it’s a template to build your website in. There are loads of different templates to choose from too, to suit your content.
For instance, if you’re a photographer, there will be pre-built themes out there that will help present your content in terms of design, layout, and functionality. It’s all set up for you, your industry and services. All you need to do is fill it with content. Job’s a goodun…
What is the purpose of a pre-built theme?
People opt for a theme because, at face value, it’s easier, quicker and cheaper to build a website yourself. You don’t have to be a designer to make it look passable. You don’t even really need to be a developer to make it function, although if you’re a bit of a technophobe, you might struggle.
Themes can also be pretty tempting when building a website for a startup venture when budgets are tight. You can pick up a theme from online marketplaces cheaply, and if you are familiar with WordPress, you can install it easily. They also tend to be packed with features that have been shoehorned in by the theme’s developer, which can make them appealing on face value to the user.
And hey, we can’t deny they seem attractive – who doesn’t want cheap, quick and easy? But as an SEO centric agency, we can’t ignore the technical implications and pitfalls of using WordPress developer themes.
So, are WordPress themes worth it?
Hint, we’re not sold on’em and here’s why…
1. Frustratingly slow load speeds
The features on offer are often unnecessary for the user, and all they tend to do is increase the page loading times. Why? Because they come hand in hand with a lot of code. Clunky with a poor shelf life – similar to a packhorse, the more you load on top of a website, the more tired and slow it will become until it keels over.
Dynamic content that can look great should be used in balance to ensure your page load is not sacrificed. After all, a slow page load is a major negative in Google’s search algorithm and isn’t going to inspire visitors to continue using the site. Which leads us nicely onto search engine performance…
2. SEO standards that give us the jitters
The majority of purchased themes we have seen or been asked to maintain are littered with major flaws in basic SEO standards. We have frequently seen a header 1 tag wrapped around the logo in the header of the site and broken links scattered across pages. In basic terms, that is very bad news for your website’s rankings.
For example, one of our recent website rebuilds moved away from a pre-purchased theme, and we reduced page errors across the site from 115 to 0 and broken links from 45 also to 0. This is a big indicator to Google that the site is being maintained and is still relevant. These common errors, although not immediately obvious in a lot of cases, can have a considerable impact.
3. Lack of Website Security
Purchased themes often include large numbers of plugins, which makes the theme incredibly vulnerable to malware and hacks if not kept up to date. WordPress often takes the blame for security breaches, but in reality, it is the poor coding of site themes and plugins that opens up these vulnerabilities.
Have you checked if your site and plugins are up to date recently? If you’re behind the latest version release, then you may want to consider booking in with our developers to get your site updated.
4. Sneaky Hidden costs
Not all plugins are included completely free with a theme. There is a chance that the plugin may be a free version with only a limited scope, or it has a license that runs for 12 months, which will then need renewing. This can leave the end user with a bill larger than that of the original site after 12 months if the theme is heavily reliant on plugins.
5. Lack of bespoke design
In order to use a theme successfully, you will need an eye for design and some great images to make the finished product aesthetically appealing. This is because out-of-the-box bought themes are generic and can be, in our opinion, pretty dull. If you’re looking for something more unique, then building WordPress themes may not be for you.
6. Unsupported themes are a headache
You never know when a purchased theme will no longer be supported. The theme developer might lose interest in the project or move onto another one, meaning your theme may no longer receive updates, some potentially critical to security or performance. The big problem with support being withdrawn is that the theme may be incompatible with the latest versions of WordPress itself. And if you don’t update your version of WordPress… you guessed it, it becomes a major security vulnerability.
7. A Hassle when moving data
A major feature now with purchased themes is the use of page builders so that users can manipulate the layout and styles of their page all in the editable regions of the WordPress dashboard. Although this is a clever tool, it is not particularly helpful if you ever want to move page content from one theme to another, due to the nature of how this content is written to the database.
These page builders also give our graphic designers nightmares. The thought of the user adding their own bespoke styles, colours and fonts to a site with clear brand guidelines sends shivers down their spines and leaves them cowering under their desks.
These page builders also give our graphic designers nightmares. The thought of the user adding their own bespoke styles, colours and fonts to a site with clear brand guidelines send shivers down their spines and leaves them cowering under their desks.
Why limit yourself?
If you choose a pre-built theme, you will find that you can only customise to a certain point, and there will always be a compromise somewhere. If you want a bespoke site that perfectly meets the needs of your business and doesn’t stunt your SEO ambitions, you need to contact a friendly web design agency in Norwich (that’s us, by the way), who can take you through each step of web design and development and leave you as the proud owner of the website you really want.
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