For those of you who have been using WordPress for the better part of a decade, you might remember the classic Kubrick theme.
WordPress 1.5, released in 2005, introduced themes to the world, and their style and usability has been one of the main factors behind WordPress’s extraordinary growth.
In the earliest days, most WordPress themes were relatively simple, designed with one purpose in mind, and featured stripped-back functionality – so-called “niche themes”.
Over the last few years, everything has changed, however: in 2015, niche themes are a something of a dying breed.
These days, WordPress consumers are far more likely to spend their hard-earned cash on powerful multi-purpose themes. Just take a look at the top-selling WordPress themes on ThemeForest; all of the top ten either feature the word “multi-purpose” in the name or would fall into the multi-purpose category. These themes have tens of thousands of downloads to their name, too.
However, despite all of their customization options, versatility, and added functionality, the multi-purpose themes aren’t always the best option. Today, I want to speak up for the small guys, by arguing the point that simple WordPress themes are best. Here are five reasons.
1. Bloat-free Code
Do you want a theme that’s completely bloated, or one that’s free from bloat?
On the face of it, it seems like an obvious answer – a theme that’s free from bloat.
Unfortunately, when you buy one of the all-in-one MEGA themes, you’re getting a theme that’s full of inefficient, bloated code.
How else do you think the developers give their theme the capabilities for every customization and functionality under the sun? All those different layouts, the custom post types, and the added functionality require extra lines of code in order to function properly.
Put it all together and you get a theme that’s seriously bloat-heavy – and bloat-heavy themes result in slow load times, and we all know how damaging that can be.
On the flipside, the cleanly coded, simple WordPress themes are lightning quick – bringing all sorts of user experience and SEO benefits.
2. Can a Theme Do a Plugin’s Job?
One of the biggest reasons for WordPress’s incredible rise to prominence is the platform’s theme and plugin architecture. In the past, the job of your themes and plugins was clearly defined:
- Themes handle your website’s design, style, and aesthetics.
- Plugins add new features, functionalities, and widgets.
In recent years, the lines have blurred, however. These days, the popular multi-purpose themes bundle in the functionality of a number of plugins.
The question: can a jack-of-all-trades, all-in-one WordPress theme really outperform a specialist plugin for a specific functionality?
The answer, of course, is no.
The complicated, multi-purpose themes can do lots of things, but they often can’t do them as well as a specialist plugin.
If you decide that a specific functionality is integral to your website, you should install one of the top plugins in that category for the job – not depend on your theme. In other words, it’s often better to get a simple, clean theme and then extend it by installing top plugins.
And, when you consider that you won’t be using many of the functionalities supported by your theme, and you’ll be turning elsewhere for some of its functionalities, the all-in-one theme is suddenly carrying a lot of excess baggage.
3. Avoid Theme Lock-in
Many all-in-one themes market themselves as “the only theme you’ll ever need.” Unfortunately, by using one of these themes, they quickly become “the only theme you can actually use.”
This problem is commonly referred to as theme lock-in.
Now, most of the all-in-one themes support beautiful custom layouts, as well as an abundance of extra functionalities.
The problem?
To create a unique layout, the theme relies on shortcodes and custom post types.
You might think that you can quickly and easily change your website’s design by installing a new theme.
Wrong.
The moment you deactivate your existing theme, you’re also deactivating everything else – including the custom post types and shortcodes.
In the time it takes for you to click deactivate, your website suddenly becomes a hotbed of gibberish. All of your shortcodes, layouts, and functionalities; broken. All that hard work; gone.
In other words, unless you’re prepared to build your website from scratch, theme lock-in forces you to continue using that theme. That’s a big concern if you ever want to re-brand or just freshen up your site’s design.
If you use a simple WordPress theme on the other hand – one that isn’t as dependent on built-in shortcodes – you can quickly and easily switch between themes. If you like this flexibility, that’s a huge plus point for simple themes.
4. Let Your Content Do the Talking
Although your website’s design is important, your site is ultimately judged by the quality of your content. Yup; there’s a reason that internet marketers have been spouting the line, “content is King!” for so many years.
When you choose a flashy, all-in-one theme, the impressive visuals can divert attention away from the thing that really matters: the content.
When you opt for a simple, minimalist theme, your content is the star of the show. Your reader’s attention is (rightly) focused on the words on the screen, and this allows your content to have maximum impact – driving fans, social shares, and conversions.
And, in my opinion at least, simple websites are the most aesthetically pleasing anyway.
5. Choose a Specialist Theme
Allow me to recite a well-known phrase: “a Jack of all trades is a master of none.”
That’s what a multi-purpose theme is – a Jack of all trades. By trying to appeal to everyone – and doing a decent job, in fairness – these themes are unable to meet the specialist requirements of a business owner in your niche.
That’s one of the main selling points of using a simple, specialist, niche-focused theme – you get a developer that truly understands your market and knows what design features and functionalities you want.
Sure, you could still craft a useful, functional website using a multi-purpose theme. If, however, you want a ready-made solution straight-out-the-box, use a dedicated niche theme.
Final Thoughts
The WordPress theme you choose is ultimately down to personal preference, but don’t be fooled by the hype – a versatile, multi-purpose theme isn’t always the right one for you.
Although they can boast a lot of impressive features, realistically, you won’t be using them all – and you’ll probably turn to plugins for the most important features anyway.
By all means, give the multi-purpose themes some consideration, but don’t rule out the simple WordPress themes just because they can’t list enough features.
Remember: sometimes the best option is the simple one.
What are your thoughts on simple themes versus multi-purpose ones? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!