Over the past few years, I’ve managed to accumulate around 50 sites while pursuing internet marketing. Now, that may sound like a lot, but keep in mind that they are all in different stages of development. In fact, there are some that I haven’t visited in quite some time.

Most are WordPress installs because I love the fact that you can install it with a few clicks using fantastico. After a few minor tweaks for seo, I am good to go and can start posting content. For anyone who is new to all this, it is something you can learn fairly quickly.

There is a problem, however, that you will likely run across after you get your site up and running. That problem is the fact that the default install for wordpress is kinda plain and it just screams amateur. It is easily recognized and it more or less tells the visitor that the owner either can’t be bothered to make something unique, or they simply don’t have the skills. Even if the visitor isn’t familiar with it, they will still be met with a very lack-luster website.

What to do?

Well, fortunately, WordPress has a feature whereby you can easily install a custom template that will completely change the look and feel of your site. No matter what niche you are in, there is likely a template out there that will perfectly compliment your site. Realistically, you could probably choose from a thousand or so templates that you can use free of charge – and there are many sites that offer this, including the main WordPress site at http://www.wordpress.org.

And that is fine, except for the fact that these templates have links in the footer – put there by the developer. That is the price you pay to use the template, and it is the main reason that these people create themes in the first place. Why is this a problem? After all, it seems fair to give the developer a measly link to their site in exchange for a template.

Actually, the problem is that a lot of free templates available these days are filled with irrelevant links that have nothing to do with the template or the developer at all. In fact, many don’t even have a link back to the developer’s site. Instead, there are links to debt blogs, payday loans, diet products, and so on. It is obvious that the author is selling links in the templates they are making. Now, would you really want links in the footer leading to payday loans when your site is about organic gardening? Your visitors don’t know that the links aren’t yours. They may be put off by your entire site because it appears as though you are only out for money.

Also, keep in mind that the links may lead to less than desirable websites. Because Google assumes that you have complete control over who you link to, they will likely penalize you if they don’t like the sites you are linking to.

Why would the developer lower themselves to this level?

Well, template link selling is actually quite a lucrative business since people will pay handsomely to have there link on the homepage of any site using the theme.

Now, besides having links on your site that you have no control over, there are a number of other reasons that you may struggle with finding a suitable theme for your new wordpress site. Even if there are no bad links, you may find that it is lacking something else. Maybe the side-bar is on the wrong side – or the header is just too pinkish. Perhaps the author of the theme threw in a horrible looking graphic and completely ruined an otherwise awesome template.

It has been my experience that there is always something lacking in a template. If it isn’t one thing, it’s another.

I even looked into paying for a theme. And while they do tend to look better than free themes, and they don’t have any links in the footer, I could never seem to find one that looked exactly the way I wanted – or had the functionality that I needed.

With this blog (the rat-race journal), I was lucky. In 2005, I found a theme (Red Train) that perfectly suited the subject. It was a picture of a commuter train speeding through a platform. I actually lucked out on that one. And, of course, back then, you didn’t really get a lot of spam links in the footer. There was only one link, and that was to the developer’s site.

It only had one problem: the print was a little small and it was white text on a red background. No doubt this is hard to read for some folks.

To make a long story short, I decided to change themes, but I didn’t want to go the free route. I decided that if I was going to pay, I would get one of the new generation, customizable templates. It came down to choosing between Thesis, Flexibility, and Affiliate theme. After much agonizing and research, I chose the FlexSqueeze theme.

Though I have only been using it for a few days now, I know that I made the right choice. It allows me to completely change any aspect of my site. From font styles, to layout, to customized headers; there is not a single thing you cannot change when it comes to the look of your site. And that is exactly what I need.

As someone who has literally spent hundreds of hours searching for, and customizing blog themes, the FlexSqueeze theme is almost too good to be true. I am finally in control – I can create my sites the way I want, right down to the most minute detail.

Since the license is good for an unlimited number of websites, this is going to be an indispensable tool as I create more niche sites.

I have to admit that parting with $129.00 sucked, (I am very frugal when it comes to things like this) but I truly believe that this FlexSqueeze theme will start paying for itself in very short order. I am currently in the process of upgrading all my sites. In fact, in a few of my niches, some of my long time readers actually started complimenting me on it. That’s a good start.

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