Why Your Blog Can Use a Unique Theme
August 28, 2008 Posted by MattawThis post is written by Mattaw of Moneybites.com. Moneybites shares tips, tricks, and ideas to make money online. If you have a second check out the Moneybites RSS feed as well.
Are you serious about your blog but can’t figure out why you’re blog isn’t taking off like others around you? Maybe the reason for that is that your blog is still using a free theme. I know some free themes can be really nice but they’re no substitute for the benefit your blog can get from a custom theme.
I know you guys are thinking a custom theme can be expensive and you don’t have the money or that you just don’t need it, but I strongly feel that it is a prudent investment for your blog.
A custom theme can help your blog get jump started ahead of the pack or just help it continue to differentiate itself from the other blogs but it’s a factor that sets your blog apart in other people’s minds.
You want your blog to be different. If I’m a reader, and I read 10 of the same looking blogs in the same niche, won’t I get tired of that kind of reading, won’t they all just start to blend into one blog (the answer is: most likely)?
A custom theme helps your blog be different. It is a factor that sets your blog apart and helps people remember you. A good custom theme will stick in peoples minds. Making your blog more memorable helps bring people back again and again.
Secondly, it can keep your blog’s momentum going. Even if your blog has been going for a while with a free theme you should think about switching to a custom one (getting a redesign). Doing so can really help keep your blog going strong and even give it a boost to the next level.
A custom theme also can make your blog easier for readers. It can make the blog easier to navigate. As a reader if a blog is cluttered or messy, it doesn’t keep my attention for long (unless the content is amazing). Most free themes are clutter free, the designer and blog owner have made them that way so that readers can navigate the blog more easily. As a reader this makes me more inclined to stick around the blog because it isn’t like finding my way out of a maze just to get to one of their pages.
A custom theme can also make you more invested into your blog. No, I’m not talking about financially invested (although it does that also). A custom theme is something that you created. It makes you more emotionally invested in your blog. Instead of perhaps loosing interest or flaking (not saying that you won’t, that’s a personal thing), it will keep you more closely tied to your blog.
My point about financial ties is true also. A custom theme makes you more invested in your blog. By tossing a bit more money into the pot, you become even more tied into to making your blog succeed. More financial incentive can be just the thing that you need to bring your blog to a whole new level.
I hope these points opened your eyes about why you should take the time and save/spend the money to get a custom theme. I strongly think that you should grab a custom theme. If you look at most of the larger blogs out there, most of theme have custom themes. That should hopefully send a clear message. Your blog can really use a custom theme (if you don’t already have on that is)!
16 Responses to “Why Your Blog Can Use a Unique Theme”
Great post Mattaw, I agree that custom designed themes show real commitment to a blog and creates a unique and individual image which is essential when branding your blog.
-Danny
I agree with the above comment, it does show that you’re not just making the blog to make money. That you are prepared to spend the money to make the experience better for your readers.
Yeah, I agree. I am looking into the custom theme thing now. It isn’t always about money… it often times is just finding the right person to handle the design job. There are sooo many people out there charging for crappy themes, that you want to be careful you don’t get screwed.
I know how much a custom blog design can do. For my newest blog I’m going to try and use a free theme and see how many people I can get to subscribe. The good thing is I am able to customize it a little bit by myself and I noticed not a lot of other people are using the same design.
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Yup, if you’re serious about Blogging, a custom theme is a must. What I’d say is if your Blog is +90days old and you’re still going strong, it means you’ve probably picked a niche you’ll stick with long term, so reward yourself by investing in a custom theme.
I had a custom theme done for me a few months back and I love it. It has all the elements I wanted on the site and it’s easy for people to remember who I am just by seeing my theme.
First impressions are important.
Great content and posting frequently shows “real” commitment…not because you can pay to have your site looking “flashy/unique”. Look at wikipedia and craigslist…very bland sites, but they have substance that keeps people coming back. If you really want your users to have a “great” experience, take off all the ads and paid posts.
So let’s call this for what it really is…branding yourself to ultimately make more money…and not to give the user a “better experience” or the “illusion of commitment”
Dont people read blogs from readers these days? As long as the first few posts they read from the site have some decent content, whats the need for a flashy design? I speak as someone who spent several hundred on a custom theme and built up quite a following, but by the same token, I reckon the same growth pattern will happen with a freebie theme, as long as I keep posting readable stuff.
Getting a unique theme done for your blog is even better if you do it before launching the blog. That way, the brand remains same. Am I right?
I agree with this if you have the money its good to get a custom theme, but even if you can’t afford that, you can still probably afford some decent premium themes.
I totally agree on this. If you got money its indeed very good to get a custom unique design. But Currently I am using some free ones..
A custom theme does wonders for your brand and for your credibility. Once people see that you have taken the time and effort (and sometimes cash) to create a custom brand for your blog they instantly associate that with credibility and are more likely to come back more often to read what you have to say.
As much as the content that you post is important, the look and feel of your blog is just important, if not more important. We as consumers of digital content on the internet have made up our minds about the site that we visit long before we ever read a single word of content.
A few things to make sure of:
1) Your site loads quickly… This is a must. People do not want to wait for your site to load.
2) Your site is professional looking. Who wants to read a site that looks like no effort has been put forth into creating it?
3) There is fluidity to the design. Make sure that your links to articles and pages are in the right places to ensure pageview maximization.
There are a lot of resources on many blogs around the internet for ways to customize your blog to maximize readership and return readers. Make use of the information that is out there!
A unique theme serves a large purpose because site-viewers will quickly recognize if a theme looks like one they have seen in the past.
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