Choose the right theme: As you load up your page for the first time you will
be greeted with the default WordPress theme which is called Twenty Eleven.
Changing this theme is crucial to providing your site with its own identity
and helping to build the confidence of your target audience as it shows that
you are committed to the task at hand and that you aren’t just some fly-by-
night operation. There are thousands of themes available, many of them free
so that you can get started without worrying about having to put any extra
money down.
Choosing a theme that appeals to your target audience should be the first
order of business and choosing one that is related to your niche is always a
good idea as well. Modern website design leans heavily on the idea that less
is more so something that is rather understated is a great way to start. Once
you know what your theme is going to be you are going to want to pick out a
few colors that compliment it as well as a no more than 3 different fonts to
use throughout the site as a whole to keep it from feeling disjointed.
After you have chosen the theme that makes the most sense for your
audience, you may be able to apply it directly, or you may need to download
it and then upload it to your site directly. This can be done from the
Appearance option that is found on the WordPress Dashboard, from there,
simply look for the theme option. Once it is uploaded, all that is left is to
install and you will be ready to go.
Once your theme is up and running, you will then want to look into the
available options that may allow you to customize it even further. Common
options include changes for the sidebar, footer and header. The footer is the
header and footer are found at the top and bottom of each page respectively
and the sidebar can show up on either the left or right of every page. These
parts of the page typically contain things like the site logo, name of the site
and menu options.
Particular customization options can be found on the Customize menu which
is nested under the My Sites option. It is important to put some time into the
choices you make here as they will often be the first things potential
customers will see and interact with which means that they need to be
positive across the board.
You will also want to take some time and modify the background of your site