IshYoBoy creates hip, stylized themes that help our users showcase moments and artistry (such as travel or photography blogs).
We took them through our Seller Spotlight questionnaire to find out what makes them tick!
Who is IshYoBoy?
We’re a small team of 3 – Vlad, Matt & Milan. Long time web-developers, design enthusiasts and WordPress lovers.
How long have you been developing WordPress themes?
We teamed up and started developing Premium WordPress Themes back in 2012 – just 2 of us back then. After a long period of stagnation, being unhappy with tight project deadlines, which did not allow us to bring anything more challenging to the table, we finally decided that it’s time for a change. That is when we started creating our own projects and had the freedom to tinker with every little detail until we felt our themes were perfect.
Why did you choose WordPress as your platform?
We’ve been working as web-developers for years and WordPress seemed to bring both simplicity and great modularity which other CMS platforms didn’t. It was a pleasure working with it, although as with every project it does have some parts we are not so happy about. All in all, it is a great CMS being constantly developed and its potential is huge. Not only for Websites, but as a back-end for applications, services, etc.. It is extremely scalable.
What is your design/development philosophy?
We believe the most important part is the design. It needs to be simple, functional and very attractive, so people would want their websites to look as good and of course purchase it. A theme can be as good as a space rocket with endless functionality from the inside, but if it is dressed in an old, ugly dress, no one would care having a look inside.
The design is the most important part to attract people, but then how the theme works, what it offers, how easy it is to manage it, is also a crucial part. The customers expect quality for the money they give so you don’t want them dissatisfied. The theme needs to be easy and simple for basic users, but it also needs to be as developer friendly as possible to allow web-developers to easily control and further modify it or even build upon it.
So to sum up it up. Keep it beautiful, simple, powerful and functional.
What advice do you have for theme developers just starting out?
Be prepared that the market is changing with the speed of light. What used to be a good strategy a few months ago can be a really bad choice today. Not only the technology and trends adapt, but also the taste of buyers. Be prepared for a change and don’t be afraid to experiment.
Sometimes it is easy to slip into bad decisions, seeing other authors’ strategies and trends in the marketplace, but you should always keep in mind that you are creating for the users. We are the authors who teach the buyers what to expect from WordPress themes. We therefore have a huge responsibility. We believe keeping the themes simple, without bloating it with thousands of options and features is the right way to go. Would you rather drive a car with many options like in an airplane’s cockpit or in the same car with just a few options allowing you to focus on the ride itself?
So keep the themes simple and follow WordPress Guidelines.
What’s your favorite theme on the Marketplace? why?
It is hard to choose just one theme. Each theme should be unique and should serve a specific purpose. Having a one theme for all possible purposes can be ok, but we believe it will not bring the best to the users.
From our themes we really love the “Tayp WP – WordPress Blogging Theme” – It brings a fresh modern design compared with usually boring blogging layouts. It focuses on image-rich bloggers who love to show moments from their, journeys and lives.
We also love “TinyShop WP – WordPress E-shop Theme” – which if you compare with Tayp is completely different focusing on small e-shops.
Also, we recently published “Hedy WP”, “Ofis WP” and “Wildster WP”. These are our latest works and they are extremely customizable and powerful themes. Each of them with specific design and purpose. Our favourite one ot the moment is Hedy!
Buyers shouldn’t buy one theme and use it over and over, because they feel confident with it. Switching to different themes keeps their websites/project modern and alive. Having a different theme from the same author combines a new fresh look with very similar functionality, so the user will have the exact same experience they are used to.
What would you say your themes are best used for?
Each our theme has its own purpose, but all our themes combine the basic – Beautiful simple pages, beautiful blog layout, Beautiful portfolio & Gallery and all are WooCommerce compatible.
With all themes our clients can have beautiful company, agency, business presentation. They can be used for blogging or to present the portfolios of painters, designers, illustrators, photographers, etc..
With each of our themes, clients can easily set-up an e-schop by simply installing the free WooCommerce plugin and it will incorporate the same visual styles as the theme itself.
Do you have any tips for users trying to choose a WP theme for their project?
Sure. Make a list of all the important features your project needs to have and decide which can be managed via plugins and which are needed in the theme. Do not be afraid to ask authors if you do not see it listed in the item description. Sometimes one thing seems extremely important for you, but it is a basic standard for the quality of the author’s themes and they don’t even mention it.
Also read the reviews of users and how author replies to questions in the forum.
What do you do when you’re not coding?
We move! Literally we try to be outside as much as possible. Spending a lot of hours in from of the computer is often really tiresome. We love to be in the nature, running or hiking in the mountains, exercising on the beach, travelling, spending time with our families and friends and in general doing anything which is not related to work.
It’s important to disconnect each day after the work is done. So we start fresh each morning with clean heads full of new ideas.
Matt
Milan
Vloo
