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Content management systems (CMS) have changed the way we design websites. If you’re a web development and design newbie, today’s CMS only need a few clicks and taps, and your website is done in minutes!
However, if you only rely on pre-installed themes on a CMS library, how would you know exactly which theme will work best for the website you’re building? Here are a few factors a website designer needs to consider.
1. Design
Website design refers to how a web page looks and how you will be using it. Usually, CMS themes are categorised based on how it’s aesthetic. Is it minimalist, is it fun, is it colourful?
When choosing a theme, make sure that what you choose supports your goal. For example, if you’re a photographer, choose a theme that lays out all the photos uploaded on your website. Meanwhile, if you’re designing a business website, make sure to select a template that is clean and simple, with a lot of white space, easy to navigate, and displays a call to action up front.
2. Quick Load Times
One of the biggest pet peeves for online consumers is web pages that take a long time to load. This is a common issue, especially for websites that contain a lot of photos and videos. Choose a theme that loads as quickly as possible. Remember to check your website’s speed after applying the theme to ensure no delays in loading times.
3. Responsive
The most crucial factor in choosing a theme is its responsiveness. A vast majority of people online use their mobile devices to browse. As a website designer, you must adjust to their browsing behaviour and create pages that will be beautiful to look at no matter what screen they’re using. Online visitors should be able to read the text without zooming in or out, see the entire page without changing orientation, and click all buttons without any issues. Nowadays, most themes are mobile-friendly, but you should double-check before applying any theme.
4. Consistent Development
The digital space is ever-evolving, and your choice of website theme should consistently adjust to these changes. When there are adjustments to Google SEO trends or coding, your theme developer of choice should meet all these new challenges head-on.
If you want to check how frequent your current them updates, type the name of your theme on the Google search bar + “GitHub” and scroll down until you find the changelog section. You should be able to see how updated your theme is, along with the changes that were made by the developers.
5. Plugin Compatibility
Plugins are tools that provide added features or functionality to a website. Through WordPress, plugins are useful in designing and maintaining unique websites. Plugins have no limitations as they are available for whatever function you would like to implore in the site.
Choose a theme that integrates plugins well within the design. Most of the time, plugins are automatically in sync with pre-existing themes. However, it still pays to check if the theme you’re choosing is compatible with your current plugins.
Conclusion
Regardless if you’re a newbie or not, web designing is easy as long as you consider these key factors. The goal is to make your website look good while remaining as functional as possible. However, it doesn’t mean that you need to spend more time and money achieving the goal. A website’s look is only a part of the equation. What matters more is the content that you put out there.
If you’re looking for website designers in St. Neots, Online Design UK is here to help. We specialise in helping small businesses reach their peak and goals, especially in the digital space. Contact us today, and let’s start building the website of your dreams!