Methods to Select the Greatest Theme for Your WooCommerce Retailer

When beginning a WooCommerce retailer, one in all your first steps is selecting a theme. Not solely is a theme required to start the location creation course of, it additionally impacts every thing out of your website’s design and performance to efficiency and safety.

There are literally thousands of choices from quite a lot of sources, and so they range in high quality and effectiveness. How do you make the fitting alternative in your retailer? 

Let’s begin by discussing some theme fundamentals, then discover the qualities of a great theme. We’ll end by explaining the right way to change a theme on a stay web site.

Guests kind an impression about your web site virtually instantly — good or unhealthy. And that impression impacts their choice to study extra, ask a query, save a product, or make a purchase order. 

And whereas a theme does play a task in your site’s design, it additionally impacts advertising, conversions, load time, safety, and extra. A gradual, unresponsive, difficult-to-use web site performs poorly in search outcomes and discourages gross sales.

However don’t get overwhelmed! We’ll talk about how one can select the fitting theme in a second. First, let’s speak in regards to the variations between basic themes and block themes.

Within the WordPress world, there are two varieties of themes: basic and block. 

Block themes

A block theme lets you customise all your web site templates utilizing drag-and-drop parts known as “blocks.” When you already work with WordPress, then you’re probably acquainted with the block editor, which is enabled on pages, posts, and different particular person content material sorts. Block themes embody a device known as the Web site Editor, which takes this idea and applies it to every thing from headers, footers, and aspectbars to product pages and the checkout expertise. 

What does this imply for retailers? This implies which you could actually customise each side of your on-line retailer on a worldwide degree (world which means throughout your entire web site), with out having to work with any code. 

Simply drag and drop blocks — like paragraphs, headings, photographs, movies, and product feeds — into place, then edit their settings. You may also use the Web site Editor to make sitewide design modifications to colours, fonts, spacing, and extra. You may study extra about utilizing blocks in WooCommerce on this documentation web page.

Basic themes

A basic theme is a standard WordPress theme that doesn’t help the Web site Editor. A basic theme has a extra mounted format and design than a block theme, and you’ll want to make use of the WordPress Customizer to make design modifications. 

Customizing basic themes varies fairly dramatically in terms of complexity. With some, you’ll must work with code to make even easy design modifications. Others embody simple settings that make customization simple. Some even embody their very own proprietary drag-and-drop editor. 

The TLDR model is that block themes permit for way more customization with no need to work with code, significantly for world web site templates. 

Able to dive in? A high-quality WooCommerce theme:

1. Has knowledgeable, high-quality design that meets your wants

The kind of design wanted shall be completely different for each retailer. Begin by attempting to know your viewers. What sorts of designs enchantment to them? Do they like daring colours and crowd pleasing graphics or do they like a peaceful, muted fashion? 

Don’t simply seek for a theme that “seems good.” It must be applicable for your online business. A Ferrari seems nice, however isn’t the only option for a household street journey.

Contemplate your prospects, your model, and your merchandise. Promoting minimalist furnishings? Search for a theme with whitespace and clear typography. Have to showcase numerous photos on product pages? Select a theme that prioritizes photographs. Need to spotlight particular options, like supplies or dimensions? Select a theme that features icons to symbolize them.

There are numerous industry-specific themes, and these will be nice choices that embody most of the design options you want. If you’re a boutique, The Threads theme has every thing you want: clothing-specific templates, lovely store and archive pages, and gorgeous associated product designs.

When you promote hand-crafted merchandise, you would possibly select the Artisan theme, with image-focused web page designs and product templates constructed for collections, galleries, and extra.

Take a look at examples of shops that use the theme you’re contemplating. Most themes provide a stay demo model so you possibly can take a look at them out, which is a good way to see them in motion. You need to be capable to navigate the demo simply and visualize it working in your model. 

Check out the theme’s documentation as effectively. How a lot work will it take to get your web site trying just like the theme demo?

Consider, too, that some themes are extra “plug and play,” permitting you to easily substitute demo content material with yours, whereas others function a basis in your personal artistic design. Suppose by way of which route you’d fairly take.

2. Integrates with WooCommerce

Whereas WooCommerce works with all WordPress themes, selecting a theme constructed particularly for on-line shops ensures design continuity between pages, posts, and merchandise. Search for “WooCommerce Integration” within the record of theme options or use an “ecommerce” filter to slim down your choices.

WooCommerce-specific themes may additionally embody extras like ecommerce blocks and patterns, product web page and checkout templates, and product gallery designs. Search for these options when studying the theme description and exploring the stay demo.

3. Gives every thing you want with out being bloated

Many themes transcend design to supply performance like web page builders, customized sliders, widgets, pop-ups, and extra. Whereas these are nice should you want them, don’t select a theme with 50 options should you solely want 5 — this could result in an unnecessarily-bloated, gradual web site that’s tough to handle.

Plus, should you resolve to change themes down the street, you’ll lose all the theme-dependent customized performance that you could have used to construct your web site. This may be extraordinarily problematic! Think about you’re utilizing a [slider] shortcode on all your product pages. While you change themes, you would wish to undergo all your gadgets to take away situations of that shortcode — not enjoyable in any respect!

That is an space the place block themes actually shine. Since their performance and design are largely primarily based on the Web site Editor and blocks fairly than proprietary code, you possibly can way more simply change as your retailer grows and your wants change. 

In abstract, it’s usually finest to search for light-weight, lean themes after which add performance by way of plugins and extensions. 

The Block Store theme, for instance, emphasizes effectivity over pointless options, offering all of the customization choices you want with out being overwhelming.

4. Is responsive

Greater than half of net visitors occurs on cell gadgets — and this may be even greater for sure audiences and places. In case your web site isn’t simple to make use of on telephones and tablets, you’re alienating an enormous chunk of potential prospects. 

When contemplating a theme, open the stay demo in your cellphone. Can you discover your means round? Is something reduce off or too small to learn? Run the demo by way of Google’s mobile-friendly take a look at — how does it carry out?

You may also use instruments like BrowserStack to check the demo on quite a lot of display screen sizes, from cellphones and tablets to desktops.

The Bistro theme is a superb instance of a mobile-friendly design: images, textual content, and merchandise resize robotically on cell gadgets. There’s additionally an easy-to-access menu bar that hyperlinks to account, search, and cart performance, so it’s at all times there when prospects want it.

5. Masses shortly

Load time is necessary, too: 47% of holiday makers anticipate a web site to load in two seconds or much less. If they’ve to attend too lengthy, they’ll simply go store elsewhere. 

Whereas there are a selection of things that influence web site pace, your theme performs an enormous position. Check the pace of the stay demo utilizing instruments like GTMetrix or PageSpeed Insights — all it is advisable to do is enter the demo URL and you’ll get a full pace report. You may also learn buyer opinions to study extra in regards to the experiences of different on-line shops.

6. Is up to date commonly

WooCommerce, WordPress, and different plugins launch updates commonly and, in case your theme hasn’t been completely examined and up to date alongside that software program, there will be points. Plus, an out-of-date theme could cause important safety liabilities. 

It’s at all times a good suggestion to test a theme’s changelog to make sure that the developer is commonly sustaining it. The WordPress.org theme library reveals each a “final updated” date and a “WordPress Version” discipline that is a sign of compatibility. Search for themes which were up to date inside the previous couple of months. WooCommerce themes are usually extra complicated than an ordinary WordPress theme, so it’s good to know that the theme builders are retaining tempo with software program updates.

7. Is straightforward to make use of

If that is your first time utilizing WordPress, you’re going to desire a theme editor that makes it simple so that you can make modifications with out realizing code. Or, higher but, you’ll select a block theme that simplifies modifying each side of your web site, from pages and posts to templates. 

But when you’re a developer, or working with one, it’s your decision a theme that’s simple to construct on or that gives quite a lot of customization choices. Select one that matches your degree of talent and expertise.

How will you inform? Learn by way of the documentation. Does it make sense? Are you able to think about your self navigating by way of the directions? If not, attempt one thing else.

8. Gives good buyer help and documentation

What should you run right into a query or difficulty along with your theme? How will you determine it out? Be sure that your theme developer presents help in some kind — discussion board, stay chat, e mail, and many others. — and evaluate the documentation to verify it’s thorough earlier than buying.

Practically all web sites will comprise bugs on occasion. When you run into one, it is advisable to know that the developer will patch it shortly or present steerage on the right way to proceed. 

9. Has good opinions

Critiques are sometimes the best technique to know if a theme is high-quality. Are there greater than a handful? Are they optimistic or unfavourable?

Take the time to learn opinions fairly than simply trying on the common star score. This offers you an in-depth take a look at any potential issues — gradual pace, poor help, bizarre glitches — and helps you make a top quality willpower. 

10. Matches into your finances

Themes can range extensively in terms of pricing. There are free and premium choices out there, together with “freemium” themes with plans that embody completely different options. 

Free isn’t essentially higher or worse than paid — it’s all about worth. See what contains a theme presents, together with the extent of help. Maybe you’re a newbie who would recognize the hands-on assist and instruments {that a} particular premium theme presents. Perhaps you might have a bit extra expertise, and would fairly go together with a free theme and use plugins and the block editor to create one thing actually customized. 

How do you discover these nice themes? Since WordPress is open supply, there are literally thousands of choices! Listed here are two stable locations to start out your search:

1. The WooCommerce theme library: These themes are all assured to work with WooCommerce and are backed by the Woo help group.
2. The WordPress directory: Every theme goes by way of a rigorous high quality test earlier than being added to this library. To make your search faster, you possibly can filter themes by options, layouts, or subject.

When you see one other WordPress web site that you simply like, there are instruments like WordPress Theme Search that may attempt to decide what theme a web site is utilizing. 

There are additionally quite a lot of paid marketplaces with wonderful, high-quality themes. Be further cautious and take the time to vet every one. Solely use marketplaces with high quality necessities and easily-accessible opinions and demos.

Begin exploring! Have enjoyable attempting out completely different themes and all of the choices. Take the time to undergo this guidelines — you’re certain to search out the proper match in your on-line retailer.

If you have already got a web site and wish to change themes, comply with these steps for a profitable migration:

Planning the transfer

Your first step is to plan the transfer. That may contain discovering a brand new theme, but in addition:

• Making a staging surroundings. Arrange a staging surroundings, which lets you preserve your stay web site working whilst you change themes and take a look at. 
• Figuring out what issues it is advisable to remedy. Undergo your web site and search for theme-dependent performance. This consists of issues like shortcodes, templates, and web page builders. Make a listing so what alternate options it is advisable to discover.
• Making a full backup. Run a full backup of your web site which you could restore if essential.

Migrating content material options

In your staging web site, begin by activating your new theme. Then, evaluate all of the completely different put up sorts you might have (posts, pages, merchandise, and many others.) and ensure they appear the way in which you need. Make any essential edits with the block editor, your theme’s built-in performance, or customized CSS.

Migrating customized options

If there are performance discrepancies between your earlier and new theme, you might have two choices:

1. Make code updates your self or rent a developer to take action.
2. Search for plugins or extensions that present related performance.

Check and make any closing tweaks

Lastly, take a look at and take a look at and take a look at once more! Undergo all your pages and posts to verify they appear good on gadgets of all sizes (particularly cell). Check all your web site performance, just like the cart and checkout processes, to guarantee that guests can use your retailer correctly. You’ll additionally wish to run a efficiency take a look at to test your web site pace and make any essential enhancements.

As soon as all that’s carried out, you’re able to go stay! 

This was not a whole information to switching themes. For extra particulars, take a look at these sources: