How to choose the perfect theme: Tips and Free themes list

Colorful, text-heavy, picture-centric, stock photos, photo galleries, side bars, unique fonts…oh my! So, let’s explore how to choose the perfect theme. How do you settle in on a theme that’s right for your blog. Well, I’m going to give you 4 major things to consider when choosing a theme for your blog. You’ll also get access to a free list of great themes for beginner bloggers.

New to blogging check out my previous post here.

So, why is your theme important?

There are so many themes out there that cater to different styles. When choosing a theme it’s important to remember that the point of themes are to organize information on a page (or across a group of pages) to deliver content to an audience. Themes are layouts or pre-organized page options. Remember, they are options.

It’s important to choose a theme that will allow you to deliver messages in an engaging and effective way to your audience. Pro tip: choose a theme that will allow you to present your content in a way that is accessible, natural flowing, easy to navigate, and aesthetically pleasing.

Major things to consider:

Who is your audience and what is the purpose of your blog?

The biggest consideration when selecting a theme is who your presenting information to and why. For example, if my audience were diy-ers then I know that my theme needs to be video-text box centric. I would need to be able to embed a combination of videos and step-by-step directions. My homepage Thumbnails would be need to be video clips displaying finished products and brief descriptions of the amount of time it takes to make/how expensive the project is etc.

However, if my audience were potential homebuyers and I was focused on finance it would be very different. If I were writing about steps to take to prepare yourself financially to buy a house I wouldn’t need videos (unless I record myself talking–but then I guess I’d be better off making a vlog and not a blog–hm…). I’d probably need spaces to embed worksheets, pdf downloads, and generic photos/images but my content would be more important. I’d have a text-centric theme that organized words with space on the page.

How will you be delivering info?

Knowing your audience and purpose will help you to determine how to outline information on the page. It will help you to think about the best way to deliver your content. A blog on photography would not be best served using a text-centric theme. Nor would a financial home-buying blog be served with a photo-centric theme.

How easy is it to navigate my site?

Most importantly, you want to determine ease of use and access to the most important information (YOUR CONTENT!) Pictures, images, videos, and text all work together to make your site are functional but engaging for readers. If drop down menus don’t serve their purpose or pictures are haphazardly placed within the site it can be distracting enough to cause your audience to leave your site.

Choosing the perfect theme

Now, we’ve discussed the major factors but now which theme should I choose!?!? How to choose your perfect theme!? Well, bloggers you’re in luck. I’ve compiled a list of my fave free and paid themes for you to choose from.

Need help choosing a theme? Download the free list below:

FYI

We all want to choose the perfect theme. If you’ve found yours great! If not, that’s okay too. Themes aren’t permanent. Your content may shift and so might the direction of your site. So will your theme. I went through 10 different themes before I settled on this one. I plan to upgrade soon. I want to focus on content building, product development, branding, and building my email list for now though. Hopefully this helped you choose your perfect theme.

What’s your favorite theme? Were any of these tips helpful for you? Let me know if you found the list helpful. Don’t forget to sign up for my mailing list if you’d like to get more tips and freebies. As always, good luck!