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Wordpress themes, are they worth it?

by muntux
14 replies
  • WEB DESIGN
    • |
Hello Warriors,

I have close to zero experience in IM and I have been rejected from all the affiliate networks I applied so far. But that's ok, because this taught me that maybe IM is not for me and I realized that I wanted to create something.

And I came up with the idea of making a Wordpress theme framework (similar in concept with Thesis) that will come up with the following:
* Its own set of child themes (let's say 10 that cover subjects like travel, fitness, health etc.)
* Up to date plugin manager with pre-tested plugins
* AdSense and custom ads
* SEO tools
* Maybe an auto poster and auto commenter to ease the burden of posting stuff
* Theme will be fluid in order to look good on PC and mobile

Would this be hard to sell? I see that the competition for this is not very high and Thesis beat the 30k user mark which I think is a pretty nice number.

I already made the mockups for this, haven't wrote down any specs yet and I'd like to know your opinion. Should I go on? Is it worth it? How will I find interested marketers willing to help? Advice please!
#themes #wordpress #worth
  • Profile picture of the author magiclouie
    Originally Posted by muntux View Post

    Hello Warriors,

    I have close to zero experience in IM and I have been rejected from all the affiliate networks I applied so far. But that's ok, because this taught me that maybe IM is not for me and I realized that I wanted to create something.

    And I came up with the idea of making a Wordpress theme framework (similar in concept with Thesis) that will come up with the following:
    * Its own set of child themes (let's say 10 that cover subjects like travel, fitness, health etc.)
    * Up to date plugin manager with pre-tested plugins
    * AdSense and custom ads
    * SEO tools
    * Maybe an auto poster and auto commenter to ease the burden of posting stuff
    * Theme will be fluid in order to look good on PC and mobile

    Would this be hard to sell? I see that the competition for this is not very high and Thesis beat the 30k user mark which I think is a pretty nice number.

    I already made the mockups for this, haven't wrote down any specs yet and I'd like to know your opinion. Should I go on? Is it worth it? How will I find interested marketers willing to help? Advice please!
    Just out of curiosity, are you going to do this alone?

    Well, based from what you have presented, I think it's a very good plan and you should go for it. Of course, there are quite a few things that you will need to take into consideration as well.

    One of the things that I really consider in buying a premium theme is the "support". We just can't evade that we will be running into some issues.

    Have you thought of the possible price for this theme as well?

    Lastly, I think it's going to be a very flexible theme.

    Hope that helps.

    Cheers,
    Louie
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    • Profile picture of the author dsouravs
      That's wonderful idea...Go with it.
      There R lots of players...elegant themes, woo themes, gorilla themes, optimisepress and lots of...Know where R they lacking and make Urs...Gr8 idea.
      So R U a php and WP developer.
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    • Profile picture of the author muntux
      Originally Posted by magiclouie View Post

      Just out of curiosity, are you going to do this alone?
      Well, I started alone, now i hired a PHP developer and a good friend of mine is designer. After the website and the theme are done, I'll have to find a JV partner to help me out with the sales

      Thanks a lot for the encouragement!
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  • Profile picture of the author mfadyblue
    it would be nice if you partner up with few more peoples (Designer/Developer/Coder/Technical Support) when customer base increase, its quite hard to handle them..
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  • Profile picture of the author Brian Alaway
    One of the things I find with themes like Thesis and Headway is that out of the box they are pretty boring. In addition to clean code and built-in SEO, make sure it has some pop.
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  • Profile picture of the author samples
    big competition are out there but if you have great design and support you can try
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  • Profile picture of the author Mantasmo
    Take my advice. I've done something similar before.

    1. Think simple. Don't try to solve too many problems with one product. Write down everything you want your product to do and then cut that list down until you are left with around 20% of the initial features. Make it work with less features.

    2. Build something working fast. A theme shouldn't take longer than 2-3 days to get the basics ready.

    3. Important: choose a target market and build the product only for them. Go after that market aggressively. Don't start adding extra features in order to accommodate everyone's needs - build new products for that.

    4. Support is paramount. Answer all emails within HOURS. That will set you apart from the competition.

    There's definitely a big demand for WP themes. There will always be. Go for it.

    EDIT: the way you've structured your product now it'll fail. Not hating on you or anything, but it'll fail. You'll never even get around to selling it. Re-think your plan.
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    • Profile picture of the author Crystal_Jobs
      bnetwork, you said what I was thinking - think simple.

      "Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex ... it takes a touch of genius -- and a lot of courage -- to move in the opposite direction."
      Albert Einstein

      "In any thing at all, perfection is finally attained not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away..."
      Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

      That's it man.
      Originally Posted by bnetwork View Post

      Take my advice. I've done something similar before.

      1. Think simple. Don't try to solve too many problems with one product. Write down everything you want your product to do and then cut that list down until you are left with around 20% of the initial features. Make it work with less features.

      2. Build something working fast. A theme shouldn't take longer than 2-3 days to get the basics ready.

      3. Important: choose a target market and build the product only for them. Go after that market aggressively. Don't start adding extra features in order to accommodate everyone's needs - build new products for that.

      4. Support is paramount. Answer all emails within HOURS. That will set you apart from the competition.

      There's definitely a big demand for WP themes. There will always be. Go for it.

      EDIT: the way you've structured your product now it'll fail. Not hating on you or anything, but it'll fail. You'll never even get around to selling it. Re-think your plan.
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    • Profile picture of the author muntux
      Thanks for the advice, bnetwork!

      Yes, the goal is to end up with a product that is fairly simple and intuitive for one's needs.

      For the first 2-3 days after the launch I asked few of my friends to help me out with the support and going solo after, while improving the product with my developer.
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  • Profile picture of the author SearchingLost
    You do need a theme, it makes the page look nice. But, just like everyone else is saying, keep it simple for now.
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  • Profile picture of the author sandrasims
    Yes, offering support would be one of the time consuming things about this.

    What about being an affiliate for other companies? Thesis, Studio Press, WooThemes, they all have affiliate programs.

    Or you could create child themes for other frameworks and charge for them. I know Studio Press allows you to do that.
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  • Profile picture of the author Channing
    Banned
    Sounds great. Just make sure you have outstanding support and can fix all bugs that come up promptly or forget it. WordPress changes up a lot and you have to be on top of it at all times.
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    • Profile picture of the author tocktik
      Ya really they worth it. If you go for other option you may have to pay high amount.
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  • Profile picture of the author lovenot
    Most of the features listed can be gotten for free and always updated by their community. I don't see any losses. Just search deeper and you will find them. Combine a few sources and themes.
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