Setting a theme for your WordPress is like getting ready for an important meeting — you have to dress to impress. The outfit you will pick will be a reflection of you. It’s the same for deciding a website design. It needs to be presentable and must reflect the content you want to publish to build a better online presence.
You might think that setting up a WordPress website theme is hard, but all it needs is time and a little bit of effort. Just make sure to cover the basics before diving in. When deciding a theme, you have to be thorough in checking details such as how frequently it’s being updated by the developer or what features it offers that would benefit your users. If there’s an option for a “preview”, try it out to see how it looks and if it’s compatible with your site’s framework.
Installing a theme
There are two ways to set a theme for your WordPress website – automatically and manually.
Automatic installation
The first method is through the WordPress Theme Directory, where you directly install a theme from your WordPress dashboard. This directory has a wide selection of free and approved themes for you to choose from.
From your WordPress dashboard, hover your cursor on the “Appearance” option and click “Themes”. There’s an “Add New” button you can click, which will open the Theme Directory on your dashboard. You can browse through the options based on your desired layout, feature, or function. When you have chosen your theme, all you have to do is click “Install”. In a few moments, it will be activated and you’re all set to enjoy the theme of your choosing.
Here’s a tip: if you aren’t sure and don’t want to commit, you can choose the “Live Preview” option to view how your website will look.
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Manual installation
Another way to set your WordPress website theme is to source a theme you have found somewhere else. This means you have to manually set it up through uploading a Zip File to the dashboard because it does not have an automatic plugin that will activate your theme.
But don’t worry, this process is not hard at all! If the developer has provided the theme of your choice with a downloadable zip file, you can directly save it to your desktop. To complete the process, just head on over to your dashboard and navigate to the “Appearance” button. Scroll to the themes section where you’ll find the “Add New” button. For this method, press “Upload Theme” located on top of the next page and attach the zip file from your computer. It will take a few seconds to activate, depending on your Internet speed.
Congratulations! You have successfully installed a WordPress website theme. If you want to further personalize it, you can always go back to the dashboard settings and run a preview with the different themes that are already available to you. There are plenty to choose from! You can even modify the built-in functions in whichever way you want them to work.
Adding themes is an exciting way to customize your website and showcase your content. Don’t hesitate to play around and find what feels right for you.
Read about the website design must-haves for the perfect business website to guide you. And before it goes live, ensure that you check these 5 things on your website launch checklist.
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