Make Your Free Theme Unique
Just a couple of weeks ago I was reading a thread in the PayPerPost forums about a link exchange.
In the thread, one poster says to another “we have the same blog design, cool!†And all I could think was “not cool, why do you like that?â€
I didn’t say anything in the thread but the idea has bugged me since I read it. What I read and what my mind heard were two different things…
Great, so there’s nothing unique about you.
Perhaps this is not really the case. Neither of the girls were sploggers, they had unique content but would you know the difference between the bloggers if you were just surfing through sites? Probably not.
And the thing is this is not the only case. With the rise of many great free WordPress themes there have become an abundance amount of people all using the same free themes. Having the same design as other people doesn’t give you a leg up when those who visit blogs are notorious for scanning content, not reading. Believe that during the scan of content, your site needs to look different than the last one they visited.
Maybe I can help you stand out from the crowd. Assuming that the free theme you’re considering using has license information that allows you to make modifications, here are some things you can do to make your free theme different than the person who last downloaded that same theme.
Change Colors
Basic CSS styling will help you to change just small details that will help you be different. Change link colors, hover colors, and add some basic touches that are not included in the original design of the theme. (Or remove some of the elaborate touches from the theme to make the design more simple).
Header Image
Having a logo created for your site is cheap, when you find the right place. Seek out an affordable web designer who can use the dimensions of your free theme’s header to create a header that is unique to you but still matches the rest of the theme.
Move Sidebars
Going a little more advanced. Move a sidebar from the right to left or vise versa. This seemingly small change is huge for a visitor’s eye.
Image Titles
Small images for your sidebar sections can really change the way a theme looks. Create matching, small images to use instead of the header tags on the sidebar. This modification can also help draw the visitors’ eye to the sidebar and get their attention.
Go All Out
If you know what you’re doing, make a complete design change to the template. Leave all the basics in place so that you have template that has good “bones†and modify everything else. Again doing this means making sure you have the right to do so under the author’s license.
It doesn’t take much to stand out from the crowd. But when you want to attract a lot of visitors to your site, this is a very vital step. Make sure that the first thing they think about your blog isn’t that it looks like someone else’s blog. This keeps you unique and visitors will actually stop to read content when they don’t think that you’re the last blog they ran into.
Ultimately, I believe the best thing you can do to give your blog a leg up is to invest in an affordable blog design. You can get it done cheap, start branding your site from the minute it’s launched, and you can rest assured that your site doesn’t look like anything someone else has.
Technorati Tags: WordPress Themes, Free WordPress Themes, Web Design, Blog Design, Affordable Blog Designs, Theme Modifications, Unique Web Design
February 1st, 2008 at 10:21 am
I agree that themes should be unique. :) I have a few that I use and love, but with everyone else having similar styles, it’s hard to find something totally unique, unless you purchase one at places like KMC (reminds me I need to get a new one soon-ish, BTW, since tax return has cometh).
February 1st, 2008 at 11:10 am
Sarah » I’m so sick of the same styles and looks to all the blogs. Mindy has been coding some new awesome awesome templates that I’m in love with. I’m inspired to be designing for KMC. Because of that, new ones will soon be posted.
For the record, I’m saving to buy a new kitchen table if you wish to contribute to my savings account by purchasing a new theme soon. ::wink::
February 1st, 2008 at 11:15 am
I laughed out loud so loud that my kids are going “Mama” and “What’s so funny?”
February 1st, 2008 at 11:26 am
Hey ya know… at least I’m honest with what I do with design profits. :D
February 2nd, 2008 at 12:14 pm
It doesn’t take a whole lot to find someone to change a free template up for you. Look how long John Chow operated on his first theme. It was nothing more than a slightly modified free WP Theme.
Try rentacoder or elance, you’ll be surprised at how affordable having an awesome blog can be.
February 2nd, 2008 at 12:40 pm
Don » Agreed. It really doesn’t take much.
However, I’d much rather suggest that people use Kiss My Code. Not only because it’s my web design business but because for the same price at rentacoder you can get a completely customized WordPress theme… if not cheaper (I like to think that people don’t have to spend a lot of money to get quality thus, I provide the opportunity).
February 4th, 2008 at 12:47 am
excelent , Great work!
March 4th, 2008 at 7:21 pm
Hey thanks for all of the tips. It is definitely important to make your site unique. Thanks for posting this.
May 8th, 2008 at 4:43 am
This is one thing I have not been able to do yet. I don’t want my blog to look like a photocopy of another blogger’s. I want it to stand out. Unfortunately, since I have been too lazy to learn html and CSS I am currently stuck with the original design of the free theme.
It is one of my short range goal to completely change the look of my web design and make it stand out amidst others.
I have been reading your posts. I’ve had a great time on your blog today reading different posts. I appreciate the way you share tips and tricks freely without holding back. One question I have though. Why do you have your blogroll as a separate page? Does it have any SEO benefit? I will be glad to hear your response. (I ticked the “notify me of follow-up comments via e-mail” so it will be automatic) Cheers. ;-)
May 12th, 2008 at 12:33 pm
Tony » Perhaps when you’re ready to do a custom design for your blog, we can work together. My favorite online business is my web design company.
My blogroll is on a separate page because it’s lengthy, and for linking our purposes. One of the theories with SEO is that there are no more than 15 outgoing links on any page. I’d kill that just with my blogroll. It’s also my opinion that sidebar space is valuable and I have other things I’d rather have in my sidebar than my blogroll.
May 24th, 2008 at 2:24 pm
am tryin my best in that :) check it urself :)