Fortunately, customizing your WordPress theme can also enhance your marketing efforts. By tweaking a few key settings, you can more effectively promote your brand and attract new fans.

In this article, we’ll look at four actionable ways to use your WordPress theme as a marketing tool. Let’s get started!

1. Customize Your Theme to Match Your Branding

Every brand has an associated color scheme. For example, when you think of the Coca-Cola company, your mind likely goes immediately to the color red:

The same principle is true for a podcasting or music business. You can use colors and other design elements to distinguish your work from the competition and build a clear identity for your brand.

Additionally, colored branding can influence sales. For example, color can affect up to 80 percent of a consumer’s purchasing decision. Therefore, displaying appropriate branding through your WordPress theme could increase your podcast merchandise or music sales.

If you’re working with one of our WordPress themes, it’s easy to change the color scheme. Just head to your WordPress dashboard and navigate to Appearance > Customize:

Additionally, you might like to change your WordPress theme appearance when releasing a new album or podcast series. Displaying related branding or banners can help generate a buzz around your new content and help promote sales:

Therefore, you’ll likely want to use a WordPress theme that enables you to change its design quickly. We recommend our Dixie theme because it already has a large display image that you can switch out:

Therefore, you’ll be able to switch your theme design quickly whenever you release new content. You can access all of the settings from the WordPress customizer.

2. Customize Your Header with Eye-Catching Graphics

When visiting your website, your visitors will first see the top of your front page. This is also known as ‘above the fold’, and it serves as your brand’s first impression to your listeners.

According to studies, the content above the fold has a 73 percent visibility. In contrast, elements below have just a 44 percent chance of being seen. This is usually because many people skimming sites are unlikely to look at the whole page. As such, you should consider putting your essential content at the top of your website.

For example, David Tennant uses a banner on his podcasting website to link to his social media channels. He also prominently displays his name and image to enhance his branding:

You can accomplish the same effect with an eye-catching graphic or a slider image. You might also like to include a Call to Action (CTA) or other buttons that link to your most prominent content.

For example, if you’re working with our Tusant theme, you can customize various elements. Head to Appearance > Customize > Header:

Here, you can choose logo and header display options. You can also insert social icons and adjust your visual branding for mobile and tablet devices.

3. Optimize Your Theme for Mobile Devices

Many of your subscribers and potential fans will access your website with smartphones and other mobile devices. Therefore, your theme must be optimized for smaller screens.

Additionally, Google ranks sites according to their mobile performance. If your website performs poorly on smartphones, it’s unlikely to end up high in the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs). As such, users looking for new podcasts or music may encounter your competitors before they find your content.

Using Google’s “Mobile Friendly” tool, you can analyze your website on mobile devices. By identifying these weak spots, you can solve them and bump your website up the SERPs. Ideally, you’ll want the notification that looks like this:

Moreover, if you use one of our themes, you can be confident that it functions well on mobile devices:

There’s no need to tweak any of the settings in our themes to make them mobile-ready. They come responsive and automatically resize to smaller screens.

4. Use WooCommerce Functionality

If you are a musician or a podcaster, you may have merchandise to sell to your fans. For example, you might advertise branded t-shirts or albums of your best episodes or songs. These products enable your fans to show off their brand loyalty and promote your business in the real world:

Selling online can be very lucrative. In the first half of 2021 alone, e-commerce revenue hit $400 billion, up nearly 22 percent from 2020. That number is only projected to increase.

Therefore, using a WordPress theme that seamlessly integrates with WooCommerce can boost your earnings. Fortunately, all of our podcasting and music-ready themes have full integration with the popular e-commerce plugin.

Additionally, you can customize some theme elements to advertise your online products further. For example, you might add promotional sales banners to the header section of your homepage.

Finally, you’ll likely want to add a dedicated menu item to your primary navigational menu. You can do this by heading to Appearance > Menus in your WordPress dashboard.

Conclusion

Marketing your podcasting channel or original music can be time-consuming. However, if your website is running on WordPress, your theme can do most of the heavy lifting for you.

To recap, these four tips can help you use your WordPress theme as a marketing tool:

1. Customize your theme to match your branding.
2. Customize your header with eye-catching graphics.
3. Optimize your theme for mobile devices.
4. Use WooCommerce functionality and promote your online store.

Given a choice between creating audio content and marketing, we’re sure you’d rather be doing the former. By using these tips, you can put your advertising strategies on auto-pilot and let your WordPress theme do the talking.

The post How to Use Your WordPress Theme as a Marketing Tool (4 Key Tips) appeared first on SecondLineThemes.

Fortunately, there are ways to streamline the process. By considering both the practical and aesthetic aspects of a theme, it’s possible to find the ideal design for your podcasting site.

We already reviewed the best podcast WordPress themes available in a separate article, and here we’ll dive into tips you should look for when choosing a specific theme.

In this article, we’ll cover why it’s so important to use the right theme for your podcast website. Then we’ll discuss three tips to help you find the best match. Let’s get started!

The Importance of Choosing the Right Theme for Your Podcast Website

A website’s design can send a powerful message. Most people only need a single second to decide how they feel about online aesthetics. With such limited time, choosing an appealing theme is crucial to keeping people on your site.

Additionally, a fitting theme can be a powerful marketing tool. Choosing one that fits the tone of your podcast can wordlessly communicate its contents to visitors. As such, you might want to think of your design as a visual preview of your podcast.

Newcomers will get an idea of the content you produce, and current fans are likely to appreciate your professional attention to detail. Regardless of your audience, establishing your podcast brand with a fitting theme choice is a smart way to grow your loyal listeners.

3 Tips for Choosing the Perfect Podcasting Theme

There are a lot of theme options out there to choose from. Below are three tips to help you find a design that’s right for your show.

1. Investigate Customization Options

Out-of-the-box themes can be useful if you’re a new WordPress user with little experience. Nevertheless, these pre-made styles aren’t your only option. It’s also important to make sure that your theme offers plenty of customization features.

Not only will tailoring a theme make it more versatile, but it can also give your site a unique feel. You probably won’t be the only person using a certain theme. Therefore, personalizing it can help your site stand out and reinforce your brand identity.

A great podcasting theme should always have support for different audio player locations, styles, and advanced controls around the audio player. It’s the core of your podcast website, in many cases, so make sure to only pick a theme that does that well.

For an example of a distinctive and fitting design, consider the podcasting website for This American Life:

The page has a mature, understated design, which helps to emphasize the journalistic focus of the show. Additionally, the simple layout enables the stories themselves to take center stage. We recommend choosing a theme that will help you easily achieve a similarly cohesive brand identity.

Personalization options can also be helpful in practical ways. For example, you may find that a flexible design is perfect for seamlessly adding useful WordPress plugins.

You might want to make a list of things you’d like to customize before starting your theme search. If you’re unsure what to include, consider starting with an adjustable color scheme, since a site’s colors are often prominent.

2. Check for Plugin Compatibility

Many developers design their plugins with compatibility in mind. Nevertheless, there are occasional hiccups when two programs don’t work well together. This may limit your site’s usability or aesthetic appeal.

Even the best design won’t be useful if the site can’t operate properly. As such, you may also want to ensure that essential plugins are compatible with your theme. These can include crucial site elements such as security tools and plugins for podcasting functionality.

Alternatively, you could opt for themes developed with podcasts in mind, such as our own Gumbo theme:

This is a theme built specifically for podcasting, offering maximum audio functionality. It also offers layouts that are more conducive to marketing your show, and is compatible with popular podcasting plugins such as Seriously Simple Podcasting. Choosing a dedicated podcast theme like this may simplify your search process.

3. Consider the Design’s Shelf Life

Trendy designs have their advantages. They can make your show seem more current or give it a fashionable air. However, a timeless aesthetic can reduce the need for constant rebranding.

A more general look may help you accommodate any new niches that you cover on your show. Additionally, choosing a theme that isn’t connected to a moment in time can help viewers hone in on the content of your podcast.

In addition to the theme’s aesthetic shelf life, you may also want to consider the technical side. We suggest looking for themes that have been recently updated, such as the official Twenty Twenty-One theme:

Recent updates are critical. They demonstrate that developers consistently monitor the software for issues such as security and usability. Also, a frequent update schedule means that the theme should remain more stable over time.

If you’re not quite sure what a long-lasting design looks like, try analyzing the websites of some of the most successful podcasts. Examine what they do well and where they could improve. This can help you make a decision that relies on industry leaders as well as your own tastes.

Conclusion

Choosing a theme for your podcast can seem like a daunting task. An overabundance of options can be paralyzing. Fortunately, you can feel confident in your decision by analyzing each option’s aesthetic and practical capabilities.

In this article, we covered three tips to help you find the perfect podcasting theme:

1. Consider the design’s capacity for customization.
2. Check to see if your must-have plugins will be compatible.
3. Think about the theme’s potential for longevity.

Once you’ve chosen a theme that will help your content shine, consider a few ways to make the most of it by upgrading your podcasting website. Also, if you need a place to begin your search, you can check out our collection of WordPress podcast themes!

The post 3 Tips for Choosing the Perfect Podcasting Theme appeared first on SecondLineThemes.

Creating a dedicated website for your podcast is an excellent way to tackle these issues. To do that, you can use WordPress, which currently claims 50-60% of the global CMS market and powers about 40% of the entire web. That’s because WordPress is extremely easy to use for first-timers or beginners, while still providing plenty of enhancement options for savvy developers or experienced users. In this article we’ll review the top podcast WordPress themes for 2021!

Why You Should Consider a Custom WordPress Podcast Theme

Finding and using a dedicated podcasting theme can be an important step in your design process. This isn’t because using a generic theme is necessarily bad or against the rules. Due to the added complexity of some podcasting features you may need, however, a podcast-specific theme is definitely worth exploring.

Many independent podcast owners rely on WordPress to showcase and share their productions, using a theme created specifically for podcasts. This includes hobbyists, professionals, and networks. One example is Daniel J. Lewis, a well-known podcaster, podcast industry expert, and podcast educator. Daniel is also the founder of The Audacity to Podcast where he provides insights, tools and guidance related to podcasting. It is a podcast about podcasting, in fact. His site showcases both his work and his podcast, using the Tusant WordPress podcast theme:

While any theme can be used for podcasting, thanks to popular plugins such as Seriously Simple Podcasting, PowerPress, or the Podcast Importer plugin, not all themes are built for that purpose. This is why it’s vital to make your choice carefully, as a dedicated podcast theme could save you hours and hours of work and already include all the best-practice features for most podcasters.

What to Look for in a WordPress Podcast Theme Design

First, clean and simple designs should never be underestimated. An outdated or poorly-designed site could send potential listeners running to another URL even before they try to listen to your show.

Furthermore, your podcast site is a special branding opportunity for your podcast. Its design should match your show’s genre or ‘vibe’ in some ways, if possible. You can use colors, images, and typography to create a seamless experience between your actual show artwork and theme and your actual website. Therefore, you’ll need to be able to customize your theme to represent your business or your podcast in the best possible way.

Another design note to keep in mind involves how you display your podcast episodes. A clean list or grid layout with all episodes allows your audience access to the most recent podcast episodes, and some historical items as well. They can then choose whether they want to download those episodes, or stream them directly from your front page. Here’s an example from the Gumbo WordPress Theme:

In this day and age, your website should also display responsively on any smartphone, tablet or 4k screen equally well. Mobile users account for nearly half of the entire internet traffic globally, so you can’t ignore those visitors. With this in mind, designing for a mobile audience can be a key way to differentiate yourself from the competition. Podcasting is highly consumed on mobile devices, when people are on the go, driving, commuting and so on, so it’s especially important for a podcast website be responsive.

4 Important WordPress Podcast Theme Features to Look For

There are a few essential elements that we think deserve attention when it comes to evaluating the best WordPress podcast themes. Understanding the following four features can help you pick out a theme that will meet all of your needs.

1. A Highly-Customizable Audio Player

While some podcast plugins have functionality that enables you to place an audio player either at the top or bottom of a post, these options are very limited. If you need to place the player within a content area, such as in a slider, archive pages, header or custom pages, you might be out of luck.

In contrast, some podcast themes include built-in audio players that are highly-customizable. You may even be able to choose from several layout options. For example, our own Satchmo podcasting theme includes a clean audio player that can be customized easily:

This is one of the most important features for any WordPress podcast template to have. You’ll want to be able to tweak not only your audio player’s style, but also exactly where it’s positioned on the page.

2. Support for a variety of media sources

Another major feature for your podcast theme’s ‘deal breaker’ list is support for multiple kinds of media resources. Having the option to place an embedded podcast audio or video player within your layout wherever you choose, for example, can be very important. There are dozens of podcast hosting companies, and it’d be a good idea to choose a theme that supports the majority of these companies. (Just to name a few as an example – Libsyn, Castos, Transistor, Anchor, Pinecast, BuzzSprout, Blubrry, Spreaker. There are many, many more, though.)

Since loading a lot of large audio files onto your WordPress site’s hosting server is not a recommended practice, file management is something to keep in mind. Figuring out how you want to handle the importing of content and deciding where files will ‘live’ can help you decide what themes are best suited for your show.

Finding a way to import content from your podcast host automatically can save you a lot of time, and our Podcast Importer plugin can do that for you with ease.

3. A Variety of Identifiable Subscription Options

Subscription icons are another item to add to your shopping list when picking out a podcasting theme. Ultimately, you’ll want to attract as many listeners and subscribers as you can. With icons for podcasting platform options such as Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, SoundCloud, and RSS site feeds, you can present lots of choices to your potential listeners:

Additionally, you might want to include an icon for a newsletter subscription form, in order to build up your email list. Your podcast audience can easily use these subscribe buttons to keep updated on future episodes. Plus, when you decide you want to look into monetizing your podcast, you’ll already have contact data for your loyal following.

4. Built-in Compatibility for Popular Page Builders

Finally, having support for a quality page builder is essential. Page builders open up a vast array of design options for WordPress users, regardless of programming knowledge (or lack thereof). All of our themes use the grid-based Elementor page builder, which makes creating content simple.

In addition to the usual Elementor features, our podcast themes come packaged with some extra functionality. These features have been created specifically for our WordPress podcast themes. We’ll touch on some of these as we explore the various theme options below. Our themes also support other popular page builders, and of course, the WordPress block editor, but some custom widgets might look differently or be missing on those.

4 Types of WordPress Themes for Podcasting

Now that we’ve covered the essential items that make up a solid podcast website theme, we’re going to review some of the best options that are available for WordPress. We’ve broken these down into four categories, including our own podcasting themes, free and premium solutions, and even DIY themes.

1. WordPress Podcast Themes by SecondLineThemes

Here at SecondLine Themes, we take podcasting very seriously. After working on multiple tools for the podcasting ecosystem, we became quite frustrated with the available solutions around websites for podcasting. At that point, we understood that we had to create our own solutions from scratch, and we then decided to start developing WordPress themes and plugins for podcasters.

That’s why we believe the best WordPress podcast themes are made right here at SecondLineThemes:

One of the key differences with our themes is that you’re not limited to one specific podcast hosting service or a plugin. You can use any podcast host that is available out there by importing your podcast. Also, you can host your own audio files on your WordPress server or external hosting services such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), and just simply link out to the MP3 files.

Additionally, we support all the major WordPress podcasting plugins. Our themes also work well with more general-purpose plugins, such as Contact Form 7, WPForms, WooCommerce and many more. In addition, our themes are built on our own custom framework. This means there are absolutely no hidden costs, and you can rest assured that no additional purchase of a framework will be needed. We consider our themes the best WordPress podcast themes out there. You can check our Testimonials/Showcase page for live examples of podcast websites and feedback from podcasters from around the world.

2. Free Themes from the WordPress Theme Directory

There are thousands of free themes available in the WordPress Theme Directory. You can use any of them for podcasting, and even customize some of them to fit your needs:

While many of these themes offer you customizable elements and some flexibility, you may find that you’re still limited when it comes to the essential podcast theme features we’ve discussed. In order to make the most of the WordPress Theme Directory, should you choose to go that route, you’ll want to pay attention to some specific information that it provides.

For each theme in the directory, you’ll find valuable details on:

• What version number the theme download will be
• The date the theme was last updated
• User ratings and reviews
• The number of active downloads

All of these provide important knowledge that can be helpful in your decision-making process. We encourage you to read through the reviews of each theme you’re considering, and see if anyone has run into issues specifically when it comes to podcasting.

3. Premium Themes from a Marketplace

Popular theme marketplaces such as MOJO Marketplace, Creative Market and the likes are always an option for themes and templates. You can find podcasting-oriented themes on all of the above sites. If you find one you like, you might want to compare its features with our own WordPress podcast themes:

Many of the popular marketplace themes lack the flexibility required to choose your preferred podcast hosting service. That’s a key factor to keep in mind if hosting preference is important to you. Also, the majority of these are created by generic theme shops, rather than podcast-dedicated operations, so they may lack some of the specific features you’ll need.

4. Create Your Own Custom WordPress Podcast Theme

If you’re a WordPress developer, you might also consider coding a new theme from scratch for your podcasting project. There are many parent themes available that are an excellent base for developing your own theme.

Creating a custom theme is an option if you have the resources and programming knowledge required. WordPress provides extensive information on the subject, and different ways for developers to get involved through the online handbooks and Codex:

It makes sense to take the DIY route if you have very specific needs in terms of design or functionality. However, this method also involves a lot of work. You’ll need to spend time designing, coding, and testing your theme. Depending on the timeline and goals of your project, this can result in costly delays, so you’ll want to be sure before you embark on this type of ambitious project.

5 Featured Podcast Themes for WordPress

So far, we’ve only talked about some theme options in a general sense. Now, let’s take a closer look at a few of our custom podcast themes for WordPress. We’d like to note that these are all fully-responsive themes, so your mobile users won’t be left in the dark.

1. Tusant

Tusant is a WordPress podcasting theme created by SecondLineThemes, and it brings a totally different vibe to the table. This theme comes with a dark color scheme (although it can be easily customized to any different color scheme), and beautiful shades of green to highlight different parts of the theme. Plus, with the ability to support more than one podcast show on the same website, Tusant can do it all.

Tusant also comes with a built-in drag-and-drop page builder for fast page and post creation. Additionally, there is plenty of demo content loaded in, which you can use to spark your creativity. Perhaps best of all, Tusant is packed with ready-to-use podcasting plugins, and is compatible with more than 30 podcast hosting providers.

But wait, there’s more! Once you activate the theme, you’ll be able to import all the Elementor page templates you might want to use. In addition, all of our themes are fully compatible with WordPress 5.0+, so you can be sure that you’re getting a quality product.

2. Bolden

Bolden is a WordPress theme designed with podcast networks in mind. In fact, at the time of its release, it was the very first premium theme for podcast networks available anywhere.

Even though we had created some pretty amazing themes prior to Bolden, this was the first theme we built that had the capability to run two shows on one site. In other words, we specifically designed Bolden for networks. This means individuals or companies that run more than one podcast can showcase all of them on the very same site.

This theme comes with the functionality you need to create individual show pages, and display podcast episodes in multiple layouts across your website. Bolden also works perfectly for single podcast shows, while supporting all the essential theme elements we discussed earlier.

3. Gumbo

Next up, Gumbo brings a beautiful home page slider to the table, and can expertly showcase both embedded content and videos. We designed Gumbo as a dark, modern, and clean WordPress podcast theme. It can also help you display all of your podcast episodes from a variety of categories, in a well-organized fashion.

What’s more, the easy theme settings on offer can help you customize this theme to look however you like. Gumbo also supports embedded media from various sources such as YouTube, Vimeo, SoundCloud, Podbean, Spreaker, MixCloud, and more.

4. Satchmo

Satchmo was the first WordPress podcasting theme we created. Therefore, we’ve had lots of time to put plenty of thought into its features and design. Satchmo was created first and foremost as a clean and minimalistic theme, with an emphasis on black and white colors.

Of course, we also built Satchmo with podcasting in mind throughout the entire development process. You can easily add episodes of your podcast to any part of your site, using a built-in audio player. The single post layout also supports players in the hero section, and right above or below the main content.

5. Dixie

In terms of SecondLine theme lineage, Dixie followed Satchmo and became one of our most popular themes. It has all the same great features as Satchmo, but with a different, bolder style and design. Dixie also features page templates for showing off your podcast’s hosts, since your faithful listeners will want to get to know the real you.

We created Dixie to be a clean, yet ultra-modern and colorful WordPress podcast theme. It supports multiple audio players on a single page, and also enables you to display players on single posts.

How to Get Started With a SecondLine Theme for WordPress (In 4 Steps)

Now that we’ve reviewed several excellent podcast themes, let’s pick one and take a look at how to install it on your WordPress website. All it takes to get you up and running with a SecondLine theme is four easy steps.

Step 1: Purchase and Download the SecondLine Theme of Your Choice

The first thing you’ll need to do is visit our pricing page. You’ll find several options and pricing levels there. These range from single theme purchases for $69, or access to all of our themes for $139. Either includes support and updates for a year:

Alternatively, if you want to have your cake and eat it too, you can go all in and get our Lifetime Access option. This includes unlimited lifetime access to all of our themes, along with support and updates for life.

Once you purchase your package or theme, you’ll be directed to download the theme’s .zip file. You’ll need this for the next step, so make sure you take note of where you’ve saved it on your computer.

Step 2: Install Your Theme in WordPress

Next, you’ll navigate to your WordPress administration dashboard. There you’ll find the Appearance menu. Once you locate and click on that, you’ll see the Themes sub-menu option:

When you click on Themes, you’ll be taken to the themes management page. You’ll have the option to choose from a previously-installed theme or add a new one by selecting Add New:

On the next screen, you’ll see that you have the option to Upload Theme. Since you’ve already downloaded your premium SecondLine podcast theme for WordPress, you’ll want to click on the Upload Theme button, and navigate to the .zip file you saved earlier:

Once you’ve selected the correct file, you can click on Install Now. You will be able to see whether the installation went off without a hitch, or if there are any issues you might need to look at before proceeding:

Your final item in this step is to Activate your theme. This option will appear after all the relevant files have been installed.

Step 3: Import the SecondLineThemes Demo Data

SecondLine themes have a lot of valuable demo content available for you to use. You’ll have to import this separately, however, after your theme is installed. After you activate your theme, you’ll be taken to an installation wizard where you can install plugins and content:

The last part of this process is to import the demo content. This content will help you get familiar with the layout of the theme you’ve selected. You can simply edit and replace the demo content with your own for a fast setup process, or use it as a springboard for creativity.

Step 4: Post a Podcast Episode

At this point, you’re ready to navigate to the Podcast > Add New menu item. Once you click on Add New, you’ll be taken to a page that should look familiar. It’s similar to the regular WordPress editor, but with some extra options at the bottom:

Below the title and content area, you’ll have lots of settings you can play with. You can include an image gallery, paste in an external embed code from a variety of podcast hosting platforms, and more. This is also where you’ll find a lot of the important customization features for your post.

For example, you can assign your podcast episode to a show. The Tusant theme featured in this demonstration has options to display more than one show on a single website. So you can choose a parent show for your episode:

This is also where you will upload your audio or video file, if you’re not using an embed code from an outside host. Once you’re done with your adjustments and settings, you can preview your podcast episode post before publishing it:

Once you’re satisfied with your post, you can publish it and relax as your adoring fans like and share your podcast masterpiece.

Conclusion

Choosing the perfect WordPress podcast themes can be an overwhelming task. There is a lot to consider before taking the leap. Fortunately, here at SecondLineThemes we have you covered with not only the best podcast-specific themes, but also a wealth of information and experience to share.

When picking out the right podcast theme for your show, you’ll want to look for:

1. A customizable audio player.
2. Robust media resource support.
3. Support for a variety of podcast hosts.
4. Out-of-the-box compatibility with popular page builders and the WordPress block editor.

With regular theme updates and exciting plans for future releases, you won’t want to miss any of the podcast theme action going on at SecondLineThemes. We recommend taking a tour of our own themes!

The post The Best WordPress Podcast Themes in 2021 appeared first on SecondLineThemes.

As the plugin became more and more popular, many of our podcast theme users asked to add this integration. We’re finally proud to ship the latest version for all of our WordPress podcast themes with the integration.

Why We Integrated Our WordPress Podcast Themes With WPForms

WPForms is an easy-to-use WordPress contact form plugin. It is user friendly and very intuitive for beginners and experienced WordPress users at the same time. WPForms includes a drag & drop form builder, which would allow you to create advanced forms with ease without working with code or formatting.

The plugin includes many pre-built form templates, so you can save valuable time while creating a variety of forms and quickly add them into your podcasting site. WPForms supports multiple 3rd party integrations, such as marketing, subscription or automation tools (e.g. MailChimp, Drip, Zapier, and the likes) and also with various payment tools such as PayPal, Stripe and so on.

There are lots of addons you can install in order to extend WPForms. These addons allow advanced functionality and integrations, and this can always be helpful any podcaster looking to monetize a podcast, create a subscription funnel for the podcast, create polls and surveys, or simply have a more advanced contact form for the podcast’s website.

WPForms Lite is a free plugin available on the official WordPress plugin repository. You can easily create forms with the free plugin, but you would need a paid plan for the more advanced features. Both the WPForms Lite and Pro versions are fully compatible with all WordPress Podcast Themes created by SecondLineThemes.

For a quick overview about the plugin, please watch the video below:

The post WPForms Now Compatible With Our Podcast Themes appeared first on SecondLineThemes.

While you could use any WordPress theme, we’d suggest looking for one designed specifically for podcasters. That way, you’ll get access to all the features required to show off your podcast in the best possible light. Fortunately, there are some excellent options available.

In this post, we’ll talk a bit more about why you’d want to use a dedicated podcasting theme. Then we’ll explain what to look for in this type of theme, and introduce you to some examples from our own collection. Let’s get started!

Why You Might Need a Dedicated Podcasting Theme

If you run a podcast, creating a website for it is a smart idea. A dedicated site will let you feature all your episodes in one place, offer plenty of supplementary information, and promote any associated products or services.

Actually setting up a WordPress site for your podcast is simple. Still, there are a few initial decisions you’ll want to carefully consider. One of the first tasks is choosing your theme – and that’s not something you want to rush given there are thousands of WordPress themes available.

In short, a theme governs the design of your site, and you can usually change its appearance and layout to suit your precise needs. While some themes are multipurpose in nature, many others are niche-specific.

A podcasting site, for example, has unique needs. Opting for a dedicated podcasting theme will enable you to display your work in an attractive, organized way, and make listening simple for your audience. What’s more, you’ll sometimes get access to extra features and plugins designed specifically for podcasters.

So while using a podcasting theme isn’t required, it’s a must-have if you want your site to really take off. Let’s discuss what these themes have to offer in more detail.

What to Look for in a WordPress Podcasting Theme

You won’t want to settle for the first podcasting theme that crosses your path. Plus, just because a theme says it’s designed for podcasters doesn’t mean it will have everything you need. It’s vital to evaluate each option carefully, so you don’t end up having to change themes after your site is already built.

When it comes to picking out a podcast theme, here are some of the features you’ll want to look for:

• Multiple options for embedding media files.
• A robust, user-friendly audio player.
• Compatibility with any podcasting plugins you might want to use.
• Lots of layout and customization options for creating a unique podcasting site.
• Podcast-specific design features, such as episode sliders.
• Excellent optimization and performance, so visitors have a smooth experience.

In addition, you’ll want to adhere to some simple criteria when choosing any WordPress theme. This means looking for one that’s regularly updated, has good reviews from users, and comes from a reliable source. This can be easier said then done, so let’s wrap up with some examples to help you start your search.

4 Examples of Podcasting Themes for Your Website

Now you know what to look for in a podcasting theme, you’ll likely want to explore your options. To get you started, here are four themes from our own collection. Each one was designed with the needs of a podcasting website firmly in mind.

1. Dixie

If you’re looking for a simple-to-use yet powerful podcasting theme, Dixie is one to check out. It offers a clean, uncluttered layout and appearance, to keep the spotlight firmly on your podcasts. What’s more, Dixie is easy to set up and customize quickly. At the same time, it provides access to a lot of dedicated podcasting functionality.

Key Features:

• Offers multiple layout options, so you can create a unique-looking site.
• Includes the popular Elementor page builder, as well as specially-designed add-ons.
• Provides embedded media support, to make displaying your podcasts easier.
• Features a fully-featured audio player, which is compatible with all major browsers.

Pricing:

The Dixie theme is available for $69. As with all our themes, this price includes one year of updates and support. You can also get the full bundle of four themes for $139, or lifetime access to the entire collection for $389.

2. Satchmo

Podcasts may be audio-based content, but they’ll get more attention if you support them with strong visuals. The Satchmo theme helps you design your website to look elegant and professional, so it’s a worthy showcase for your episodes.

Key Features:

• Integrates easily with key podcasting plugins, such as PowerPress and Seriously Simple Podcasting.
• Provides a host of design options, color choices, and font controls, so you can customize your site to fit your brand.
• Offers embedded media support, as well as supporting MP3 files (both locally and externally hosted).
• Includes an episode slider, enabling you to display your podcasts in a stylish, creative way.

Pricing:

You can get Satchmo, along with a year of updates and support, for $69.

3. Gumbo

If you want the ultimate in control over your podcast website, you can’t go wrong with Gumbo. This theme is both flexible and powerful, providing a ton of options to help you bring your vision to life. Customizing Gumbo is easy, and the result will be a modern-looking, highly-optimized podcast site.

Key Features:

• Enables you to display your podcasts just about anywhere you want on your site.
• Lets you include a download option, and set your podcasts to play in a new window.
• Makes it possible to customize every aspect of the theme, including layout, features, colors, and so on.
• Includes a Show Hosts page, to show off the personalities behind your podcast.
• Our Gumbo theme was selected as one of the Fastest WordPress Themes by WPBuffs!

Pricing:

A license, updates, and support for Gumbo will cost you just $69.

4. Bolden

The three themes introduced so far are ideal if you’re running a single podcast. However, what if you’re managing an entire podcast network? Enter Bolden. This robust theme is designed to feature multiple podcasts on one site – although it’s great for solo podcasters too!

Key Features:

• Offers dozens of design and layout options to help you organize and showcase multiple podcasts.
• Includes a Shows custom post type, to help you create podcast pages more quickly.
• Provides a set of add-ons specifically created for podcast network sites.
• Is well-optimized and fast, to keep performance high no matter how many shows you upload.

Pricing:

Despite its many extras, Bolden is available for the same $69 as our other themes (which naturally includes updates and support).

Conclusion

Creating a visually attractive and compelling website takes time. With the right theme, however, the effort required can be dramatically reduced. This is just one reason to pick a theme designed for the exact type of site you’re building.

If you’re a podcaster, this means looking for a dedicated podcasting theme. You’ll want one that’s reliable, performs well, integrates with key podcasting tools, and provides all the features you’ll need to display your episodes effectively. Fortunately, it’s not too hard to find themes meeting all of these criteria.

Do you have any questions about how to choose the right podcasting theme for your website? Ask away in the comments section below!

The post Choose the Right WordPress Theme for Your Podcast Website appeared first on SecondLineThemes.

Many times, when installing a new plugin or theme, you may encounter the Parse error: syntax error, unexpected T_FUNCTION error. This error is basically indicating you that there’s something wrong in one of your functions.

Most of the times, you should also get the exact located of where the error actually appears – Parse error: syntax error, unexpected T_FUNCTION in /public_html/wp-content/themes/custom-theme-name/functions.php on line 123.

Fixing the “Parse error: syntax error, unexpected T_FUNCTION” Error

There are multiple ways in which you could fix the “Parse error: syntax error, unexpected T_FUNCTION” error. We’ll explore the different methods here, but first, let’s discuss the actual origin of these errors. Basically, the T_FUNCTION error appears whenever there’s some syntax errors within your plugin or theme files. It can either be a non-valid part of your code, or alternatively the plugin or theme is trying to use features of a more advanced PHP version than the one actually installed on your server.

Method 1: Upgrading Your PHP Version (Recommended)

This method would be the best way to solve the “Parse error: syntax error, unexpected T_FUNCTION” error. Specifically if it really originates from a use of new PHP features while you are running an outdated version. Running an updated PHP version could both solve these errors and upgrade your performance, so it’s a double win for you!

Most hosts would allow you to manually change the PHP version via the cPanel:

1. Log in to your hosting provider cPanel
2. Look for the PHP Configuration button
3. Manually select the a newer PHP version. We recommend PHP7 if available, but otherwise try to make sure it’s 5.4+

If you don’t have access to the cPanel, or prefer that the hosting provider deals with it, you can try contacting them by email with the following message:

Hello,

I’m an admin of a WordPress site hosted on one of your servers. Unfortunately, I get many errors due to my outdated PHP version. I’ll deeply appreciate if you could help me upgrade my PHP version to PHP7 if you support it. Otherwise, 5.4+ would be also acceptable.

Can you please let me know if it would be possible to upgrade my PHP version?

Your help is much appreciated.

Method 2: Deleting the function located in the error message

As mentioned above, you can usually see the exact path of the error – Parse error: syntax error, unexpected T_FUNCTION in /public_html/wp-content/themes/custom-theme-name/functions.php on line 123..
Now, you can browse to the full path by using an FTP Client, and edit the file mentioned in the error (in our example, it is the functions.php file, on line 123). Then, check the function or the few lines of code that are located there, and comment them out. This should work well for non-important functions. Unfortunately in case we deal with core features of your theme/plugin you will have to use Method 1 and upgrade your PHP version.

If you need a savvy WordPress developer to help you out, please consider Hiring an Expert.

The post Fix “Parse error: syntax error, unexpected T_FUNCTION” appeared first on SecondLineThemes.

When getting the “Bundled outdated copies of WooCommerce template files”, make sure not to panic. That sounds more confusing than you might think, and a solution isn’t that complicated to achieve – let’s see what causes this error, and how we can easily fix it:

Fix WooCommerce 3 Bundled Outdated Copies of WooCommerce Template Files

Origin of the Error and How To Fix It – Why does this error occur?
Well, this error can theoretically occur whenever a new version of WooCommerce is released and you manually or automatically update the WooCommerce plugin. In your custom theme, there might be some WooCommerce templates that are overriding the original WooCommerce files, and as you can assume, once people start modifying files, each update carries a slight risk that something will be broken.

Generally speaking, having an outdated versions of WooCommerce template files won’t affect the plugin’s performance. However, this can cause display errors, lack of new features etc.
The old template files that are modified by the developers of your theme need to be updated accordingly.

How to Fix WooCommerce 3 Bundled Outdated Copies

The solution depends on which templates are outdated, but the procedure of fixing this error is always the same. You have to change the WooCommerce files within your theme with the updated ones.

To find out which files are outdated, navigate to Admin -> WooCommerce -> System Status. Once you see which template files have issues, write these down, and open your theme’s folder via FTP or on your hosting File Manager.

(Side note – it is a good idea to create a child theme. This would keep the original Theme files from being affected if you make a mistake. If you already have a child theme — that’s great! But if you don’t, please see our tutorial first, and then come back to continue with the fix.)

Since there are many files that may be outdated, we will proceed with an example. Let’s say that the following template files are outdated:
theme-name/woocommerce/pagination.php
theme-name/woocommerce/form-shipping.php

You can simply Fix WooCommerce 3 Bundled Outdated Copies errors by checking which updates were applied to these specific files on the official WooCommerce Github repository.

Once you do this, you’ll have to see if there weren’t massive changes to the WooCommerce functionality on the problematic templates, and then update your files. It is important to manually update the version number on the top of your file. This would ensure the WooCommerce 3 Bundled Outdated Copies message disappears.

Wrapping Up

To sum up – the best way to fix the WooCommerce 3+ “Bundled outdated copies of WooCommerce template files” error in case you have a premium theme is to update the theme itself. This should ensure everything is up to date in regards to your theme as well, as long as the theme developer has patched the theme.

What if your theme cannot be updated, or you’re using a custom theme? Well, try to find out which template files are problematic and manually update them.

The post Fix WooCommerce 3 Bundled Outdated Copies appeared first on SecondLineThemes.

Fix the Google Maps Not Working Error

The Google Maps Not Working error in WordPress appears because you need to add an API key to make the maps work properly. This is a requirement since June 2016, and it is related with how Google handles traffic for the Google Maps service. Follow the steps bellow to properly display the maps on your website:

1. Getting an API Key

Head out to Googles Maps JavaScript API website. You should see a few clear steps on how to get the API key. Almost all Google services require authentication. This is ultimately a good thing, because you can closely monitor requests and API usage from the Google console. For the Google Maps specifically, you can choose between 2 packages:

• Standard API users. This is good for most people, as you get 25,000 map loads in 24 hours. If you exceed this limit, you can setup a pay-as-you-go billing to adjust things depending on your website traffic.
• Premium Plan users. This package is paid one, but you get significantly higher map load limit as well as some other advantages like 24-hour technical support. This plan is intended for websites that receive large amounts of traffic, and 90% of the time, it doesn’t apply to WordPress websites and blogs.

2. Registering the Key with your URL

Now that you know the difference, you can start with the free Standard API package by clicking on the blue “Get a Key” button. Note that you must have a Google Account and be signed in when you do this. Once you click the button, a window will pop-up on the screen asking you for a project name and TOS agreement. The name can be anything you like, but it is conventional to write your website’s name.

Make sure you register the Google Maps API with your URL, or else you would still have the Google Maps Not Working error. We must associate the URL with our new Google Maps API.

After a few seconds, you’ll get a “You’re all set!” window with your API key. You need to copy this key, because now we’re going to use it in WordPress. To improve your website’s or app’s security, you can restrict the key’s usage from Google’s API console.
Using Your API Key in WordPress

Wrapping Up

Sometimes, the Google Maps still works on older domain names. If we wish to display the Google Maps on a new domain, we must register an API key or else we may get the “Oops! Something went wrong.” Google Maps Not Working error. displayed when you were checking it out, is because the developers were using their own API key for previewing the theme’s features. This also applies to plugins. To display the map with your location, you must use the API key generated in the section above. How can we do that? Well, it all depends on the package. The developers either reserved a field in the theme/plugin settings for the API key, or you need to find the API request into the code, and insert it yourself.

To find out which option applies in your case, go through the options page, and look for Google Maps API key section. You can also ask around on forums and support pages. If there is a field, you just paste in your key and you’re all set! Now, when you reload the website, your location should be displayed.

If you need a savvy WordPress developer to help you out, please consider Hiring an Expert.

The post Google Maps Not Working in WordPress appeared first on SecondLineThemes.

Fixing the Can’t Upload Theme – “Are you sure you want to do this” Error

The first solution is for people who have SSH access to their servers and are comfortable with using the terminal and vim. The second solution is for people that don’t want to play with server configuration files, and prefer an easier, GUI approach using an FTP client.

Option 1: Modify PHP Configuration (VPS/Dedicated Hosting)

Depending on the package you have, hosting providers allow you to change PHP’s configuration files. But this often applies to VPS and dedicated hosting plans that have SSH access. Shared hosting can be tricky to configure, as you’re on a server with tons of other people and you don’t have the desired control to make changes. That’s why this method is recommended for people with VPS or dedicated hosting plans.

The configuration file we need to modify is called php.ini.

Finding php.ini Location

Login in your server using SSH, and navigate to your document root. For this solution, we will be using an Ubuntu 14.04 LTS server. Provided you have installed all the necessary tools for your WordPress installation, open your document root by:

Command: cd /var/www/html

Once you are in the document root, carefully go through the following steps:

1. Create an empty file called info.php by typing: sudo touch ./info.php.
2. Open the newly created file by typing: sudo vim info.php. Once vim opens the empty file, we will write a single line of PHP code. Press I to enter the Insert Mode in vim, and then write: <?php php_info(); ?> . To save these changes, press Esc, then write :wq and press Enter. This will tell vim to write the changes and quit.
3. Go to you domain or IP address, and open up this file by typing: www.mydomain.com/info.php
4. Once it opens, look for Loaded Configuration File. It will be somewhere in the beginning of the listed configuration. This will tell us where the php.ini file is stored on our server. It should look something like: /etc/php5/apache2/php.ini. Make sure to copy or remember this path.

IMPORTANT: Once you know the path, you need to remove the info.php file, because other visitors can type the same URL that you entered and see your PHP configuration. It can make your website vulnerable to all types of attacks.

To remove the info.php, open your terminal again, make sure you’re still in the document root (if not, navigate back to it), and write:

Command: sudo rm ./info.php.

Modifying php.ini

Now that we know where our main configuration file lives, we will open it with vim, just like we opened info.php, and make some changes to it.

Steps:

1. Open php.ini. Write the following command to open php.ini: sudo vim /etc/php5/apache2/php.ini. Remember, this is the path from info.php. It may be different in your case.
2. The command above should open a pretty large file. Press I to enter insert mode of vim, and scroll until you find the following 2 variables (lines): post_max_size and upload_max_filesize. Their default values should be 8M and 2M. And this why your theme wouldn’t upload. Since you’re in insert mode, replace the default values to 30M on both variables.
3. Common thing to do, is to increase the memory limit as well. Find the memory_limit variable, and increase it depending on how much RAM your server has. The default value of memory limit should be 128M. You can change that to 256M.
4. Once you made these changes, press Esc to exit Insert mode, and write :wq to save the changes.
5. Final step is to restart apache (our web server), so that these changes can take effect. Write the following command: sudo service apache2 restart. If you’re using a newer Ubuntu server (i.e. 16.04 LTS), the command is slightly different: sudo systemctl restart apache2.service.

You’ve made it! Now that we changed the upload file limit, you can upload your theme without any problems using the WordPress uploader.

Option 2: Upload Theme via FTP (Shared Hosting)

If you are on a shared hosting, or maybe you don’t want to mess around with server and PHP configuration, there is a simpler way to upload your theme. This solution involves creating an FTP account in your cPanel, and using an FTP client.

Login into your cPanel, and find the FTP Accounts section. There’s a good chance that your hosting provider already created a default FTP account for you. If so, you can use that one with your login password, or create a new one by inserting a path, username and a password.

The important thing here, is to get the FTP credentials that will allow you to login and upload the theme. There are 3 credentials that FTP clients ask for: server, username and password. You can get all these from the FTP Accounts section in your cPanel.

Now that you have an FTP account, it’s time to put it into use. There are many FTP clients around, both paid and free. If you’re on a Mac, I would suggest Cyberduck, a free FTP solution with great user interface. If you’re on Windows, check out FileZilla.

Regardless of which client you pick, once you install it and open it, find the Open/New Connection tab. Once you click on Open Connection, populate the following files accordingly:
Protocol: Choose File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
Port: This should be pre-populated for you, but in case it isn’t, the File Transfer Protocol uses Port 21 for incoming connections.
Server: This is the server field from your FTP Accounts. Often, hosting providers set the server name as the domain name – without the “www”. So, it could look something like mydomain.com.
Username: The FTP username
Password: The FTP password

Once you hit connect, you should see your root directory (which was /var/www/html in our case – as seen in the first solution). From there, you can click between directories just as you would do in your OS. This is much easier from navigating between files and directories using the terminal like we did above.

Unpack your zip theme file in your computer, and navigate to /wp-content/themes/ in the FTIP client on the server. Now simply drag and drop the unzipped folder into the theme’s directory, and wait a few minutes for the transfer to complete. Note that the theme is larger, the transfer could take up to 1 hour to complete. Your internet connection speed is also important.

As soon as the transfer finishes successfully, you can go to WordPress Dashboard -> Appearance, and find your theme there. Then, simply activate the theme and you should have everything fully working.

Note: Make sure that the transfer was completed successfully and error-free. FTP can be a fragile process, and clients can stop the connection or transfer to the server if something’s wrong. You can make sure that everything went fine by checking out the client’s transfer console.

If you keep getting interrupted, you would need to remove the files that are already transferred on the server, and start over – until the theme is 100% uploaded to the server.

The post Can’t Upload Theme – “Are you sure you want to do this” Error Fix appeared first on SecondLineThemes.

WooCommerce can be a little tricky when dealing with the WordPress sidebar positioning and display. If you’re looking for a way to disable the WooCommerce sidebar, and make your Woocommerce pages full-width, get ready to do some tweaking! We will cover the right and wrong ways to disable or remove the sidebar from your Woo Pages, and make your shop look awesome! But first, let’s see how you can enable the sidebar, in case you messed something up.

Using one of our Themes?

If you are using one of our Podcast Themes, for example the Tusant WordPress Theme, you can easily change the WooCommerce settings in the page you use as the shop page under the “Page Options” panel. Also, you’ll find a bunch of additional settings in the “Appearance > Customize” screen.

Enabling the Sidebar

The WordPress sidebar should be active by default. If not, you might need to go to Dashboard → Appearance → Widgets, and add some widgets to the sidebar to make it visible. WooCommerce comes with custom widgets that you can select called “Show Overview Page” and “Single Product Page”. Just drag & drop them in your sidebar, and they should appear in your store.
Also, you might need to go to the page in question, and select a template with a sidebar. This can happen when you have a Shop page that’s using a full-width template (without a sidebar).

Disable the WooCommerce Sidebar

There are a couple of different options you could use to disable the WooCommerce sidebar. We’ll go over all the options and show you how to disable the WooCommerce sidebar on your own:

The “Wrong” Way

There’s a good chance you read somewhere that the easiest way to remove the sidebar is to use the following lines of CSS:

.single-product .sidebar {
		display: none !important;
	},

or even something like:

.woocommerce #sidebar {
		display: none;
	}

The first snippet will hide the sidebar from your single product pages, while the second will hide it altogether on every WooCommerce page on your WordPress website. But the trick here, is that even though you won’t see the sidebar, it will still be rendered and take up space in your template. This is because CSS can’t stop an element from being rendered – it can just hide it. Also, this would not necessarily work for all themes, and if you’re using a custom theme it may not work properly so make sure to double check that.

The Right Way to Disable the WooCommerce Sidebar

To properly disable the WooCommerce sidebar, we’ll need to write some PHP code, and manually change what WordPress should render on the front-end. Here are a couple of solutions:

1. Disabling Sidebar Using a WordPress Hook (Recommended Method)

This is the best solution, and it is considered to be the “WordPress way” of doing things. Navigate to your theme’s functions.php file, and write the following code:

function disable_woo_commerce_sidebar() {
	remove_action( 'woocommerce_sidebar', 'woocommerce_get_sidebar', 10); 
}
add_action('init', 'disable_woo_commerce_sidebar');

2. Disabling Sidebar in a Custom Template that Displays WooCommerce Products Alongside Regular WordPress Posts

You can use the is_woocommerce() function to detect whether the current page that’s being accessed is a WooCommerce template or not. The function will return true if it is a Woo page, and false otherwise. So in our theme’s sidebar.php, we could write:

	if ( !is_woocommerce() ) {
		get_sidebar();
	}

Using this logic, we can easily determine what type of page the user is accessing, and based on that, we can call the function that renders the sidebar. So let’s say that you open a product page (which is a WooCommerce template). Then the expression within the if statement will return false, and the sidebar function won’t be called – meaning the sidebar won’t be rendered.
How does the !is_woocommerce() return false? Well, the is_woocommerce() function will return true, and the ! (not) operator will convert the “true” into the opposite value, which is false.

3. Disabling Sidebar in a WooCommerce Template

Navigate to woocommerce/templates/shop, and open up the sidebar.php file. Here, you need to comment out everything in the sidebar.php file using /* at the very top, and */ at the very bottom of the file. Save it, and see if it worked on the front-end.

If you need a savvy WordPress developer to help you out, please consider Hiring an Expert.

The post Enable and Disable the WooCommerce Sidebar appeared first on SecondLineThemes.