Tag Archives: theme

Website Building

How To Customize Options in WordPress

Customize Options in WordPress

customize options in wordpressFor Web Wednesdays, we have been showing you how to take a website from simply an idea to a fully functional website. After installing WordPress & setting your theme. It is time to begin looking at the customize options in WordPress. You can do this by hovering over “Appearance” in the WordPress Dashboard on the left side of the screen. From here, you can click on Customize and you will be sent to the Customization menu for your theme. All themes have different options, but on the WordPress Twenty Seventeen theme, there are only a few customization settings.

The things we will look at in our Customize Options in WordPress video are Site Information, Colors, Header Media, & Homepage Settings. The other items on the Customize menu can be (and will be) tweaked directly through the dashboard.

Site Information will be where you set the SEO name of your website along with the tagline. You also have the option to decline displaying your site information here. You may be wondering why someone would want to do that. The reason is very simple. If you have a custom header with a logo and a tagline already in the image, then you may decline using this option. However, I do not suggest that approach.

You can certainly put your logo in an image, but then you would still want the Site Information displayed in the corner. If your business/site name is only in the graphic image and not overlain as text within the Site Information setting, then Google will not be able to pick up the name of your website and your tagline. Taglines are also good for SEO purposes. When it comes to getting picked up by Google, you need all the free help you can get.

Making Images for Your Site

If you haven’t done so already, I heavily suggest getting Adobe Creative Cloud so you can use Photoshop for making your images. Under Site Information, you are going to have the option to set a Site Image. This image will serve two functions: it will be the icon displayed on a browser tab & it will also be the icon if someone were to save your website to their homepage on the phone. The size of this image is 512 pixels by 512 pixels. It’s very easy to create a simple text favicon in Photoshop by making one letter in a cool font matching your color scheme.

You will also have to create a header media image for your site. This will be the image that people will think of when they remember your website. This means you need for this image (and any text on it) to really pop & stand out. Many people have a very difficult time trying to make text blend in well with a header image. Header images are rarely solid colors because that is boring. People will either use a stock photo or an abstract background with different colors. To create a header image that solves this problem, check out our Customize Options in WordPress tutorial video.

customize options in wordpress

Thanks for reading!

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Website Building

Setting Up Your WordPress Theme

Setting Up Your WordPress Theme

setting up your wordpress themeToday we are continuing our series, Web Wednesdays. In today’s video we are going to be focusing on setting up your WordPress Theme. So this begs the question, what is a WordPress theme?

If this is your first time setting up WordPress, then it is important to understand what a theme is and what it does. The best way to think about it is an anatomical reference. Your blog is the “skin” to your website. It’s what people are going to see the moment they visit your page. Your functionality and content could be incredible, but without the right theme, people will quickly be turned off by your website… and most likely they will leave before they ever get the chance to look under the hood.

While your visitors will see your theme, the theme does also affect the functionality. Each theme comes with settings and/or customization options for things such as your header, sliders, menus, footer, widgets, & more. It is absolutely pivotal that you get to know all of the settings within your header. When I add a new theme to a website I’m working on, the first thing I do is go look at the settings. If the theme does not have settings I like then I will change the theme. There is nothing worse than working with a theme that does not have a lot of customization.

For instance, some themes only allow you to have a text based logo. Just imagine how frustrating it would be to make a beautiful website only to find that it won’t allow you to put your beautifully designed logo at the top of your page. Sure, you could add it within the content… but that is not the best way to brand your business.

Choosing Your WordPress Theme

There are so many different ways to find a WordPress theme. The first question you have to ask yourself is whether or not you would like to spend money on a theme. If you are comfortable paying for a theme, then I suggest strolling over to the Envato Market and searching their Themeforest themes. Most of the themes there run anywhere from $29 to $59. They are fairly priced and these are full themes that will also come with support. Personally, I love Themeforest themes.

If you are looking for a free theme, then you will be able to search within the WordPress platform. It’s easy to search within WordPress for a great theme. The issue with the free themes, is that most likely the themes you find are going to be “Lite” versions of premium themes. The goal of the Lite themes is to give you an idea of what the full version or premium version can offer you above and beyond what you get with the Lite theme. It’s basically a way for these themes to advertise their full version… which of course will come with a cost. Some of the free WordPress themes will offer everything you need, but more times than not you will end up frustrated.

setting up your wordpress th

Thanks for reading & don’t forget to check out our tutorial video, “Setting Up Your WordPress Theme.”

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