From time to time someone will ask me why I use Genesis framework.
What’s a theme framework?
WordPress themes define the design of your website, they control the look and feel. A framework simplifies the way to use a theme. Almost all of the programming is part of the framework, the design layer comes in the form of a child theme which contains only minimal programming. Child themes are like skins that sit on top of the framework so, when an update arrives for the Genesis Framework, it won’t break a site. Why? Because the customisation is stored in the child theme’s files only.
Genesis is a foundation for WordPress sites – an underlying framework of immaculate code that’s easy to work with and provides accelerated, powerful WordPress development.
I trust the Genesis Framework, and the team at StudioPress
Genesis is well-coded and well-supported. It’s consistently updated and maintained to reflect best practices for coding. Because of this, I never have to worry about whether updating to the latest version will break a site – I already know everything will be fine. I can count on Genesis being a reliable framework for the future. And l have unlimited access to support.
Simplicity
If you look around out there for themes, you’ll find plenty of them packed with bells and whistles. Google fonts, font icons, font size-changers, forms, sliders, a portfolio, social sharing icons, a colour picker, shortcodes, 15 extra buttons on the post editor, its own special widgets, and a pet echidna. (Okay, perhaps not an echidna, but you know what I mean.)
The problem with those themes is that they include everything under the sun. While that might sound like a good idea, it’s generally not – how many of those “features” do you actually need? And what happens after your blog posts or pages are filled with shortcodes and custom theme stuff and you decide to change themes? Yuk!
But the Genesis framework upgrades without buggering up any customisation.
Best SEO practice
The Genesis framework is created to get the most out of SEO. The way it’s built, as well as the way it structures posts and categories, ensures that your content will be easy to find and understand.
Google Authorship Identification
The Genesis framework supports Schema.org code, Google Authorship identification, so the basics of SEO are already handled. It also utilises microdata, which is important for making a site even more relevant and enticing to search engines and users. With Microdata, search engines like Google will display more data in search results. There may still be only one result, but it will be a richer result with more detailed information.
HTML 5
HTML5 is the new coding standard for websites. HTML5 is generally preferred for its better security, flexibility, SEO advantages, efficiency and the ability to adapt to the various needs. HTML5 usage ensures your site is responsive and looks great in all screen sizes, like phones, phablets and tablets.
That’s why I use the Genesis Framework.