How to Choose An Effective WordPress Theme

If you’re doing some WordPress theme hunting, then here a useful checklist on the certain things you’d surely want to look for in an effective WordPress theme that would hopefully help you in narrowing down certain choices in your search:

Check if it uses Header Tags Correctly.

This is quite essential in an SEO fine Point. Header tags should be used to the maximum for optimal results. For more information on this, you can go to tip number 14 from my WordPress SEO post.

Check if it has a Valid Code.

As much as possible, validate the default setup of your theme. If ever the chosen theme seems to have errors itself, then the designer probably hasn’t taken the best precautions in the theme’s development. Consider that the codes in the theme are very essential for the optimum results of your blog or site, so try to check this one thoroughly.

Do you think the theme is So 1990s?

A theme that uses tables, font tags, excessive inline styles, etc. (as opposed to external style sheets) will certainly bloat the file size of your blog’s pages, and this can increase rendering times, and eat up bandwidth more quickly than usual.

Basically, most of the popular themes should be fine on this point, but it’s some of the more obscure ones that you should have to check or ask about.

Try to See If the System Supports the Latest WordPress Features.

Always check for the theme’s documentation and check if it ever supports the newer version of WordPress features and functions like:

• Tags (added in WordPress 2.3)
• Widgets (added in WordPress 2.2)

See if Your Desired Theme is Sponsored or Not.

Sponsored themes are usually a thing to avoid when it come to SEO. If ever the theme’s website says something like the lines of “don’t remove the links in the footer,” then that should raise a red flag. In other words, don’t go for that theme.

As Much As Possible, Go For A Unique Theme.

If you seek to create a visual brand with your blog, then you should try avoiding using the WordPress Default Theme or any other theme that everyone has already seen in some other person’s blog.

Search for a theme that isn’t used on an excessive amount of blogs, you can get a custom theme developed by some other programmers if you’re willing to hire someone for the job.

Make Sure the Theme Appears Good and Professional.

Its an essential thing to remember, that if the theme doesn’t convey a professional image (and if a professional image is important to you), then you should avoid it by all means, even if it means you’d have to go with another theme that doesn’t quite do all of the above.

Looking for that perfect theme that would fit you well is a little like shopping; it’s like an experiment, you can try some out, check what looks best, and eventually have fun with what you have.