To give your site a great look, you need a design (template) or in WordPress lingo, a theme. There are many great free and freemium designs available, but you could also buy one for as low as $15. Your decision will depend on the purpose of your site or blog (online brochure, webshop, etc.).
Considerations for choosing your theme
Header:
- Simple (narrow) or
- Large for photo, logo or sliders
Footer:
- Wide
- 1-3 Columns or
- None
Body:
- 1, 2 or 3 Columns
Sidebar:
- Left
- Right or
- None
Pages:
- One-page (scroll down) or
- Multiple pages
Mobile-friendly (responsive)
Ecommerce capability in case you plan to sell products
Tip 1:
Look at other sites you like, to have a visual.
How to install a theme in WordPress
Go to your WordPress Dashboard.
Select Appearance, then click on Themes.
WordPress comes with a few basic themes you can choose from. Here you can see some of them: Spacious, Hair Theme, Nirvana.
After you have choosen one, click on Select, then Install and then Activate.
More tips
Tip 2:
If you don’t like the basic WordPress themes you can:
- Download a (free or paid) theme from an external website. Get one that is maintained regularly by the designer. Upload and install this theme into your website.
- Hire a developer to build a custom site. This can be an expensive option especially if you don’t know upfront what you want your site to look like.
Tip 3:
Install theme updates regularly (= maintenance) to prevent issues with incompatibility or hackers.
If you don’t know how to do it, click on Free Maintenance Download to learn more.