These habits apply to any theme and platform. The theme page describes the exact options of each theme.
Work on a copy
- On WordPress, use a staging copy from your host, or a local copy, before changing a live site.
- On Shopify, customize the unpublished theme from your theme library and publish when you are ready. Duplicate it before big edits.
- On Next.js, work on a branch in Git and use a preview deployment to review.
Back up first
Before any significant change, take a backup of your site. A backup you have never tried to restore is only a hope, so know where it is stored.
Change one thing at a time
Change a colour, then check. Add a section, then check. If something breaks, you know which change caused it. Check each change on a phone as well as a desktop.
Use the editor, not the code, where you can
- Elementor and the WordPress Customizer cover most colours, fonts, spacing and layouts.
- The Shopify theme editor lets you add, remove and reorder sections.
- For Next.js themes, content and data files are usually where text and images live. Read the project's README.
If you edit code
- Keep your changes small and documented, so you can find them later.
- On WordPress, put custom code in a child theme or a code snippets plugin so a theme update does not overwrite it. Check the theme page for what the package offers.
- Do not edit plugin files directly.
Images and text
Use images you have the right to use, resized and compressed before you upload them. Replace placeholder text completely, because visitors notice leftover sample copy.
Updates
We send theme updates by email for as long as we publish updates for that theme. Before you install an update on a customized site, back up and try it on a copy first.
When to ask for help
Support covers installing the theme as documented and fixing defects in the theme itself. Custom development is a separately quoted service: customization is quoted individually from $99, and installation from $29 per site. Both are arranged by email and are not part of checkout. See Contact support or write to us through the support page.