Selecting the right theme is crucial when building an online store in BigCommerce. The theme sets the tone and layout for the entire customer experience, so you’ll want one aligned with your brand and industry. This guide will walk you through the key factors to evaluate when choosing a BigCommerce theme.
We’ll cover elements like visual design, functionality, customization needs and more. I’ll also highlight some of the exceptional custom theme design services offered by our agency to help yo stand out. By the end, you’ll feel equipped to find or create the ideal theme to power your online store’s success.
Key Theme Selection Criteria
When weighing BigCommerce themes, keep these elements in mind:
Industry and Brand Appropriateness
The theme visuals should match your industry norms and brand style guide. For example, fashion stores tend toward artsy and abstract layouts while outdoors retailers often opt for natural color palettes.
Ensure imagery, fonts, colors and other theme aspects fit your brand personality. A mismatched theme can damage credibility. Our custom designers can tailor all visual elements for cohesion.
Functionality Aligns with Product Types
Consider your product types and required theme functionality. For example, auto part stores need robust category browsing while subscription box services rely on account management tools.
Evaluate built-in features like video support, bundled products, variable product options and more during your search. The theme needs to technically support your products.
SEO Optimizations
Your theme must be optimized for search to attract organic traffic. Elements like metadata, URLs, speed and mobile responsiveness impact SEO.
We build custom themes focused on speed and conversions with SEO baked in. We also configure all technical elements required by search engines.
Room for Growth
Consider future business goals when selecting a theme. Will you expand to new product lines or international markets requiring translations? Leave room to grow.
Our custom theme developers incorporate flexibility for addition of future functionality, languages, payment methods and more. We help future-proof our clients’ stores.
Budget
BigCommerce offers free, paid and custom theme options spanning budgets. Factor in available funds, weighing cost against long-term value.
While custom can require greater initial investment, the benefits over pre-made themes make them worthwhile for serious merchants.
Most importantly, align these criteria to your customers’ needs and shopping behavior expectations. Keeping their experience central will guide you right.
Top Theme Categories on BigCommerce
Thousands of themes are available across categories. Here are some top types to consider:
Multi-Purpose Themes
Generalist themes offer flexibility for many business types, especially in the initial growth stages. They support multiple product configurations.
Fashion and Apparel Themes
These include large images, minimal text and robust filtering to showcase products. Specialized options exist for shoes, accessories, kids and more.
Storefront Themes
Mimic an in-person store digitally with category browsing, promotions and brand stories. Often used for gifts, hobbies, crafts and boutique style sites.
Portfolio Themes
Let visitors explore case studies, services, team members and projects with these content-rich designs perfect for agencies and creatives.
As your visit these categories, you’ll start identifying contenders that seem to match your needs. Shortlist 5-10 options to evaluate head-to-head. Importing them to your store admin lets you preview live.
Comparing Theme Demo Stores
Many theme providers allow you to preview through a demo store. Be systematic when reviewing themes to determine the best fit.
Start by checking their demo store on mobile since over 60% of traffic is mobile. Is it responsive? Easy to navigate? Does the design translate well to small screens? Mobile must be seamless.
Next, examine imagery and text size. Are product shots sufficiently large and lifestyle imagery engaging? How is white space and alignment? Check ease of scanning text.
Investigate functionality like product filters, cart and promo banner placement. Are buttons and icons consistent? Can you locate key elements fast? Flow feels natural?
Finally, explore behind the scenes. Does their documentation answer your questions? How responsive is support? Will they customize if needed? Gauge overall usability.
By using this evaluation process with multiple theme demos, you can determine which provider offers the best match. Be demanding – don’t settle for a theme that only meets 70% of your needs when the right fit is out there.
Building a Custom Designed Theme
For stores needing total personalization or complex functionality, custom themes are the solution. You design precisely to your needs without inheriting limitations of pre-made templates.
Our BigCommerce developers work closely with clients to implement industry best practices while realizing their creative vision. We handle all technical build requirements so you focus on your business.
The benefits range from full brand control and unique visuals to tailored functionality supporting sales. Since we own and maintain your branded theme, updates and modifications are simple as you scale.
Investing in custom also conveys commitment and professionalism to customers while outpacing competitors using generic templates. Let true theme personalization provide an unmatched shopping experience.
Why Choose Anchor Group for Expert Implementation?
When tackling a major ecommerce project like replatforming to BigCommerce with a custom theme, rely on proven experts. Our NetSuite certified team has specialized in high-end catalog migrations for over 20 years.
We assemble the industry’s best cloud consultants, creatives and developers for seamless initiatives completed on-time and on-budget without business disruption.
Our structured methodology covering analysis, design, testing, data migration, integrations and training ensures no detail gets missed while proactively mitigating risks. We manage so you can remain focused on customers.
With Anchor Group as your implementation partner, count on white-glove service from kickoff to post-launch support. Our proven track record and 97% client retention rate speaks for itself.
Let us guide your BigCommerce migration to unlock revenue and growth potential while realizing your brand’s digital vision. With budgets starting under $10k, custom themes deliver tremendous competitive advantage that pays dividends for years.
Conclusion
I hope this overview better equips you to find or build the perfect BigCommerce theme tailored to your business needs. A theme aligning with your products, customers and growth plans results in the best shopper experience and sales performance.
Remember to evaluate industry fit, functionality, scalability and visual brand integration during your search. For truly one-of-a-kind stores, our custom design services bring your vision to life.
Reach out if you need any guidance or want to discuss requirements for a customized theme. Our team is ready to help take your store to the next level.