When looking into building or buying a WordPress website, there’s a good chance you’ve heard people say that you should spend the money on a custom WordPress theme.

But what, exactly, is a “custom WordPress theme”, how is it different from a normal theme, and is a custom WordPress theme really the way to go?

In this article we are going to break it all down for you and let you know why you really need to think twice before investing in a custom WordPress theme.

 

 

This isn’t that different from a standard WordPress theme vs. a custom WordPress theme. ALL WordPress sites have a “theme”. It is the foundation of how your website is organized, how it looks, and the way it acts.

A “standard” theme is purchased/acquired as-is and already has much of its functionality built into it. A “custom” theme is built from the ground up (generally) and has a ton of customizations designed to meet your specific needs and desires.

So which is the best option for you? Let’s take a look.

 

A Custom WordPress Theme Ties You to Your Developer

Regardless of the industry you work in, you’ve probably looked at something your competitor has done and asked yourself, “Why on earth did they do that like that? I would have done it much better!”. There may even be bloggers reading this article asking, “Why did he write this article like that? I’d do it much better!”.

Why does that matter?

Because using a custom WordPress theme ties you to your developer forever. If the developer decides to go on an extended vacation, or closes down their business to do something else, or just becomes unresponsive, then you’re going to have to go to someone new. And there is a good chance that the new person will spend more time trying to figure out how the original developer coded things than they will spend actually doing what you need them to do.

 

Updates Can Be Delayed With Custom WordPress Themes

Now, you might be thinking that you only need your developer when the site is first built, but you’d be wrong.

Not only does the WordPress core software update several times a year, but your plugins update as well. And every update has the chance to break your theme.

When working with a quality, standard theme (like this one that we recommend) the company that created the theme gets all WordPress updates ahead of time, tests it against their theme, makes changes if needed to ensure compatibility, and sends an update for the theme before WordPress even does their update.

Developers simply don’t have the time to do this kind of testing on every single custom theme that they do. That means your site could break multiple times a year when WordPress updates their software and you’ll be constantly trying to track down your developer, potentially losing business each time, while they try to fit you into their schedule (if you manage to reach them at all).

 

You May Get Stuck in the “PTB Trap”

Nothing makes me more irate than when I company tries to pass-the-buck when I’m having a problem. This can be quite common with WordPress problems.

When (not if) you run into a problem or conflict, you will find that WordPress or a plugin developer will simply blame your custom theme for the problem that you are having. They will tell you that there is nothing that they can do because nobody else is having the problem, so it has to be your theme’s problem.

In other words, you’ll be stuck in a “PTB (pass-the-buck) trap”.

If, however, you use a theme like the one we recommend, then you can point to the fact that thousands of websites are using that theme without a problem, and that takes away the ability for people to blame your theme.

Or, if it really is a problem with your theme, you’ll know that you have a dependable development team ready and willing to fix the problem instead of trying to track down your developer.

 

You Lose the Ability to Make Changes

Most developers want to protect their ability to get future business from you, so they aren’t really interested in building a backend that allows you to easily make changes yourself. They want to ensure that you have to come back to them (and pay them more money) if you want even a small change made to your site.

One of the reasons we recommend the theme we do is because it allows anyone, even people that know nothing about code, to easily make changes to their site if they wish to do so.

 

It Will Cost You A LOT More

People that follow WordPress Success Path know that they can get up and running with a website, including their hosting (click here for our preferred hosting company) and theme, for less than $200. And even after factoring in paid plugins, and outsourced graphics, the average WPSP follower doesn’t typically break the $300 mark.

Plus updates are well-maintained and you have a solid team (support staffs at the hosting and theme companies) helping you for free, if needed.

Now compare that against a custom WordPress theme. Studies show that a custom theme will typically run you between $6,000 and $15,000. And that doesn’t count the additional costs you’ll incur every time you want to make a change or when WordPress updates their core software.

And what’s the cost to your business if your website goes down and it takes you a week to track down your developer and try to get the issue resolved?

 

When is a Custom Theme a Good Idea?

There are a few instances when having a custom theme is a good idea (or at least not a bad idea).

The first instance is if your developer is a full-time employee at your company, and a “virtual” employee doesn’t count. When you have someone in your office that has the necessary expertise in coding, and can be making changes daily (and hopefully getting beta versions so they can test your custom theme prior to WordPress updates), then it’s okay to have a custom theme. You just better hope they never quit.

The second instance is if you are ridiculously successful and have tons of cash following in. There are plenty of reputable development COMPANIES out there that can build a world-class custom theme AND maintain it for you, but you will be paying A LOT for that kind of service.

And the truth is that custom themes tend to be more streamlined and load at least a little faster, so there is an advantage to having one if money is no object.

 

In Review

Here at WordPress Success Path we are trying to lead people down the path of least resistance to get their business online and moving forward. And we would be doing a disservice to our members if we didn’t steer them away from a custom WordPress theme. They are too expensive, will greatly increase the likelihood of massive headaches when problems happen, and will hamper your ability to easily make adjustments as you analyze your growing business and make tweaks for better growth.

Plus they are expensive. WAY more expensive than a website should be in the early years.

I ask you to consider this: What is the goal for your website?

If your answer is like most people’s, then it is to drive more business, sales, or brand awareness. If that is the equivalent of driving a car from Point A to Point B, then look again at the two cars above and ask yourself, will the car on the right (with all the bells and whistles) really get you to your destination any more reliably? Sure, you might look a bit more cool during the trip, but does it make enough of a difference that you should spend a bunch of time and money?

Probably not.

However, if you are wildly successful, and you’ve got plenty of money to spend, then I would give the green light to a custom theme.

 

A Request

If you’ve found this information useful, and you’re considering using Divi or another Elegant Themes theme, then I would appreciate it if you would use one of the affiliate links on this page to make your purchase. This will help me to continue to provide useful information to you and others.

And if you don’t yet have a hosting plan, I’d appreciate you using this link to get a new hosting plan from our one and only preferred hosting company.