Blogging Tips A-Z: T for Themes

                                                      Blogging Tips A-Z

WordPress is the best choice for bloggers because it:
can be customised to allow you to do whatever you want with you blog;has the biggest choice of blog plug-ins;has the biggest choice of blog themes.
A blog theme is a template used to create the way your blog looks and feels. There are thousands of blog themes to choose from, many are free and others are premium blog themes which you pay a little for.
There are thousands of free blogging themes but they are limited in what they can do both in design and functionality.
I recommend using a free theme if you don’t really know why you’re blogging but want to learn about blogging and don’t already have an established business.
If you have a blogging goal or have an established business with products or services you want to market or sell online then beware of free blog themes.
Many free blog themes them are badly designed with no regard for the principles of online design or legibility so instead of attracting clients they will actively turn people off using your business because they make you look unprofessional, untrustworthy and unlikely to be in business long-term.
Free blog themes may be free but you get what you pay for.
Not only can a free blogging theme create a poor first impression for you or your business but professional bloggers will quickly become frustrated by their limitations.
While you will have to pay a one-off fee for a premium blog theme, usually between $50 and $100, you’ll be buying a framework for your blog which can be customised entirely to suit your needs.
You or your blog designer should be able to use a premium theme to create a unique design for you within a robust format. Popular blogging themes include Headway, Genesis and Thesis.
Both my blogs are run using WordPress and the Thesis theme which I love because it offers:
1. Superior search engine optimization
Unlike many other free WordPress themes, Thesis is optimized for blog search engine optimization so if you want to rank well with the search engines Thesis will give you a head-start and make search engine optimization easier.
2. Reliability
Thesis uses bulletproof code that’s been refined to perfection over the last few years for maximum performance and durability.
3. Design flexibility
Thesis is a theme framework that will allow you to create a unique look and feel for your blog.
I’ve helped many business owners such as Seana, David and Kimberley make the switch from Blogger (on Blogspot) to WordPress because they couldn’t get the results they wanted with Blogger.
Like them I started my blogging journey with Blogger too but outgrew it quickly.
If you need a hand switching from Blogger to WordPress I can help you (email annabel@successfulblogging.com to get a quote) but if you haven’t started blogging yet use WordPress from the beginning.
If search engine optimization is important to you (and it should be) I recommend you choose the Thesis premium blog theme.
You may need help from a blog designer to get Thesis set up correctly and to show your business in the best possible light but that small investment is worth it.
Once your blog is set up to make you look as good as you are and allow your readers to find the information they’re looking for fast you’ll be blogging with maximum efficiency and getting the results you deserve.
Free blog theme or premium blog theme it’s your choice, but if your blog isn’t getting the results you want then the first thing you should consider is your blog theme and blog design.
Blog and web design is an unregulated profession so there are plenty of people doing it who aren’t qualified or experienced. They may have limited knowledge about online marketing, screen reading, social media, writing for the web or all of those.
Many web and blog designers are simply sales people who sub your blog design out to unskilled coders in developing countries.
You may get a cheap blog but it will probably make  you look cheap and fail to convert any blog readers into clients. Then when you’re ready to upgrade your blog you’ll have to start again from scratch because the original coder won’t be around and no one else will be able to make head or tail of how or why they designed your blog the way they did. So in the long run the cost is much higher.
My husband and I have owned a small web design agency for 14 years. We offer a small client base and would love to help you set up a blog which gets results.
Find out more about our blog design packages or contact me by email to get a quote for updating your blog, switching to WordPress or creating a professional blog design from scratch. I’d love to help you.
Please leave your comments and questions below – I’ll answer them here or in a separate blog post.



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