Paying for website design can be a confusing!
There are so many companies out there competing for the business of making your website, it is hard to push past all of the sales jargon and see what is really in the actual product they offer.
At Sites By Design we keep it simple, we don’t cloud you with information to make more money out of you, sell you things you dont need or try to push you into paying for a product you cannot afford.
So, how much SHOULD you be paying for your website? It depends on your budget, the more you can afford the better your website will be, but you need to research the web design business you deal with and ensure their other sites are the same style you want your site to be.
Before you go ahead with buying a website you will need to research and build some of the foundational knowledge needed in order to plan your future website with care. To plan its menu layout, its content, its intended search engine layout and its onsite marketing and conversion plan.
The next thing you need to think about is the foundational side of the website, the programming which pulls it all together, in our case we use a CMS (Content Management System) called ‘Joomla! CMS‘ or WordPress Blogging Platform. These platforms are the most commonly used CMS systems on the market and both offer strong foundations for your online future depending on your needs.
When your content and details are correctly set up structurally it is time to theme your website. Often people offer ‘custom websites’ but these websites cost a lot more money then you need to spend! A good web company will have multiple themes they can work from and alter to fit your needs, this saves on their time and your money! The web designer will customise the theme to your business colours in order to make the site appear congruent with your business – so that your logo doesn’t look out of place on the website.
Once you have the foundations of data and theming set up you have two choices to make:
Choice 1:
You can continue on with a simple website – which may do the job in taking you forward. A cheaper website will usually not include design as a default as designers can cost a lot of money and take lots of time to come back with a result which pleases the visitor and the client.
Choice 2:
You can employ a graphic designer to create banners and graphics which will really make you stand out from your competition! This should be included on any standard 5 page website priced over $1,500. There will be a difference in pricing depending on the experience of the designer who is used. The less experienced (or self trained) designer will cost much less than the one who has been in the design industry for 5-10 years and has the experience behind him or her. In saying that, the more experienced designer will give you much more of a breath taking end result!
Is there anything else that should be considered?
Yes, there is! You need to think about your marketing. What is the message you want to put across to your website visitor? How will your message convert the visitor into a potential client?
Often the services of a copywriter are called into play with a professional website, this is another cost which can be included in a higher end site but will not come as a part of a typical lower price solution. These professionals are constantly training in the wordsmith art form. They learn how to write or rewrite your site in a way that leads to more business generation – an essential in our opinion but not a part of a cheap website (unless you request it).
A Search Engine Optimiser is sometimes called upon as well. This person has the job of making sure your website is very compatible with Google, this way the site may naturally find itself at the top of the Google search engine for the search terms which are searched most by your target demographic.
Beware of ‘SEO Companies’ (especially the offshore ones)! They can use cheeky and industry frowned upon tricks to get you to the top of Google quickly, but then a year or so later, Google penalties may cost you your websites listing in Google altogether!
We hope this has helped equip you for the purchase of your new website – where ever you get it!
At Sites By Design we sell websites with the possibility of adding on varied extra features. If you would like more information please contact us through this site. We can also offer the higher end solutions through our sister site Sites By Design!
