Comments on: WordPress Theme Development: Custom versus Commercial

By: Idris

Idris — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 11:15:42 +0000

great article and very useful tips…thank you for sharing

By: Ali Nasir

Ali Nasir — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 09:44:34 +0000

Well the article seems quite good and informative, however I think as far as theme development is concerned there are lots of things missing, which help to develop a stabel theme. I recommend reader to go through some other guides as well. Thanks for posting

By: Fitri Mandiri

Fitri Mandiri — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 17:38:26 +0000

nice article dab! it’s important to share..

By: Sue Brettell

Sue Brettell — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 12:10:44 +0000

I have a problem. I’m a front-end designer with modest coding skills and for several years I’ve worked in partnership with a highly skilled backend coder who makes my ideas come to life and ensures they function well. But his full time job and other commitments have reduced his availability.

I have some really innovative public theme designs in mind and I need to locate a great web builder who can help me make them a reality. I’d be looking for a joint collaborator, willing to invest time and expertise in return for sharing the proceeds. We’d need to be on the same wavelength and have shared values and tastes.

Anybody out there ever thought of setting up the equivalent of a web designer dating agency? I don’t know how else to source, get to know and establish a working relationship with the kind of associate I need.

If anybody has ideas on how to make connections, I’d love to hear them.

By: Loy Lee

Loy Lee — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 09:32:26 +0000

Wow my head hurts after reading this articles and then the comments. I think both are needed as such like how twitter came forth with its API.

By: Brian

Brian — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 16:34:38 +0000

@jotrys – That’s very true. I noted in this article that it’s important to design commercial themes to be flexible for developers to make their own customizations.

Also, just today, I have another article published on Mashable titled “10 Ways to Tweak Your WordPress Theme”. Check it out here: http://bit.ly/9oDFWj

By: Christian Louboutin

Christian Louboutin — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 05:42:56 +0000

good information you

write it very clean. I am very lucky to get this tips from you.

By: jotrys

jotrys — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 11:21:44 +0000

Great description as to the differences between designing a custom WP design and a public WP design.

There is another way many designers are using WP themes. That is customizing a WordPress theme from a custom or pulic theme. Now this is not in the scope of your article, but what are your thoughts on this?

By: Brian

Brian — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 16:17:30 +0000

@Chris Creed – You make a very good point. On ThemeJam, I try to offer a mix of flexible/open-ended themes and targeted stylized themes. The point I was making is that commercial themes in general always need a higher degree of flexibility than a client’s theme, where everything is custom tailored to their specific needs.

@ddeja – “People do not try to use wordpress engine for more than just blog usage.” –I don’t agree. Take a look at any prominent theme company and you’ll see WP being used for all sorts of CMS sites.

@Amber Weinburg – No doubt that creating a public theme takes more time/effort to build in all the options and whatnot. It’s hard work. But I do think that with a high-quality product, and serious support, it’s possible to make a profitable business. My theme company is still very young, but I can say with certainty that I have no regrets.

By: David Wheatley

David Wheatley — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 07:50:45 +0000

As a web designer with a few years experience i have used both public pre-designed themes and also designed custom themes myself. I often notice when searching through public themes that they all contain very similar structures with just the aesthetic shell changed, once a designer has a sound knowledge of WordPress it’s probably easier to design their own custom theme for a client and you always learn something new that way.

Thanks for posting this article.