A template is a very common way of doing a website.  There are many limitations to a templated website that companies tend not to think about. 

In the short term, they might work.  In the long term, they inevitably break.  What is the difference between them? We try to explain it in realistic terms.

There are really 3 basic ways to get a theme onto your website, otherwise knows as the `look & feel` of your site.

They are:

(1) Use a template
(2) Modify a template
(3) Custom design a site

In order to show you clearly what the differences are, we use an anology of buying a house.

Use a template (buying a small, used house)

Think of a template as buying a used house. The layout of a template is fixed.  In order for it to work, you have to use all the features of the template the way it is.

Compare it to a used house.  The layout of the house is fixed.  It works for you today, but what about when you change your family, change your job?  You can't do anything to suit your lifestyle without doing some major and costly renovations.  And you don't have a lot of room to move around, so the small house just might no longer be for you! 

It works the same with a template for your website.  If you want to add a feature, change a feature, sometimes even customize the information of graphics, then the template has to be renovated!

If you are using a site that is only information for clients, then this might be a great solution for you. But if you want to do anything fancy with your website, you should carefully explore template options.

Modify a template (buying a big, used house) 

If you want to use a template and make just a few small changes to it, this is possible for sure.  But templates are written by other people, and the skills of those other people are not guaranteed!  Every designer has a different technique and level of experience.  There is no way to find out this level of a template before you buy it.

Think of this option like buying a big, used house.  The layout of the house is fixed, but with a bit of money and time you can renovate and make the changes that you want.  The house is big enough that you have some room to move!

Put it into perspective with your website.  Suppose for a moment that the template is done well, and you just want to modify it.  It might be a small project to accomodate for your need, or we might have to knock down a few walls to get it there!  Depending on the needs of your website, it might be cheaper for you to have a customized option.

Customized theme (building your own home)

If your site is going to be powerful for your business, then we recommend a customized theme.  By customizing your theme, you are planning your site for today, 2 years from now, and 5 years from now.  If you decide to change it in the future, we have tried to clearly anticipate your needs so that it can be easily adapted to meet future needs. 

Think of this option like building your own home.  You build it knowing how long you would like to live there, what your future dreams will be, and even the size of your future family!

This is exactly what a custom site will do for you. It will plan for the future.  Your future, and your unique needs.