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Why you should never use FREE WordPress theme?

As you’re going through the process of creating a new business, selection of a WordPress theme can be a tough decision. First of all, there are thousands of themes out there with different functionalities which might be in favor of your conversion rate.

Viktor from WebCreate.Me shared with us bunch of reasons why you should rather invest few bucks and get one of the premium WordPress themes.

When it comes to the final decision, as a newbie you are most likely trying to launch your business cutting as many costs as possible. Therefore, an investment to premium WordPress theme seems to be a waste of money. Maybe you also think that you can change it to a Premium version at the later stage. And that’s wrong. In this article, we are going to explain you why.

The only advantage of free WP themes? They’re free

When we are discussing free themes, the action causes the reaction. Therefore, the fact that developers are “giving” the themes for free comes hand in hand with many disadvantages. Don’t put your business at risk before you actually start to generate profit.

Instead, read the reasons below why should avoid using a free theme and why they are actually for free.

1. Average quality

The developers usually take free themes as side projects so you can’t expect professional and precise results. On the other hand, if you purchase premium theme the revenue is allocated to improve the quality.

A free theme will put your website to the crowd of thousands of others same bad looking websites which lack clear navigation and unprofessional design. With the free theme, you can’t create unique result so the website will drown in the sea of unoriginality. And thanks to the negative first impression you may lose some conversions.

2. Lack of functionalities

Definitely a significant difference. Free themes don’t contain a package of features which is obvious included within premium themes. The lesser number of features means you have to incorporate them separately to offer the same value as a user of premium theme who has it all-in-one. This allows the person to create modern unique output and attract more of potential customers out there while free theme doesn’t have an option to customize the design as you wish.

3. No regular updates

WordPress is putting so much effort to come up with regular updates and protect 26% of the world’s websites that run on this CMS. So if you have installed a free theme you’re most likely going to miss this major update because developers who “gave” the theme for free are working on something more profitable. The developers who are committed and devoted to coming up with updates for their free themes can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

An outdated theme is an invitation for hackers and threads that can put down or destroy your site. However, if you invest few dozens and purchase premium theme you can be sure that new update compatible with the latest version of WordPress will be launched in a short time.

4. Rarely offer some support

If you’re dealing with issues during the process of installation you have to sort it out by yourself. Free themes usually don’t come with any support from the developer. So if your skills are on a basic level you might find helpful the support that comes in a package of a premium theme.

You may find developers of free themes that offer an initial support but we are almost sure it will last only limited time. On the other hand, if anything goes wrong with a premium theme you may contact support via e-mail or live chat, get in touch with other users on forums or check the tutorials.

5. Security vulnerabilities

The constant concerns for website owners are security threads. It’s not rare that free themes contain hidden malicious codes. Don’t take the risk as it can affect ranking in Google. Their policy about hidden malwares includes also penalties.

By purchasing the theme you’re supporting the developers who allocate the money to improve the security standards as this is their huge priority.

6. SEO is missing

Some of the free themes can miss H1 tag, meta description tag or poor code is demoting the performance (slow loading that eventually affects your conversion and bounce rate). Also, you can’t rely on an obvious responsive design which is a big no nowadays when mobile marketing is not an option but a necessity. Still, site architecture  stays of essensial importance when it comes to the website ranking. Premium themes are created with regard to these principles, while the free themes can neglect some of them.

7. Premium theme won’t ruin your budget

Although, you are a new blogger or about to launch your first website don’t let the temptation of free themes overcome you especially when a premium template cost $30 – $50. If you take your business seriously, the future revenue will pay back the initial investment. Your site is not worth a security risk.

We can’t generalize that all free WordPress themes are bad but before you decide for one it’s good to know the cons. If you don’t have any other option, choose one of the free themes in WordPress repository to avoid the high threat comes with downloading from other sources.

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2 Comments

  • John McLaughin
    Posted Dec 13, 2017 at 5:36 am

    I can definitely relate to this article. I’ve build a business website for my client on a free theme once. 1 year later it got broken and i couldn’t fixed it (it required coding). So I’ve decided to use premium theme and redesigned the website. it costed me a lot of time and money to get that website back in shape. almost lost that client.

    • Taylor Macallan
      Posted Dec 25, 2017 at 10:02 am

      Hello, John, thanks a lot for sharing your experience with us! Both options have pros and cons.Besides, have you ever used ThemeREX templates?

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