Loading...Once in a while, a blogger might want to change the theme of their blog. Besides choosing from one of the many free themes available online, some bloggers choose to modify existing themes, create their own themes or pay a professional to design one for them. The following are some of the things you need to keep in mind when changing the theme for your blog.
1. Brand establishment
If your blog has a recognizable brand image, you need to ensure that this image is maintained in your current design. Most established or growing blogs have an image which visitors have become familiar with. If you change your theme extensively, your blog might end up being unrecognizable by your audience.
2. Colors
When changing the theme of your blog, you could choose a totally different color scheme, or opt to retain the same colors. This will depend on whether you want to change your design completely or retain the image which your audience is familiar with. If you are not satisfied with your color scheme, it would be advisable to make the necessary changes.
3. Monetization
Nowadays, many blogs have paid text links and banner ads. Before settling for any theme, you need to consider the location of these ads. Think about the dimensions and size of the banner ads you want to include and make sure all the ads fit properly into the design.
4. Subscription options
To attract as many subscribers as possible, you need to ensure that links to your email subscription and RSS feed appear prominently on your pages. Before developing the layout, consider where you would want these widgets and links to be positioned. Make sure the page layout makes provision for them.
5. Readability
Readability is one of the most vital elements of blog design. You need to make it as easy as possible for your subscribers and visitors to read your content. Readability is usually influenced by elements such as text color, background color, typography and fonts, contrast, whitespace and spacing. Make sure the elements you use on your blog don’t hinder the readability of the content.
6. Social media integration
Social media is very important for generating traffic to a blog. You need to choose a page layout which allows you to optimize your posts and pages by including links, widgets and buttons to different social media sites. Make sure these social media elements appear prominently on your pages so as to grab the attention of your readers.
7. Load speed
Many web users are very impatient. If your pages take too long to load, your visitors are likely to click away. To ensure your site loads faster, avoid adding too many large images, videos, widgets and plug-ins.