Premium Wordpress Themes - Why?

I used to feel the same way, but have found that some of the so-called "premium" themes are just easier to work with.

Hi Tbunch,

I believe that people actually want great looking, functional websites but don't have the time or required knowledge to develop stuff themselves.

A lot of premium themes aside from looking good are very easy to use especially for the non-developer crowd.

Many people get lost when they have to dive in a pile of code and premium themes usually address this by providing real support for their themes this is one of the reasons a lot of people use premium themes.

Thanks

I am in it for the ego boost. It makes me feel more professional to have an exclusive theme. It also increases my percieved value of the website and motivates me to build it.

I am going to buy Headway for my next website as I want to be able to cuztomize it.

It's also a perception issue. Would take someone more seriosuly is they had a professional and premium theme or a freebie that anyone can get?

Also, a lot of the free themes ask that you keep their link in the footer. A lot of people don't want to do that, I guess.

MisterMunch

"I am in it for the ego boost. It makes me feel more professional to have an exclusive theme. It also increases my percieved value of the website and motivates me to build it."

OK - fair enough. Though even if you had $200 theme isn't it still what you do with it?

LaunchWorkshop

"It's also a perception issue. Would take someone more seriosuly is they had a professional and premium theme or a freebie that anyone can get?"

You aren't serious are you?:confused: I would think the end result would be more important than the base or theme. Have you looked at some of the free themes available?

TinkBD

"Particularly for an offline business owner, going with a free theme can be a false economy, in time and possible hassles... a good example of cheap can cost you dear!"

Offline business is a little different than what I am looking at and yes the exclusive premium theme things is a great selling point. I don't buy, however, the old adage of "cheap can cost you" in general terms.

This is a good discussion please keep it going. I am at least getting some reasons why people would automatically opt for a premium theme.

Because the preimum theme look nicer and also have better widget support which is unbeatable as compare to the free wordpress theme.

Don't you agree that the free version look similar in one way to another?

I think you are right koolphoto. This is the reason I originally asked the question - to find out what was the reason or mindset, if you will, behind it.

Sounds to me from the comments that it's an ego thing. I've looked at a lot of free themes and I think that some of them look really great and hard to beat. It may be the paid themes are easier to work with, but you can pretty much do everything with the free ones too.

Don McCobb

One point that has been overlooked, is the shear distribution of free WP themes. When I create any blog or website I focus on differentiating from the competition - that's tough if you're both using a free theme.

Additionally, premium themes are unique, less saturated on the net and sometimes come with heightened support. If a company or blogger has the cash, then investing in a premium theme makes it more difficult to replicate their style/aesthetics.

Still, I use more free wp themes myself Just some reasons why.

Cheers,
Kris

One other thing about paid themes is that you get support so if any problems arise, you won't be left on your own.

I think this is pretty important when you are using the themes for clients. Maybe not so much if you are using them for yourself.

I'm not sure how well the free themes are supported, I guess it probably depends on the developer?

I have noticed differences in CTR when switching from a free theme to a paid one. In some cases even ranking, but that can be due to this and other reasons, as I'm always promoting my site.

Leslie

Just to have better look and better conversions.

Most premium themes have menu options so you can edit things without directly editing the code, which makes things easier for people not so comfortable with the code. I prefer editing the code directly myself so I am quite happy to use free themes which in terms of look, are as good as expensive premium themes.

I chose a paid for service so that I could get tech support. They also tend to be easier to work with when setting them up.

I think that, in the end, we can all agree that you should use the best theme that fits YOUR particular need and or desire.

I do have a clear understanding that, in terms of offline clients especially, there are times when spending the $$$ is probably beneficial if not required - offline clients can be hard enough to sell in the first place.

I, as a blog installer, only use and recommend free themes found through wordpress.org or those recommended by others that I trust. The number of free themes that have built-in customization has increased dramatically lately and I personally, unless clients requires it, find no reason not to use them.

I really appreciate all of those who have taken time to respond.

Personally I want my websites to look great .. maybe there is no difference in the conversion rate between free and paid themes .. but It's just a perception ..

Premium themes look more professional in most cases.

Most of the free ones look like free ones. They are plain, not particularly attractive, have poor layout for ad space, etc. I only use premium themes on the blogs I sell.

First of all, the word "premium" is extremely misused in the Wordpress theme community. The reason is, anybody can create a theme, put a price tag on it, and call it "premium".

So, with that in mind, I'll answer the question, "why pay for themes".

The OP seems to focus on the "front end/appearance" of a theme, but when you pay for one, there is so much more you should be getting:

1. Excellent coding: There are free themes that have great coding but many paid themes have better, and more organized, code (style sheets, etc.), which makes it easier to customize and reduces the chances of errors on different platforms, browsers, etc., especially when you're adding additional plugins/widgets/features.

2. Backend theme options: Paid themes that are worth paying for will have an easy-to-use, extensive options panel built in that allows you to customize everything easily (colors, ads, layout, etc.) right from your Wordpress dashboard so that you don't have to touch any code. This is great for both beginners and advanced users. beginners can customize their theme without knowing any code, and advanced users can tweak all the typical stuff quicker and easier.

Yes there are some free ones that have theme options, but in my experience, most paid themes have more advanced features.

Most paid themes will also have several different "styles" to choose from. For instance, some might come with a clean style, a grunge style, and several other styles built in. This can save you a ton of time instead of running around searching for a "different style theme" every time you build a new niche site (meaning you can use the same theme and simply choose a different style to match a different niche on a new blog)

This is often a big bonus for:
a. people who create a ton of niche sites
b. people who build sites for clients as a service (which brings me to the next reason...)

3. Developers/Special Needs : If you're creating a lot of blogs, then then you want the best coding/options possible to make your life easy and save you time...especially if you're selling to customers on a regular basis.

On top of that, there are a ton of paid themes that are built with robust features that meet the needs of specific niches and types of businesses...

For instance, there are themes that you can buy that are strictly for:

- E-commerce and retail product sales (with built-in store options like adding/editing products, shopping cart, inventory, etc. )
- Real estate themes built for agents with detailed features for property listings, etc.
- Artist themes like photo galleries, band themes with tour scheduling and music players
- Video/movie themes

4. Support : I use Woo themes and their support is "premium". They have a support STAFF and a forum dedicated to helping you quickly with any problems you may have.

That alone is worth the price to many people who know they have somewhere to turn.

Here's another BIG ONE. When you pick up a free theme that was built 2 years ago and the theme designer can not be contacted. What are you going to do when your theme has a code issue that needs to be updated to work with the lastest Wordpress update when it is released.

Theme designers/companies with quality support will provide updates to your theme, if required, for new versions of Wordpress.

With all that said, I have to say there are some badass free options out there, but these are the reasons that don't mind paying for Wordpress themes.

Great! More interesting points. Keep them coming. I really am glad I started this.