This new year we are ready to surprise you with more interesting news and excitement. So, here is our first surprise for you. We will be reaching you out with the excerpts of interviews with well-known and reputed tech experts across the globe every week. So, here is the first interview in the series.
Gone are the days when you needed to spend a fortune to get a website live. There is even no need to be a programming or design guru to set up your online project. The possibilities that ready-made website templates provide are limitless. For this interview, we have decided to reach David Braun, a CEO of TemplateMonster (one the leading themes providers), to find out more about the process of the themes’ development, their own story of establishment, and plans for 2017.
Before we get to the question-and-answer block, we would like to say a couple of words about the company and its founder. TemplateMonster.com is a well-known provider of ready-made website templates for a number of purposes and for multiple CMS and eCommerce platforms. The inventory includes more than 50,000 themes of different styles and for different business niches. With more than 100,000 daily visits, the company boasts a customer base of more than 5 million people.
The inventory includes more than 50,000 themes of different styles and for different business niches. With more than 100,000 daily visits, the company boasts a customer base of more than 5 million people.
TemplateMonster was founded by David Braun. A 35 year old CEO has built a team of over 400 people for over 14 years of the company’s existence.
➢ Hello, David. Greetings from Acodez IT Solutions. We’re glad that you could find the time for us from your busy day. So, let’s start the interview with how TemplateMonster came into being and what were the motivations behind the starting of this company.
Hello, it’s my pleasure to share the story of our company with you. Well, everything began when I was still in the university, until I finished my academic studies in Ukraine.
I once met an American investor (who later on became a co-founder of TemplateMonster), who was looking for talented and motivated young men who could help him develop websites for American customers.
It was back in 1998 when we started a small US-based design studio. That was the time when the popularity of the Internet only started to pick up speed. Our first job was commissioned for $7,000, which was a huge sum for those days. The business began to flourish; new clients and more orders were coming in.
While working with the team, I noticed one of our designers using a set of self-made tools that helped him speed up and automate the job. The same designer had a passion for drawing monsters.
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So, we came up with an idea if there was a domain with a word “monster” available. Luckily, there was a free one. So, we came up with an idea to launch templatemonster.com in 2002.
Back then, we were selling PSD templates only. As the time passed by, we wanted to enrich our inventory with new impressive designs. That’s when first WordPress themes appeared.
➢ Can you give us a brief on what TemplateMonster do?
TemplateMonster is a developer of ready-made templates for HTML5, the most popular CMS and eCommerce platforms.
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We are also releasing custom-made module and extensions for different platforms. It goes without saying that all of these extensions are compatible with our themes, so we can feel confident that every element works properly.
TemplateMonster has gone far beyond a web store only. We also run a blog for our customers, affiliate program for our clients, Startup Hub for business owners, and Template Help for clients.
The biggest goal that our team pursues is to provide our clients and partners with all the information and services that can improve their online experience.
➢ Since the inception of TemplateMonster, there had been a heavy rise in similar companies. How do you manage to stay on top of your game? What makes your templates different from your competitor’s?
TemplateMonster keeps up with the current web trends. Moreover, we strive to be a trend ourselves. The quality of our products has always been our top priority, as well as customer satisfaction and top-notch customer care services.
Whenever you purchase a theme from us, you may be certain that you won’t be left alone during the theme’s customization process.
We assist all our customers for free 24/7. You can submit a ticket and we will get back to you shortly. You can also reach us via email, chat or by the phone.
We also release templates that come with regular updates. We offer buy-out licenses as well, letting every customer become the only owner of the chosen template.
➢ To run a business for 14 years can never be a bed of roses. Can you share us with some of the biggest challenges that TemplateMonster had to face along the way?
Since its foundation, TemplateMonster has been the pioneer in the website building industry.
However, the situation changed about 5 years ago, when WordPress evolved into a giant content management system that got popularised at a tremendous speed.
The web design and development world started to change at a rapid rate. The competition got tougher, with more web companies being launched on the web.
Through the entire story of templatemonster.com, we have faced a number of difficulties. We faced frauds and DDoS attacks, but we have managed to survive, learn from our mistakes, and only get better and more powerful.
➢ Website development industry is an ever evolving one. How difficult is it to adapt to the changing circumstances in this field?
We are always ready for changes. We keep track of novelties in the industry and we are always ready to present innovations before those gain popularity in the web community.
So, we are not afraid of difficulties. Vice versa, challenges make us stronger.
➢ As per your decade long experience in the website designing industry, what do you feel about the future of this industry?
I think that the competition will get even tougher. Most likely, there will be a growing tendency of the workflow automation.
So, we will need to come up with more custom tools to speed up the customization of our themes.
We have already developed a series of drag-and-drop builders for different platforms. More smart options are not long on coming.
➢ Do you think 2017 will be a favourable year? And Why?
It definitely will be! Well, templatemonster.com has tremendous plans for the upcoming year. New themes and new projects will be released in 2017.
More valuable pieces of content, more recommendation and tutorials for our customers, and more beneficial offers for our clients won’t be left unspotted.
➢Free templates are definitely an added advantage for choosing TemplateMonster. How different are free templates from the paid ones?
Our freebies are no less impressive than premium templates. We even release clones of paid themes, which feature similar designs yet with a somewhat limited functionality.
Free templates are simpler than premium ones. They also do not include free customer support. Still, a detailed documentation folder is traditionally included.
Free themes do not get life-time updates nor do they feature child themes (unlike our multipurpose solutions).
➢ Does your company have a strong client base in India? What type of themes do Indian customers frequently use?
Yes, we do. TemplateMonster has customers from all over the world.
The themes that Indian customers mostly prefer include HTML5, WordPress, Joomla, MotoCMS, and landing page templates.
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➢ Moving onto our last question. Creating 26,000 templates is an incredible feat which shows the passion that Team TemplateMonster has for designing; a significant achievement indeed. Now, what’s next? Where is TemplateMonster heading?
We are planning to enrich our inventory with more impressive designs. One of our biggest goals for the nearest future is to launch a marketplace, where designers, developers, and web design studios will be selling their own products.
We have already done a lot to make this plan come true, but we would not like to unveil the mystery. Practice patience and see you in 2017.
If you like to feature your story through an interview with Acodie, feel free to contact us. For more information and queries, visit our website.
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Worth reading. Loved your way of writing.
All the Best.