Top 07 Characteristics of a Theme with SEO Value 

To gain search visibility, optimizing a Theme for SEO is equally important. For example, along with SEO efforts, such as backlinks, content, and on-page SEO; choosing a promising Theme is undeniable.

In this case, you should’ve chosen an SEO-optimized theme before your site has gone live.

So, how do you know if a WordPress theme carries SEO value? Let’s address, describe, and highlight essential factors That help you decide if a theme is carrying SEO value.

So, let’s start describing the subject in more detail.

Characteristics of an SEO-optimized Theme

Check if a Theme is Responsive

What does Responsiveness of a Theme means? How do you check if a theme is responsive?

If a theme is not responsive, it wouldn’t display correctly on different screen sizes, such as desktop, tablets, and mobile devices. This is how we can clarify what responsiveness of a Theme means in the real world.

So, how do you check the responsiveness of a WordPress theme? Manually, when a site loads correctly on mobiles, the theme is purely responsive. If not, for example – you need to change your site’s theme. You can also check a site with GTMetrics or Google Tools – helping you uncover aspects That require immediate attention. And of course, a responsive theme helps you quickly create SEO-optimized sites.

Speed of a Theme matters for SEO

No doubt, speed is undeniably vital for SEO. Indeed, speed is a ranking factor on search pages. This means in simple words, fast-loading pages are subject to outrank pages with slow speed.

Let’s describe an example.

Approximately, half of users on search engines use mobile devices. Here, if others fall under desktop/tablet users, bounce rate increases if a user skips waiting for a slow-loading page. This is how speed can affect a site’s worth regarding SEO.

In this case, when deciding on a Theme, make sure the theme’s official resource has put together speed measures That promise SEO value.

Theme Updates are Important

There are Two types of WordPress Themes – free and paid.

Free WordPress themes are better for basic users who can’t afford premium plans. Paid ones on the other hand, cost a small fee but carry supportive features for WordPress maintenance and SEO. In this case, theme updates are different in free and paid plans.

For example, free themes rarely run automated updates. Even if they do, basic features are provided with updates. Conversely, premium Themes can help you obtain new features automatically, by running automated updates on periodic schedules. In such cases, new features improve SEO improvements, stability, and performance tweaks.

Theme Testing Tools

Did you know, specific Tools can help you test if a theme is SEO-optimized.

Such tools highlight a Theme’s aspects That contribute to SEO. For example, checking a Theme for coding standards will indeed, help you improve Core Web Vitals. This in return, helps you improve page speed and SEO stats.

For more information on using Tools for theme testing, make sure you’ve given a try to Google Tools, GTMetrics, and Chrome extensions.

Also, developers can help you check a site with Inspect Element in Chrome. This tool helps you test a site’s code structure for performance, in return – helps you improve your site’s SEO stats.

Compatibility Issues

Make sure, your site’s theme has no compatibility issues in WordPress. For example, if a theme is conflicting with plugins, it can possibly damage your site’s infrastructure.

For example, if something goes offline for conflicts, your site’s SEO may be harmed. This includes using irrelevant tags, WordPress errors, and no-index scenarios.

So, how do you check if a theme is not creating compatibility issues? The best answer to this question is “using a staging site”. A staging site provides a testing environment, which helps users check if a theme, plugin, or 3rd party script is compatible with existing infrastructure.

In such scenarios, the purpose of checking compatibility issues is to help identify costs, gaps, and tweaks That harm a site’s SEO. There is no question around – compatibility issues will put you far behind from parallel competitors.

Knowledge Base for SEO Compatibility

SEO-specific themes offer a knowledge base for its users. A knowledge base helps users set up a Theme for SEO, without prior experience on complex maneuvers.

For example, in most cases; the themes you see on Theme forest provide information on SEO aspects. Similarly, the automation tools That help you automate document generation in WordPress provide academy. So, you can see the stats on a theme’s sales page on Theme forest. For example, responsiveness, setting up SEO plugins, and versions information; all fall under SEO aspects of a theme.

In this case, some themes provide dedicated add-ons for SEO. For example, you can find themes That provide SEO add-ons packed in the package. Such add-ons are officially developed for premium users of a WordPress theme.

Chat Support

What if something went wrong while you were setting up a Theme? Such scenarios are common and may happen with beginners, in most cases.

Chat support helps users quickly fix issues when handling SEO measures. For example, live chat support representatives can help to find best candidates That support a theme’s plugins’ infrastructure. No doubt, this avoids conflicts between WordPress assets.

Also, if a Theme has come packed with official add-ons for SEO, chat support channels can help you set up Things quickly. One of the best reasons why chat support helps users efficiently set up SEO is their long-lasting service for users. Throughout their services, countless user cases are handled, which increase their efficiency to fix SEO aspects for the Theme they provide.

Note: Above, you learned how to point fingers to factors That affect a theme’s SEO worth. Also, you’ve learned how to check a theme for various aspects regarding SEO. Even if you lack Technical expertise, make sure you have checked a theme for aspects addressed in this resource.

Summing up

So, this is how you can check if a theme carries SEO value. The more a theme favors SEO aspects, the more it has SEO value.

For more information on testing Themes, read in-depth resources on our Blog. You can also leave comments below, if you’re interested in hearing from our experts.