WordPress themes are the backbone of the platform. You select a theme and customize it to fit your clients’ needs. From that, a creative and beautiful website is born. Themes allow you to design websites fast and effectively, but not all WordPress themes are created equal. Can the theme you choose affect the load speed of your pages? It can, and here’s what you need to know about it.
Check Your Page Speed
The first step to determine if your current themes are affecting your load speed is to test it. There are free tools that allow you to input the URL of your WordPress site to see the time it takes to load your site, the overall performance, and how many requests are sent during the process.
But just because something is free on the internet doesn’t make it a good tool to use. Checking your page speed with these tools could lead to additional problems if you’re not familiar with the site’s security. This is why it’s a good idea to partner with an expert to ensure your site is fast and safe.
Review Fast Themes Online
If you’re able to pick the theme for your client’s website, you can do some basic research to choose the ones with the fastest load times. Reading reviews will give you some understanding of how fast the theme will be once it’s on your site.
However, keep in mind that the theme isn’t the only thing that affects the page’s load speed. When you add plugins or graphics you may also increase the load time.
Optimize Other Site Aspects
That’s why it’s important to optimize all aspects of your site. It’s a complicated puzzle that all works together. While you need your design to be beautiful and to reflect your client’s brand, you also need to make sure the pieces fit together in a way that work.
Optimizing your themes, plug ins, images, links, and security will also impact the load speed if not considered in the overall performance.
Work with a Professional
Does this feel overwhelming? If you got into web design to be able to focus on creating client brands, the other aspects of behind the scenes WordPress functions can feel like a huge weight. But you don’t have to do it alone.
Partnering with an expert in coding, security, and optimization can give you the tools you need to succeed. Call Site Trustee today.