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Is Wordpress TwentyTen holding my business back?

by StingGB
13 replies
  • WEB DESIGN
    • |
I built a site a few years ago using Wordpress TwentyTen. The version available at the time. I've since customised it extensively, it's quite sleek and sparse now, pretty much unrecognisable as a TwentyTen. The site does OK.

My question is; should I upgrade to a more modern theme for SEO purposes? I get the feeling Google might give me a bit more juice if I upgraded to a theme like Vantage for instance.

What are your thoughts on the SEO issue? Also, could I transfer my site over to a new theme before it goes live, and how would I go about this?

Thx. Brian.
#back #business #holding #twentyten #wordpress
  • Profile picture of the author Dovakiin
    Banned
    Google probably WON'T give you any more juice because of your theme. But you should probably upgrade from Twenty Ten anyway. Can we look at your site?
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    • Profile picture of the author StingGB
      I don't want to put a link on here because its a specialist niche, and I have a good unique e-product that sells well on the site.

      Interesting your view that you doubt Google would be bothered about any change though.

      Thanks.
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    • Profile picture of the author Andy The Copywriter
      Originally Posted by Dovakiin View Post

      Google probably WON'T give you any more juice because of your theme. But you should probably upgrade from Twenty Ten anyway. Can we look at your site?
      Well, sure, but obviously the theme a person is using plays a big role in whether people read their site or not. That in turn influences bounce rate, which DOES play role in Google's algorithms.
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      • Profile picture of the author Michael Shook
        The theme can play a role in SEO, but its pretty much because of the way its coded telling the search engines which part of the page to read first for indexing.

        People could stay on a site longer if they are comfortable with the way it looks, but they are more likely to stay longer if the the site is user friendly, no matter what it looks like.

        Check out the current CopyBlogger dot com and RainMaker dot com sites, they are OK in terms of design but nothing to write home about. But what they offer is decent usability and that makes a huge difference in time on site.
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      • Profile picture of the author Dovakiin
        Banned
        Originally Posted by Andy The Copywriter View Post

        Well, sure, but obviously the theme a person is using plays a big role in whether people read their site or not. That in turn influences bounce rate, which DOES play role in Google's algorithms.
        Agreed. I didn't go as nuanced because I felt the OP was under the impression that the Theme alone was an SEO signal...which it isn't. The effect it has on the UX though? You're absolutely right.
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        • Profile picture of the author Peter Lee
          For me I won't spend too much time worrying about the look of my theme. But it should be somewhat pleasing to the eye (not too strong colors, not too many ads etc). Navigation should be made easy so that when a visitor lands on your blog he doesn't have the urge to leave immediately. So once you have chosen the theme and have done some of these basic things, there is really no need to make too many changes. What is more important is your content and that is the "hook" where you grab people's attention span and do it right they will stay longer on your blog.
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          • Profile picture of the author StingGB
            Thanks for the contributions everyone. Interesting. It seems the theme doesn't really matter to Google.

            I'm happy with the site. Google does seem to update new pages quite quickly. I have a good visitor av time and low bounce rate.

            So just leave it as it is I think. Thanks.

            PS. Copyblogger 'nothing much to write home about' Michael? I always thought it was pretty much state of the art!
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  • Profile picture of the author roblawrence
    Google doesn't care about the wordpress theme. It's all about content and how often it is updated. Why should the look of the site matter as a ranking factor? Cosmetics shouldn't apply.
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  • Profile picture of the author LodestarVince
    Success isn't tied to Google, it's tied to your offer and your reach.

    If your site is worth sharing it'll get shared. If it's worth buying people will buy, your theme isn't nearly as important as the offer itself.
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  • Profile picture of the author shmeeko69
    Originally Posted by StingGB View Post

    I built a site a few years ago using Wordpress TwentyTen. The version available at the time. I've since customised it extensively, it's quite sleek and sparse now, pretty much unrecognisable as a TwentyTen. The site does OK.

    My question is; should I upgrade to a more modern theme for SEO purposes? I get the feeling Google might give me a bit more juice if I upgraded to a theme like Vantage for instance.

    What are your thoughts on the SEO issue? Also, could I transfer my site over to a new theme before it goes live, and how would I go about this?

    Thx. Brian.
    The question I think you've got to ask yourself Brian is, if your arrived on the said page as a visitor, would you buy the product or service on offer? If you can genuinely say YES, then the look and layout is easy on the eye, but if it's NO then you have to go back to the drawing board and make the necessary changes.
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  • Profile picture of the author jeffreysloe
    I know you got the information you were probably looking for, so I won't bore your with my thoughts on SEO page ranking. However, since more and more people are using smart phones and tablets for searching the Internet, you may want to start thinking about making your WP site responsive. In my opinion, fully responsive sites display better on all devices. I believe the twenty-eleven theme had some responsive aspects to it, and twenty-twelve was the first fully responsive site. All themes after twenty-twelve are responsive themes.
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  • Profile picture of the author Tom Addams
    It's now more important than ever to invest in your website: CMS, content, etc. It isn't just about Google, it's about harnessing the more powerful traffic channels: social & viral.

    Tom
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    I Coach: Learn More | My Latest WF Thread: Dead Domains/ Passive Traffic

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