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Things to Consider When Customizing a WordPress Website

There is no doubt WordPress offers an excellent solution for businesses to create a custom website. Before jumping in to build your website, it is important to plan out your needs. While WordPress is designed for beginners and professional developers alike, it is imperative to be sure you have the skills and time to build the website your business demands. Here is a look at some of the issues to consider.

Your Brand

Your visual identity is everything online. A big part of any website design is the logo and selection of colors. Maintaining the image that represents your business offline is also essential. Most businesses we work with already have existing branding.

The best website branding keeps it simple. Work with the colors of your logo and keep your website white. Website visuals should also be kept simple and clean. Two to three colors are the best on a white background. There is a tendency for stunning visuals but remember your website needs to be fast on mobile. Google is a good example of a company that keeps websites simple and light (keep your graphics to a minimum).

Easy-to-read fonts are also a big part of a website's branding. Choose fonts that are clean and remember to choose a font size that displays well on both computers and mobile. Large fonts for heading are essential to allow visitors to scan a page before diving in for a read. At the same time, don't slip into the design trend of a small font for your main body text. Two font styles are more that sufficient. There is a balance between style and form. One font for headings and one font for main text will keep your website user-friendly.

Your domain name is also a big part of your branding. Remember, that is the name that visitors will remember. Your logo, your company name, and your domain name should be aligned. Dot com domain names are always the best when representing your company in the US.

Your Website Content and Architecture

Architecture refers to the structure of your website. Following common norms is a good way to go because that is what visitors will expect. A great way to think of structure is to think of a flow chart. You will have your homepage, services, products, information, and a company page. Again, keeping architecture simple as if you were browsing on a mobile device is essential for an easy-to-use website.

In terms of content, keeping a balance between providing enough information without overloading visitors. A good way to do this is by using the "read more" function. You present the key points to each page or article with a solid introduction. Visitors can then expand that content by clicking on "read more".

Functionality

The big reason behind most custom WordPress website builds is to include as much functionality as is possible. You can start by writing a list of the goals of your website. For most businesses, selling products or enticing potential clients to contact for more information is the norm.

A good way to think of functionality is to start with must-have functions and preferred-functions. For example, a lot of websites use popup messaging but they can get in the way of the user-experience.

When drafting these lists, keep in mind your website’s core purpose.

Website Design

Choosing a theme is a big part of any website design. Themes often look great before you have to dig in and create something similar to the theme offers. Paid themes often promise cool design but that isn't the case when you have to recreate what the theme offered before you purchased.

A great way to take on custom website design is to look around at other websites you wish to imitate. Paid themes are often very deceiving and you will have to learn how to blend imagery, functionality and design that suits your company with that of a theme.

Professional Advice

Our team of developers are experienced at taking simple theme designs and building in the design and functionality you are looking for. We find that many clients have started out with what they thought would be a great theme only to find the design and style of the website is more complicated than first thought. This is because design and functionality often overlap.

It may seem old school, but initially drawing out your needs for developers is an excellent way to communicate the design features you are looking for. Our developers can immediately see what requires specific code and what they can take from a simple template theme. Great custom designed WordPress websites use a simple theme and build on that with custom functionality.

Performance, Security and UX of Your Custom WordPress Website

To be successful, a website must meet a core set of standards for website performance and responsiveness. This is frequently where you will run into issues with premium themes. As you make more changes, you will most likely notice that performance suffers. Furthermore, your purchased theme will most likely include a slew of features you don't require, resulting in a slew of unnecessary code that can slow down and degrade the performance of your website.

In summary, if you want a high-performing website, limit its features and functionality to those that are absolutely necessary. Using a custom theme, i.e. one built from scratch, is typically the best option. To bring this to reality, you'll need to enlist the skills of a web developer and designer.

Ongoing Maintenance and Support of Your Custom WordPress Website

Websites, regardless of platform, require continual upkeep. This covers updates, modifications, and upgrades. If something goes wrong, you may additionally have to pay for maintenance and assistance. In this case, you'll need to employ a developer to resolve the issue with your website.

LynxSEM has a dedicated retainer for this, so you can count on continuing site maintenance and assistance from WordPress experts.