Want to Become a Theme Forest Author? Follow These Advice

Q: A new member signs up with ThemeForest and is hoping to upload his or her first item. Any advice?

Use the help of the community to get your items uploaded and to improve yourself. Authors, customers, reviewers, almost everyone here is very helpful; so don‘t hesitate and ask

Don‘t give up if an item gets rejected several times, it happened to almost all of us!

Source: Inside the Mind of ThemeForest’s Top Selling Author

Themes with the most sales:

Buy Now Demo

Buy Now Demo

Buy Now Demo

Brandon Jones

Q: A new member signs up with ThemeForest, and is hoping to upload his or her first item. Any advice?

Do your homework! Look around to see what’s selling the best. Follow your favorite authors to see what they do and how they work. Read the forums and product threads to see how authors and buyers interact. Read the blogs to see what’s new at the marketplace. All of these are crucial to really diving in and understanding what it takes to become successful at ThemeForest.

Source: An Interview with Brandon Jones

Themes with the most sales:

Buy Now Demo

Buy Now Demo

Buy Now Demo

Jeffrey Way

Q: What types of issues commonly cause submissions to be rejected?

When reviewing templates, we have a list of areas to review. Does the item validate? Is it aesthetically pleasing? Will it appeal to a mass audience? Was it coded with the latest standards? Has the author included an extensive help file for the purchaser?

More than any other, we often reject templates because of aesthetic reasons. Over the last six months, I’ve found myself consistently recommending to the author that they focus on their lines, padding, and color. These three components seem to be the most lacking, among newer designers/devs.

We also find that many authors seem to be “in a hurry” to list with ThemeForest. We’re a marketplace for premium templates. Unfortunately, all too often, we receive submissions that appear as if they were completed in a few hours. To these authors, I encourage them to offer as much value to the buyer as possible.

- Don’t just submit a single page template. Add as many pages as necessary.
- Buyers like variety. Considering this, it might be a good idea to offer multiple color schemes.

The more value you add to your template, the better it will sell.

Source: Interview with Jeffrey Way of ThemeForest (Plus a Giveaway)

Items with the most sales:

Buy Now Screenshots

Buy Now Screenshots

Buy Now Screenshots

Srhnbr

Q: Describe your creative process. What steps do you normally follow to create your files?

Once I have a good idea, I brainstorm design and functionality realizations of the concept and write down or sketch things as a visual reminder. At the same time I do research to see how a certain design or functionality idea I come up with is used in real world websites.

This process may take anything from a few hours to few days. Then as the idea takes form in my head I start designing in Photoshop and almost simultaneously start to code. Sometimes I create an HTML version of the theme and other times I go directly into WordPress development.

Q: What is your advice to other authors regarding how to create a successful portfolio?

Learn to develop flexible themes. Support and update your themes. Listen to your buyers and selectively take their suggestions into consideration working them into your updates.

And again, support your themes! Your buyers will respond to that and will come again either themselves to buy again from you or tell their friends about you.

Source: Author Interview: Srhnbr

Themes with the most sales:

Buy Now Demo

Buy Now Demo

Buy Now Demo

Imaginem

Q: Describe your creative process. What steps do you normally follow to create your files?

I do sketches on pieces of paper. These don’t really materialize to actual designs. I keep the papers unorganized in my drawer and refer to them from time to time. It’d be Photoshop layouts first. I redo the layouts until I feel comfortable with working on them with CSS and HTML.

Q: What is your advice to other authors regarding how to create a successful portfolio?

For me it has been the discipline to not be distracted and keep working on a design until you’re satisfied with it. It’s a simple formula for good results.

Source: Author Interview: Imaginem

Themes with the most sales:

Buy Now Demo

Buy Now Demo

Buy Now Demo

Cudazi

Q: Describe your creative process. What steps do you normally follow to create your files?

Finding inspiration for the next site is something I don’t force. I keep paper handy and scribble down ideas as they come to me or stick a note in my phone. I try to focus on a site’s ultimate purpose or goal before moving into design or deciding on exact features. The design should complement and never distract from the purpose of the site.

Q: What is your advice to other authors regarding how to create a successful portfolio?

Practice, practice, practice. When things aren’t turning out as you had planned, take what you have learned and move on without becoming frustrated. As you gain experience, you will begin to learn what you do well, what you have a passion for and begin to head down that path. As time passes and you gain confidence, knowledge and experience, expand your skills and style.

Source: Author Interview: Cudazi

Themes with the most sales:

Buy Now Demo

Buy Now Demo

Buy Now Demo

Before we get started there are a few things you need to know in order to sell items on the Envato marketplaces. It won’t take long to learn, and after you’ve read it and completed the quiz, you can start uploading and selling your items!

ThemeForest: Common Rejection Factors

Before submitting your first template to ThemeForest, consider the following factors, which frequently contribute to rejected submissions. Please note that this list should only be used only as a guideline.

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