So after thinking through and reading about using a prebuilt WordPress theme and you’ve decided to go down that road. Now, where do you start?
One word: StudioPress.
StudioPress is the same company that sells the Genesis framework/parent theme. And they also sell child themes for Genesis that you can put on your website and run out of the box. Plus it’s pretty easy to customize them to fit your branding.
And that makes them the best option for using a prebuilt theme over ThemeForest and other sellers.
I will be up front: I do not work for StudioPress at all. But I have used it a lot, especially while working at Faith Growth. I remember being a bit skeptical at first, but it didn’t take long for me to see how great they are.
So if you’re looking for a good prebuilt theme from StudioPress, here are some that I highly suggest.
Outreach Pro
Outreach Pro continues to be one of the best themes available from StudioPress, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.
I’ve used this theme a couple of times with my previous work at Faith Growth, and I’m currently using it to redo my church’s website. And it makes for a great theme that any church, non-profit or even small businesses can use to quickly create a professional looking website to suit their needs.
The overall design of the theme is clean and simplistic. I love the use of color to provide accents to the design rather than overwhelm the visitor. Plus I love the use of Lato as the main font throughout the theme.
The homepage design is a great way to greet any new visitor to your site. It allows for a slider where you can show off your latest posts or highlight an important page. Plus there are plenty of callout areas to direct visitors to where they need to go. And the use of images allow you to show off what your organization does.
The inside templates for the theme are simplistic, but I’m fine with that. Functionality beats design every time.
The one drawback is that it doesn’t have explicit support for WooCommerce, so if you want to run an online store, you might have to do some manual styling. Still, I have fallen in love with this theme, and I think you will too once you start to use it.
Get Insights on How to do a Small Business Website Right!
Are you looking to get some help with your small business’ website, but aren’t quite in a spot to take that next step? No worries! I’ve got you covered with a small business newsletter. This weekly newsletter will talk about a different subject related to websites and small businesses each week, as well as highlight blog posts that can help you out. This will help you optimize your business’ site as much as you can while you get yourself into a position to take the next step for your website.
"*" indicates required fields
News Pro
If you’re wanting to create a website that’s more like a newspaper or magazine, then you’ll want to check out News Pro. It manages to walk the line between packing in a lot of information, especially on the homepage, but not overwhelming visitors with information.
The homepage alone is more than enough reason to purchase this theme. The top section works with a myriad of different widgets, including the Genesis Responsive Slider and Featured Post. Plus, you can fill in the homepage middle and bottom sections with the widgets you want (or follow the theme’s directions).
Also, you can show an advertisement banner in the header next to your masthead. And the footer allows you to create 5 or 6 menus to help users navigate through your website and find the categories they are interested in. Plus, if you’re wanting to add an online store, maybe for some merchandise, it’s built with WooCommerce in mind, so you won’t have to add any styling if you don’t need it.
News Pro is as good as you’re going to get with a StudioPress theme designed for newspapers and magazines.
Wellness Pro
If you want something that’s a little bit more “high class” and simple, then you’ll want to check out Wellness Pro.
This isn’t the flashiest theme on the list, but there is a lot to like about it. The homepage is absolutely wonderful. I love how photos are used on the page, between the different parallax sections and the blog posts. If you can get really great, colorful photos, they can really stand out against the simple white and black design.
As for the interior page templates, there’s not a whole lot to them, but I love the minimalist direction that they went with. There’s not a whole lot that distracts me from reading the content and navigating through the website, which is how it ought to be.
Overall, Wellness Pro is a simple and sleek design that can help your business stand out amongst the crowd.
Essence Pro
Essence Pro is a gorgeous theme that’s fit for any business trying to go online today. Seriously, there is so much to love about this theme.
First off, photography plays a major part in the use of this theme. Every page template features a hero image up at the top that transitions to the main content as you move down. If your business features great visuals, such as flowers, clothes, etc., this theme is your opportunity to really show off what you have.
The homepage is great with the aforementioned hero image, two callout buttons and different sections that allow you to direct the visitor to go where you want them to go. I really love how it uses the featured page widget to allow you to callout different pages, such as shop, about, contact, etc.
And the store pages are great too. The photo sections really allow you to show off your products to their fullest potential. And the product pages make it easy for you to describe and sell the product without overwhelming the visitor.
All in all, if you’ve got a business that’s great with visuals, Essence Pro is the theme that you will undoubtedly want to use. It will allow you to truly show off your business to prospective customers.
Let’s Build You a Website for a Lower Cost
Websites are expensive. It’s one of the reasons why there are so many searches for “free website builders”. But I can help you out. Together, we can create a great looking website for half the cost and in half the time of a custom website design. And you can get a great digital foundation to grow on. Let’s get your business online today!
Let’s Get You a Low-Cost WebsiteAgentPress Pro
If you are a real estate agent looking to quickly build a new website, AgentPress Pro is an absolute must have.
Just right out of the box, I love the overall design and feel of this theme. It’s simplistic, but it does everything that it needs to do. The hero image is a great place to show off one of your best properties. And overall I love the use of photos in the theme. Plus, everything is so clean and fresh.
And then you throw in the added functionality for the real estate side and it really pops. It does all of the heavy lifting for you. It adds in a search filter on the homepage allowing prospective clients to find the type of property they want. And all of the property templates are built out in a beautiful and easy to understand manner. All you need to do is just add in your information.
As a developer, the best part about all of this is that the extra functionality comes from a plugin not the theme. This means it should be a little bit easier to change to a different theme down the road if you want.
Simply put, if you are selling property and want a great-looking website fast, AgentPress Pro is what you want.
So there you have it. If you’re looking for a cheap-ish and quick website, I highly recommend one of these StudioPress themes. They are all high quality, and will get you just what you need. And if you have any questions about any of the themes, be sure to leave them down in the comments section below.
