Come with me, and you’ll see… the fantastic world of custom WordPress themes. No matter if you’re starting your WordPress site just now or want to switch things up a little bit, you’re in for a tough choice. The official WordPress site is home to over 7,500 themes, while third-party websites offer a real abundance of them – ThemeForest has nearly 50,000 to choose from! If this doesn’t make you feel like a kid in a candy store, then I don’t know what will.
Today I’ll show you why you should resist the temptation to grab a free WordPress theme and go for something tailored to your needs instead. After all, if we stick to that candy shop metaphor – devouring a cupcake that was baked especially for you is much better than consuming a regular one.
Custom WordPress Theme Is Like A Tailored Suit
If you’ve ever discovered the power of a tailor, you know what I mean. Our clothes are made to fit a large crowd of individuals, but show me a person who’s 100% standard. That’s why even if your suit fits 95% of your body perfectly, there’s always that 5% that needs some adjusting to make you look as sharp as Tom Hiddleston on a red carpet.
WordPress theme is pretty much the same deal. Sure, you can bend your expectations here and there (it’s arguably easier than adjusting your body to pull off that suit!), but at the end of the day, if the theme doesn’t fit your website, it’s going to show. And you won’t be as passionate about it as you’d be otherwise.
Free WordPress themes are supposed to please a crowd – that’s why, while they offer some room for customization, they also have their limitations. They can be a great starting point, especially if you’re still building your business, and you don’t have the budget for something custom-made. But if you’re looking for an excellent place to spend your hard-earned cash, I’d say custom WordPress theme is the #1 thing you should reach for.
Tailor-made Theme Pays Off!
One may ask why you should even pay for something that you can find available free of charge. And I’ll agree that when comparing the price of customized WordPress theme with, well, $0, it’s not easy to understand why spending a couple of thousand dollars is the right thing to do.
Your own theme, with all the functionalities and features you need, will bring more and more users to your website. Not only it makes your product stand out from others, but it also showcases it in the best way possible! Close collaboration with a WordPress developer can result in streamlining the entire user experience. This way, your clients will navigate through the website more smoothly. Not to mention that studies show that 94% of users cite design as the reason not to trust some sites… You wouldn’t want yours to look shady, would you?
If I were to tell you just one reason to go for a custom WordPress theme, I’d say it showcases your business in a 1000% more professional way, leaving your users with a breathtaking first impression.
Custom WordPress Theme Gives You All The Expertise
Speaking of close collaboration – teaming up with a developer (or a couple of them) not only gives you access to experts in the field but also ensures their in-depth help at any moment. If you’ve ever wished your theme or a plugin could do something it currently doesn’t, run your idea by the development team. They are there to make your wildest dreams come true (at least when it comes to web design & development).
Working with an experienced team gives you much more than a theme you’ve sketched in your head. You’ll benefit from their years of experience! WordPress devs have seen a lot; they’ll gladly consult your idea and give you an insight that goes much deeper than a standard WordPress theme. Before they even sit down to transfer your vision into code, they’ll do the research to create a strategy for you. They’ll help you figure out how to attract and please users and prioritize your goals. A good team will also point out weaker points of your vision, leaving you with a product that really is top-notch.
It’s There For You If You’re Picky
Searching for a perfect theme can take weeks, and the chances are you won’t find exactly what you look for anyways. At times, free, pre-developed themes look great when showcased at the shop, but once you put your content in, they suddenly lose their magic.
Rather than showing your vision and goals, free themes get you to stretch and adjust your requirements to fit in the existing frames and boxes. Breathtaking design and intuitive functionalities don’t always go together – if you’ve ever found a theme that looks amazing, but doesn’t support your type of business or has no wiggle room for your own ideas, you know this pain.
Not to mention that most themes require you to put a limit on your writing. No matter what Hemingway said, sometimes you do need to elaborate. Some stories can’t be shortened, and some words can’t be deleted. And if you’re anything like me, you’ll hate to cut your content just because it doesn’t fit in the pre-designed box.
That’s where a custom WordPress theme lets you spread your wings and fly high. No more challenging yourself to fit enforced requirements instead of creating your own; no more sacrifices, no more compromises. You get something created especially to meet your needs and your goals. A product that’s genuinely yours. One that’s memorable and stands out from thousands of similar websites no one recognizes.
Custom WordPress Theme Runs Smoothly
Most pre-developed themes include a massive amount of features built-in ‘just in case.’ You’ll need some of them, but a significant part will just sit there aimlessly… while also slowing down your site! This takes a toll on your user experience AND reduces the chance of a good search engine ranking.
Going for a tailor-made product means you get precisely what you ask for, no fluff. Custom-developed code is lightweight, supports all the features you need, and simplifies your site maintenance by eliminating the never-ending options you never use. It also pays more attention to the requested functionalities, polishing all the rough edges and gives you a detailed, precise finish.
It’s A 100% Safe
While you should always be extremely careful when picking out a theme or a plugin for your WordPress website, malware “experts” know how to hide their true intentions behind an awesome-looking product. A custom-developed theme is not only the safest source of a breathtaking design & development: it also seals your website shut, preventing future attacks.
Free content is frequently written with a low-quality code, resulting in bugs, missing paths, and gateways open for hackers. Partnering with a professional, experienced developer gives you the prime quality, drastically reducing the chance of a problem occurring when you least expect it.
It’s Right There When You Need Assistance
The market changes and the business requirements evolve faster than you can say ‘WordPress update’. Creating your website is never a one-time job: to keep up with the current trends and your users’ expectations, you need to stay on guard. As your site grows, you’ll probably feel the need to introduce new features or options. Maybe it’ll even evolve to be something entirely different from your original plan.
Even if you don’t step aside from your initial goal, the wish to freshen things up a bit will pop up sooner or later. Not to mention that WordPress continually works to improve its service, releasing important updates periodically.
Pre-developed themes rarely keep up with all the news. And, understandably, they won’t always support you when you want to completely redefine your business or introduce a brand-new, complicated feature. But by not adhering to WordPress’s newest safety standards, they actually put your website at risk of being hacked.
Whoever develops your custom WordPress theme will be there for you when the rain starts to fall – I mean, when the need for further development comes up. Professional developers provide personal and rapid support for their clients – while premium themes will keep you waiting in a long queue with lots of other queries. Chances are their themes won’t integrate with other tools or plugins you’d like to incorporate to your website.
Still Hesitating?
The cost of a custom WordPress theme isn’t a tiny expense you’ll barely notice – but it’s an investment that will pay off in the long run. Your own, tailor-made design and development will draw more attention to your business, showcase your products, and attract clients with its extraordinary and smooth user experience.
Among these improvements, it’ll streamline your website’s maintenance and reduce the loading time, resulting in better SEO. Professional developers will also assist you with future changes and updates, making your site safe from hackers since Day 1.
A custom WordPress theme will let you feel the wind in your sails and utterly redefine your business by setting it apart from your competition. To come back to that candy store metaphor, it’ll make you feel the luckiest kid in the shop who has their very own, grandma-made cake!
