7 Key Features to Pay Attention to When Choosing a WordPress Theme

Whether you run a blog or a portfolio website, the WordPress theme you use can help your content stand out in search and to users.

Avada Premium SEO friendly WordPress Theme

 

If you are using a WordPress backend, your website theme can have an impact on its aesthetics.

 

For one, it can help determine the look and feel of your website. It can also have an impact on your website’s user experience. Also, your WordPress theme can either make or break your search engine optimization efforts.

 

That said, we are listing down the seven key features that you need to consider when you choose a WordPress theme:

1. Mobile Responsiveness

During the first quarter of 2020, more than 50% of internet traffic came from mobile devices. This is one important reason you need a mobile-friendly WordPress theme.

 

If you are not using mobile-responsive design, you do not provide a great user experience to your site visitors. In that case, you are like giving them away to your competitors.

 

On the other hand, mobile-responsive website design means that you no longer need to maintain two websites. That’s because your website can resize itself depending on the site visitors’ screen size.

2. Social Media Friendliness

There is no denying that social media has come in handy in expanding your audience reach. Moreover, these platforms enable drive user engagements with your brand.

 

That said, it is crucial to choose a WordPress theme that is also social media-friendly.

 

This includes making it easier for you and your audience to share your web content via social media. Some themes have built-in share icons.

 

In case your theme does not have one, you can install social media plugins instead.

3. Page Styling Options

Page styling is the arrangement or layout of your website. And being able to customize your page styles allows you to do these things:

 

  1. It makes your web design visually appealing
  2. It ensures that your website is in line with your branding strategy
  3. It will enable you to bring your site visitors’ attention to the right places.

Simply put, page styling allows your website to be informative without cluttering it. And this depending on various factors, including sidebar placements.

 

But why is page styling so important? That’s because it lets you give your site visitors a “treat to their eyes,” which can drive engagements.

 

That said, you should see to it that your WordPress theme comes with page styling options.

4. Search Engine Optimization

There is no sense having a website if no one knows that it exists. This is where Search Engine Optimization (SEO) comes in.

 

It is the process of acquiring organic or natural website traffic through search engine results.

 

For example, you run a blog about mindfulness and intentional living. When someone types in “popular blogs about mindfulness” on Google, your website can appear as one of the results. That is if you are optimizing your site correctly.

 

Luckily, a WordPress website is easy to optimize, regardless of your design theme. That’s because there are a couple of plugins that you install for SEO purposes.

5. Available Widgets

Look at any popular WordPress themes, and you will see that they come with a handful of custom widgets.

 

These widgets allow you to customize and add functionalities on your website without relying too much on plugins. After all, plugins can slow down your page load speed. Not to mention that widgets can match your website’s design.

 

Besides, WordPress themes let you install widgets on various places on your website. This allows for seamless installation and customization.

6. Retina Display Compatibility

More and more people nowadays can afford to purchase devices with high-definition or retina display. Thus, your website’s theme must be compatible with the retina display.

 

Because in web design, image, and visual content matters. It is what catches your site visitors’ attention.

 

Hence, you will need a web design that looks amazing on any device. This includes high-quality images and sharp fonts.

 

In addition, WordPress themes that are compatible with the retina display maintain quality when zoomed in.

7. Support and Update

Of course, customer support is one of the essential factors that you need to consider.

 

According to Haleemunnisa Fatima of Endurance International Group, WordPress theme with support tend to stay in the loop with their users.

 

Here’s the thing: Client support could come in handy if you want to have a theme that is compatible with your site.

 

That’s because WordPress tends to iterate their version from time to time. And when that happens, some features on your theme can be incompatible.

Conclusion

From free to premium, WordPress offers a plethora of web design themes. No wonder that choosing the one that is right for you can be daunting.

 

Nonetheless, the factors we have listed above can help you narrow down your choices. And from there, you can pick a WordPress theme that can make your content stand out.