Wordpress theme to sell my Saas (web application)

[karakoram]

I'm building a Saas (Software as a Service), aka a web application that I charge people periodically (monthly) to use. I'd rather not say what the specific product is.

My market is professionals, medical offices, and small businesses.

I don't want to give the impression of being a scammy IM product.

I need landing pages, opt-in forms, in other words a sales funnel.

I could build these things using various plugins. In the past, I have created opt-in forms using plugins in Wordpress. They were for simple information products.

This is a MUCH more serious endevour. Its a real web app that I partnered with a real programmer to build.

Would OptimizePress be a good theme for selling my SaaS?

Any other themes I should consider?

 

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[tincho1492]

Do you need a theme just for design purposes? In that case you can take a look to ThemeForest.net

 

[narcninja]

I've always used WooThemes (NOT an affiliate link).

They have such a in-depth framework that I'm not sure how one could learn it all. All their themes are just beautiful. They also have had WooCommerce (e-commerce plugin) for a year which I think has been a great success and I have tested it out pretty thoroughly.

I made Denventory with a WooTheme...so I guess that speaks for itself.

 

[karakoram]

Denventory is a VERY NICE looking site! I like it!

I am considering OptimizePress due to the sales funnel features it has.

I did look at theme forest.



Some others I looked at:

I really like this one
WordPress - FreshServe - A Web App / SaaS Wordpress Theme | ThemeForest



I really like this one, mainly due to the pricing grid page. Live Preview is currently not working. View the screenshots instead.
WordPress - Freemium SaaS Wordpress CMS + Blog Theme I | ThemeForest

Similar to the above, by the same author.
WordPress - Freemium SaaS Wordpress CMS + Blog Theme II | ThemeForest



Others worth considering.

Also has a pricing table included. I like the theme, but it may be too dark.
WordPress - CleanSpace WordPress Theme | ThemeForest

 

[PokerRich]

I've always used WooThemes (NOT an affiliate link).

They have such a in-depth framework that I'm not sure how one could learn it all. All their themes are just beautiful. They also have had WooCommerce (e-commerce plugin) for a year which I think has been a great success and I have tested it out pretty thoroughly.

I made Denventory with a WooTheme...so I guess that speaks for itself.

Which theme did you use for denventory.com? I really like the look of the site.

 

[Milkanic]

I'm a big fan of using twitter bootstrap to make sure you layout isn't going to break on old browsers and mobile.

https://wrapbootstrap.com/ is a great site that builds on top of this. You'll have to convert these to wordpress which will take some time but in the end you'll have something you can extend. If you are choosing on a theme off a pricing grid, you are going to run into trouble as soon as you want to add something else.

 

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[Steve W]

This is a MUCH more serious endevour. Its a real web app that I partnered with a real programmer to build.

If you are serious about your business why would you use a widely available theme that looks like every other Wordpress site of the same nature? Any developer could create a custom Wordpress theme for you fairly quickly and you would then have a unique look and a site that has the features you want, not what someone else thinks you should have.

Alternatively if you have a basic understanding of how Wordpress works you could buy a copy of artisteer for around the same price as a theme & create your own layout. It will still look like a Wordpress site but at least you will have some control over the look.

 

[karakoram]

If you are serious about your business why would you use a widely available theme that looks like every other Wordpress site of the same nature? Any developer could create a custom Wordpress theme for you fairly quickly and you would then have a unique look and a site that has the features you want, not what someone else thinks you should have.

Alternatively if you have a basic understanding of how Wordpress works you could buy a copy of artisteer for around the same price as a theme & create your own layout. It will still look like a Wordpress site but at least you will have some control over the look.

1) My partner's limited amount of available time is better spent working on the actual SaaS. For this first version, he built it using the Wordpress framework.

2) I have lots of experience building sites with Wordpress already. I'm not a programmer, but I have messed around with code.

3) also we would like to get our MVP (minimum viable product) out there, so we can get feedback, and start generating sales.

I think out time is better spent working on the marketing as well, rather than getting bogged down coding a site from scratch. However, we will probably eventually do a custom site. We will also switch over to Ruby on Rails or something as well for the SaaS and the site, but this is a later phase.

Artiseer looks interesting.

 

[takes12no1]

Just my opinion

Don't waste your time learning some theme creator or hiring a theme developer. Stop worrying about if your site looks like another site. The customer doesn't care, in fact familiarity is a plus to usability. Think about it, have you ever not used a great site because it looked like someone elses?

Go to theme forest and get one that is responsive and highly configurable. Then invest in gravity forms.

For our site when the user goes through the registration process using a gravity form, his info flows into MailCheat(Chimp), user registrations, and freshbooks. Additionally payment is handled by Stripe which is way more professional (and takes less of a cut) than PayPal.

Focus on the setting up wordpress correctly, sales funnel (including autoresponders), UI design, customer support tools like ticket creators and forums, and training content and videos. The LAST thing you should worry about is the theme. I like these...

WordPress - Akita Responsive WordPress Theme | ThemeForest
WordPress - Modernize - Flexibility of Wordpress | ThemeForest

I am using both of these at the time, I have to say the Modernize one is my favorite right now.

 

[narcninja]

http://www.woothemes.com/2010/05/inspire/

Don't be fooled, still a bit tricky to customize how you want it. Just makes it a lot easier.:smx9:

 

[Pat]

http://www.woothemes.com/2010/05/inspire/

Don't be fooled, still a bit tricky to customize how you want it. Just makes it a lot easier.:smx9:

A nice theme for sure. In fact I used it myself recently (LongTail Wizard |)

Still needs some work but getting there.

 

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[karakoram]

Alternatively if you have a basic understanding of how Wordpress works you could buy a copy of artisteer for around the same price as a theme & create your own layout. It will still look like a Wordpress site but at least you will have some control over the look.

Steve, do you have experience with Artisteer?
Is it versatile enough to create a site that looks similar to, and functions like this site--> paperlesspipeline.com ?

Notice how on the home page, at the top, there are buttons on the left. These cause you to jump down the page. The buttons on the top at the right lead to other pages on the site. This particular site was custom coded, I am pretty sure. Possibly in Python. I don't currently have the resources to get something like this made for me, so I wondered if I could approximate it with Artisteer?

 

[theag]

I once tested Artisteer for a friend and its shit. Just buy a nice looking responsive html5 theme from themeforest. nobody cares if a few thousand other sites have the same design. NONE of your (potential) customers will recognize or care about it.

 

[PokerRich]

I was inspired by this thread and changed my theme from a free one I used from wordpress to "Karma" from themeforest:

www.theoptiontadingstrategies.com

I would love some constructive criticism on any changes/suggestions you could make.

 

[Steve W]

Steve, do you have experience with Artisteer?
Is it versatile enough to create a site that looks similar to, and functions like this site--> paperlesspipeline.com ?

Notice how on the home page, at the top, there are buttons on the left. These cause you to jump down the page. The buttons on the top at the right lead to other pages on the site. This particular site was custom coded, I am pretty sure. Possibly in Python. I don't currently have the resources to get something like this made for me, so I wondered if I could approximate it with Artisteer?

Hi, sorry for not replying sooner - have been a bit busy...

I had a quick play with Artisteer in my early days of Wordpress development. It isn't something I would use as I do all my coding by hand for several reasons but looked ok for beginners although the code was pretty messy when I last looked at it. The layout of the website you referenced is something that any designer could knock together very quickly - it is very basic. PM me if you need a hand with any design ideas...

 

[karakoram]

I also contacted Artisteer, and asked them if it could be used to duplicate the site I mentioned. They said no.

 

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[sam22]

Check out the Responsive Theme. It's not as polished as the others but it's free. And you'll need to download and install a pricing table plugin.