Templates are great for companies who do not have the resources to employ website designers and cost a fraction of the price you may pay for a bespoke solution. You can get hold of some pretty decent designs, some of which are professional looking, with others looking as though they were designed with the screen switched off.
Whilst you may pay a premium for website designers whose job it is to design something individual, with a bit of imagination, you can also style and edit a template and end up with quite an attractive, professional looking website. A little bit of searching on the web can yield a selection of templates from which to choose. The content will be unique and it is up to you to choose the colour schemes, images and to a certain extent, the layout.
Some templates are created by website designers so you can benefit from some attractive designs. You can be sure that the template will be consistent and carry through a theme and that the navigation links are already established and work. Website templates are fairly easy to populate and maintain. For the novice, they are simple to put together and can be created in a short space of time.
And here comes the “but” . . .
Sounds great right? However, the major drawback to using a website template is that it provides no exclusivity. There will be evident similarities between websites of those who have used the same template and so by definition, your website will never be totally unique.
It is not as easy to brand a website created with a template and there are limitations as to the level of customisation available, versus the use of professional web designers where the sky really is the limit. Of course, templates can be customised to help make the website more individual but at the end of the day, the options will be minimal.
Templates do not allow you to build a site to an exact specification, so you may find you have to compromise on ideas to keep costs down. Website designers are capable of totally customising a site build to your exact instruction, something templates can never replicate. Many people find that a website developed by a professional website designer turns out far better than they had ever anticipated.
Although you may find a wide choice of templates online, remember that some will be of a better quality than others and as the saying goes, more often than not, you get what you pay for. Certainly, most templates are relatively easy to use, but with the more professional and attractive looking offerings, they may indeed require some technical and complex skills, the kind that website designers possess.
And you want traffic too?
Finally and arguably most importantly, the concern with using website templates is that it may prove difficult to properly manage search engine optimisation (SEO), especially if the site is more image rich than content rich. It may look great but will ultimately result in lower search rankings. Good website designers have the expertise to incorporate SEO into designs.
