This is something I see a lot. Many small business owners have heard that WordPress is good, but then they still have a website that causes them problems and they don’t understand why.
- Why is it not good for SEO?
- Why is the speed so slow?
- Why is it not mobile friendly?
- Why is it hard to update?
The answer is that many WordPress themes are designed with only the look in mind, but you also need a website that plays nicely with Google, gets traffic, works on various devices and is easy to update. If you want the whole package, you want the Genesis theme framework. (And in case you were wondering, there is no affiliate monkey business going on here, I really think they are a great choice for a lot of people and they are not paying me to say that.)
And I am not alone.
The folks at WPMU DEV started talking about why a theme framework is a better choice than a simple free theme back in 2014. They highlighted good reasons such as:
- It is extendable. (It can grow with your business.)
- It is customizable. (You can make it look how you want & add the features you want.)
- It is compatible with standards & plugins. (Fewer problems & better functionality.)
They compared 10 theme frameworks and the Genesis theme framework won on features – it was the only one that got 5 stars for features. They also mentioned that Genesis has a large user base and lots of great child themes.
The folks at WPMU DEV keep updating their guide and as of August 3, 2018, Genesis still wins for features. See the most recent version here: The Ultimate Guide to Choosing a WordPress Theme Framework (Plus In-Depth Reviews).
The Genesis theme framework is a good foundation for SEO, mobile responsiveness, HTML5, security, ability to customize and speed. You can read more about the Genesis features here.
Please note – there is a bit of a learning curve and it helps if you know HTML, CSS and PHP. Also, changing the WordPress theme on an existing website can be tricky. You don’t want to do it on your live website because something always goes wonky. You want a development area where you can solve problems with no inconvenience for your clients and then move it live when you are ready.
Want help moving your small business website to the Genesis theme framework?
These are my favorite projects! Let’s talk about your situation.