{"id":8574,"date":"2015-05-07T11:00:23","date_gmt":"2015-05-07T16:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/getflywheel.com\/?p=8574"},"modified":"2023-09-13T14:54:41","modified_gmt":"2023-09-13T19:54:41","slug":"sell-wordpress-themes-marketplace","status":"publish","type":"resource","link":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/resources\/sell-wordpress-themes-marketplace\/","title":{"rendered":"Should You Sell WordPress Themes in a Marketplace?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The reasons behind the popularity of WordPress are many: ease of use, flexibility, and of course, it\u2019s easy to extend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As a result of the platform\u2019s popularity, more designers and developers are creating plugins and themes for WordPress. In fact, it\u2019s kind of a saturated market now. How do you stand out? More importantly, what\u2019s the best way to promote and sell your WordPress theme so that you reach the biggest audience possible and get promising returns?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Should you go the simple route and rely on marketplaces such as GumRoad or ThemeForest? Or should you go solo and sell through your own website?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What the WordPress Theme Market Looks Like Right Now<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Speaking entirely in general terms, the WordPress theme market is incredibly crowded. Even a few years back, I wrote an article discussing <a href=\"http:\/\/www.yangpress.com\/is-an-overcrowded-market-hurting-the-wordpress-theme-industry\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">the state of the WordPress themes\u2019 business<\/a> and analyzed why the market was overcrowded. That was 2013.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The reason the WordPress themes market is crowded is still the same: Whenever there is demand, the supply follows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/getflywheel-images.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2015\/04\/sellWP1.jpg\" alt=\"A busy city intersection\" class=\"wp-image-9628\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, the more theme sellers there are in the market, the less each theme will be worth. After a time, even the end users stop looking for new theme providers and stick with the ones who\u2019ve built a reputation, like <a href=\"http:\/\/www.woothemes.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">WooThemes<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.elegantthemes.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Elegant Themes<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you\u2019d like to try to catch the attention of buyers as a theme developer, you\u2019ve got some choices to make.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Selling Through a Marketplace<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One obvious route for selling your work is through marketplaces such as <a href=\"http:\/\/themeforest.net\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ThemeForest<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/mojomarketplace.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MOJO Marketplace<\/a>, or <a href=\"http:\/\/creativemarket.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Creative Market<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Users search for and purchase themes, and the marketplace deducts a commission off the sales. There have been a good deal of success stories about WordPress theme makers who\u2019ve made it big via marketplaces: AJ Clark and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ormanclark.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Orman Clark<\/a> are two names that come to mind straightaway, as both of them got their start on ThemeForest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>Pros:<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A large target audience instantly available<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>No headaches such as ecommerce management, billing tools, etc.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Easy to get started<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>Cons:<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Part of your revenue goes to the marketplace<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>At times, you might be bound by the licenses of marketplaces<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/getflywheel-images.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2015\/04\/sellWP2.jpg\" alt=\"Phone, scissors, post it notes on desk\" class=\"wp-image-9631\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Selling Your Themes Your Way<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The second route that you can take is to sell themes via your own website, much like WooThemes, Elegant Themes, WPZOOM, and a zillion other providers are already doing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In general, every provider offers two solutions: The customers can either purchase a single theme or opt for the subscription model where they pay a fixed fee and are entitled to download the provider\u2019s entire collection of themes for a period of, say, one year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>Pros:<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>You\u2019re the boss!<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Easy to target a specific niche<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Ample room for growth<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>Cons:<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Difficult to get noticed if you\u2019re new<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Need to deal with security, ecommerce settings, payment gateways, etc.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Is One Route Better Than the Other?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Shockingly, there is no direct answer to this question. However, we can apply some logic to your choice. If you\u2019re a new theme maker trying to get noticed in the crowded WordPress market, it\u2019s probably worth it to sacrifice that commission and sell via a marketplace. This is particularly true if you sell themes targeted at a broad demographic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/getflywheel-images.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2015\/04\/sellWP3.jpg\" alt=\"Person writes in a notebook\" class=\"wp-image-9632\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, if you\u2019re targeting a specific niche, say church themes or photography themes, doing it from your own website might be a better solution. You can define a niche for yourself and cater to a specific user base that will probably need recurring subscriptions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But remember that you can go both routes too. You can set up your own shop on, say, ThemeForest or Creative Market, and also sell a different set of themes through your own website. This is a model with a long-term selling strategy: A customer purchases your theme via ThemeForest, is impressed, and visits your website. They\u2019ll see that they can get 10 other themes for a paid membership to your site. The next time they go shopping, they\u2019ll keep your theme shop in mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In other words, a marketplace may offer better exposure for your business, but having your own shop has more room for a loyal clientele. You should try to grab the best of both the worlds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Do you sell WordPress themes via marketplaces or your own shop or both? Share your experiences with us!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The reasons behind the popularity of WordPress are many: ease of use, flexibility, and of course, it\u2019s easy to extend. As a result of the platform\u2019s popularity, more designers and developers are creating plugins and themes for WordPress. In fact, it\u2019s kind of a saturated market now. How do you stand out? More importantly, what\u2019s<span class=\"tile__ellipses\">&hellip;<\/span><span class=\"tile__ellipses--animated\"><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"template":"","resource-topic":[901],"resource-role":[1397,896],"resource-type":[916],"class_list":["post-8574","resource","type-resource","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v20.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Should You Sell WordPress Themes in a Marketplace?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"You made a beautiful theme, now is it time to put it in the Marketplace? 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