[intro]When you have completed this Guide, you’ll understand how to change the Theme of your EKM online shop and how to view the new design on the front end. [/intro]

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The first step to creating your EKM online shop is to apply a Theme, as this applies the bare bones of your shop design before you add your own branding and images to it. On EKM, the Themes have been divided into industry types as a guideline to help you select the right design for your brand and your products. However, all Themes can be applied simply by adding your own logo and design images that compliment your brand.

[tips]If you're not sure which Theme to choose, this Guide lists all of the available Themes on the EKM online shop platform. [/tips]

Selecting your Theme

1. To change your theme, log into your account and click Design on the left-hand menu:

2. Then you need to click Theme:

3. On this page, click the More Actions button on the far left beneath the largest Theme image, and from the drop-down menu, select Change Theme:

4. This will take you to the Themes area, populated with every Theme currently available on the EKM platform. This page displays the Featured Aerial Themes first by default, as these are the latest to be released by our Design Team:

5. Down the left-hand side of the screen, you’ll see a grey menu bar where you can select your Theme based on your industry if you choose. 

Legacy Themes are our older Themes and are different to the Aerial Themes. You can read more about the differences between Aerial Themes and legacy Themes in this Guide. 

[tips]If you plan on using a legacy Theme, ensure that the menu of the Theme is how you want it to be going forward. There are lots of different kinds of menus, but these cannot be edited as they are native to the Theme. However, all other aspects of a legacy Theme, including headers, design images and editable elements can be edited by our Tweaks Team if need be.[/tips] 

6. When you see a Theme you like, click it, and this will open a page about the Theme with a preview of how it appears on different devices. If you like the Theme, click the green button to apply it to your EKM online shop, or click the X symbol in the top right-hand corner to select a different Theme:

7. If you click to apply the Theme, you’ll see this window. Click the green button:

8. You’ll then be redirected to the Design page:

[remember]The more recent the Theme, the more use you will have from it - we recommend that you upgrade your Theme every two years - this ensures that your online shop design will be unaffected by upgrades to browsers, user experience research and a host of other factors which can affect how your site displays to potential customers. Some of the older Themes will be eventually discontinued as their layout and structure pertain to older standards for user experience and browser compatibility.[/remember]

Testing your Theme

9. To see how your EKM online shop looks with the Theme applied, you need to click Settings in the bottom left-hand corner:

9. Beneath the Shop Settings header on the top left of the screen, you need to click Domain Name:

10. This will reveal the current Domain Name of your Shop, which will look something like this:

If you have already pointed a domain name at your EKM online shop, you'll see it listed here, but if not, simply right-click the default domain name - which includes your Account ID - and select 'Open In A New Tab'. This will open the 'front end' of your EKM online shop in a separate browser tab so you can see how your new Theme will appear to your customers. 

When experimenting with different Themes, it’s a good idea to keep this browser tab open so you can view how the different Themes display until you’ve discovered one that you’re happy with. 

[tips]Whilst you are creating your site, it’s a good idea to hide your shop behind a password wall until it is complete, so you can launch it to the public when it is ready. Click here to find out how to install the Password Protect feature.[/tips]

[remember]Every EKM online shop has a default domain name like this, to begin with, as technically the shop is live the moment the account is opened. The domain name consists partly of your Account ID and this default domain name is visible on the front end of your EKM online shop until an actual domain name has been applied. You can claim a free domain name from EKM Domains by following the steps in this Guide.[/remember]

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[contact] If you need our help with your EKM online shop, contact your Ecommerce Expert or the Customer Support Team, who will be able to point you in the right direction. We're open from 8am-6pm weekdays and 9am-5.30pm weekends. If you'd like to suggest a feature or an upgrade on any of the EKM platforms, please let us know on the EKM Suggestions Board. If you have a non-account specific question to ask the EKM Team, join us in EKM Community. If you need some inspiration for your EKM online shop, listen to our podcast on iTunes and Spotify.[/contact]