Comments on: Improve Your Blog with a Custom Made Theme

By: Articles Bookt

Articles Bookt — Mon, 25 May 2009 09:18:37 +0000

Anybody know wordpress theme editor available or not. how i can eaaly edit wordpress theme.

Thanks

By: Jan Alvin

Jan Alvin — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 03:45:07 +0000

I think, the reason why John Chow increase his traffic is because of the way he blogs. And for the theme, It was alluring at first but as time goes by, people will get used to it.

By: Sam Freedoms Internet Marketing Controversy Blog

Sam Freedoms Internet Marketing Controversy Blog — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 10:43:50 +0000

You know, Darren, this is SO obvious that to actually have to TELL people should tell you something about the state of affairs on the web right now. Either you’re scrounging for content, or people just aren’t ready to be famous… or both.

I mean, look at the first few comments. They’re fighting you even though it’s the truth. I’ve already got my custom-made template in the works – not because I want to be something called “a problogger” but because I feel I’ve “held out” long enough and it’s time to take things over the top.

Good luck, Buddie…. you should take at least one lesson fro me on creating a little friction in your posts… you’re just a tad too vanilla and it seems to be getting worse. ;-)

Sam

By: Caitlin

Caitlin — Sun, 06 Jan 2008 19:34:18 +0000

You might want to fix the link to Unique Blog Design – it’s uniqueblogdesignS.com with an s at the end.

By: Nikoo

Nikoo — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 04:51:45 +0000

I think if you are just in blogging to produce content and make money, then sure, the only design

If your blog isn’t established, then try to learn the ropes on Photoshop and Dreamweaver, and use your best design sense.

However, if it really matters who reads your blog (ie potential employers, clients etc), or if what you are writing about IS your thing, that you are known for, then i would say design is primary importance after content. Even SEO doesn’t matter as much, since even if you are getting the right people to your page, those peoples first impressions can be hampered. The content IS there, but its organisation is confusing.

But then again, I am biased, being bought up in a family of graphic designers and typesetters (what they did before computers).

A really awesome plugin if you have average design and want to emphasize your good content is Recommend it, check it out over at bluehatseo.com/recommend-it/

By: Chris Christensen

Chris Christensen — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 05:02:21 +0000

I definitely agree that a theme can make a HUGE difference in the impression a blog makes. My Amateur Traveler podcast looked like this last January:

http://web.archive.org/web/20070101160426/http://amateurtraveler.com/

Yuck.

My new theme also has 21 different banners that change every 15 minutes so each time you come you might see a different travel picture that I took.

—

Chris Christensen
Amateur Traveler podcast (http://AmateurTraveler.com)
Inside Chris’s Head (http://chris2x.com)
Tripinator – Travel 2.0 (http://tripinator.com)
The Bible Study Podcast (http://TheBibleStudyPodcast.com)

By: Joshua Clanton

Joshua Clanton — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 21:09:43 +0000

Ruchir said: Until they actually become a problogger, people just don’t have the money to purchase a custom design…

That may be true in most cases, but you don’t actually have to get the money for your blog design from your blog. Maybe you already have a bit of money put away and think that investing in a design will help you make money from your blog. It may be unusual (or not) but it still makes sense.

By: Ruchir

Ruchir — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 19:23:13 +0000

“If you want to a problogger, then you have to roll with your own theme.”

I differ. All the people in the A List, have purchased a unique theme AFTER they became “pro”. I mean seriously, John you yourself did the same thing…Until they actually become a problogger, people just don’t have the money to purchase a custom design…

By: Affiliate Confession

Affiliate Confession — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 15:22:30 +0000

Sure, $1,500 is expensive for someone just getting started, but to John Chow who was already making more than $10K per month on his blog, it’s just the cost of doing business.

By: paulfromthefuture

paulfromthefuture — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 06:04:18 +0000

Just a correction. ‘Tried’ is misspelled in the first paragraph.

By: darknight

darknight — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 03:40:18 +0000

$1500 is really expensive for me. Looks like John Cow is out of the Sandbox now, his PR is 4 now.

By: Affiliate Confession

Affiliate Confession — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 23:26:42 +0000

I love the look of John’s new design. I think the $1,500 or so that he probably spent was well worth it. A $10,000 increase in income over 3 months probably helped him pay for the new design. I believe he made a wise investment.

By: Collin LaHay

Collin LaHay — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 21:36:59 +0000

I have been pondering whether to make the investment for some time now. It is really tempting… =)

By: Hjortur Smarason

Hjortur Smarason — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 21:14:56 +0000

I guess there are two things happening here. One is branding of your website, which is essential if you’re trying to build up long term loyalty. The other is ad placement. What kind of ads you can place on your blog and where. So you will need a designer that understands this when asking for a custom theme.

I don’t use wordpress but with Typepad it’s relatively easy to customize both the theme and layout without much programming or design knowledge.

By: Joshua Clanton

Joshua Clanton — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 19:07:17 +0000

Fortunately for me, I was able to avoid the monetary cost since I’m a web designer and just created my own custom theme. Instead I just paid the price in time.

I agree, though, that having a custom (or at least customized) theme is necessary if you really want to stand out from the crowd.

By: sir jorge

sir jorge — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 17:31:43 +0000

Small investment?

Sheesh…I don’t make that in one year blogging…heck…i don’t make that at my job a month!

By: Sean Hodge

Sean Hodge — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 17:04:55 +0000

I wrote an article a couple days ago on thing to consider when choosing a designer to redesign your blog. I think it ties in with this post well. http://blogelephant.com/article/7_things_to_consider_when_choosing_a_designer_to_redesign_your_blog

I think its a good point that its difficult to measure success. Though even common sense approaches are beneficial. How are you going to stand out in your marketplace? A good brand and unique design is one ingredient. Thanks.

By: Sangesh

Sangesh — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 16:13:04 +0000

Well Darren, custom made theme would be quite a high price to pay for small bloggers like me. Rather I’d opt to tweaking a blog template that I love.

You can check my blog at http://www.sangesh.com.np/blog

Cheers.

By: Lex G

Lex G — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 13:45:15 +0000

For anyone interested … I just wrote a post about this on my blog http://www.newmediatype.com

It explains why even a theme introduction can make John’s earnings and traffic increase drastically …

Lex

By: blogging beat

blogging beat — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 12:42:26 +0000

Although I agree that a custom theme is very good, in my mind some of the best themes are free. If I had the money I would invest in a custom theme as it is a true investment. I can’t seem to part $1500 on a theme, sadly.