For any business to achieve success, it is paramount to have a website. The majority of people purchase products and services from businesses online. As a business owner, you need to have a well-designed website containing all the necessary features that buyers need. However, most small business owners fail to have good websites due to various reasons such as budget, time, and lack of experience. Having a website that has been professionally designed will give you a chance to outperform your competition.
What is the average cost for website design for small businesses?
Website design for small businesses can range from anywhere between $2,000 to $15,000 if the work is entrusted to a design agency. Alternatively, one may find an online freelancer who will complete the work at a lower cost, but the quality of freelance work is often uncertain.
Also, if you decide to build a website by yourself, it will cost less than hiring a professional web designer. In case you opt for DIY, there are tools that you can use for web design and development. Hiring a professional is most recommended to ensure you get a functional and well-designed website. Below is all you should know about the average cost of website design for small businesses.
Factors that Influence Web Design Costs
Before building a website, you need to research and purchase the necessary website essentials such as a domain and hosting. Domain refers to a URL that is the website’s address. Web hosting, on the other hand, refers to sharing and storage of your data. You will also need an SSL certificate for the encryption of private data.
Many hosting providers allow small business owners to buy and manage their SSL security and domain through them. Listed below are essentials to determine how much it will cost for you to build a website.
1. Domain Name
It is best to choose your domain name when selecting a business name. The majority of domains are inexpensive, but you need to be prepared to pay a reasonable price if you require a desirable one. It can cost from $1 to about $15 yearly. A domain name is more like an online street address; that is why experts recommend you purchase one similar to your company’s name.
There are many companies such as Dreamhost, HostGator, and GoDaddy that sell domain names. You need to research and make comparisons to identify best.
2. Hosting Options for Small Business Website
Your website’s complexity and traffic will significantly influence your choice of small business website hosting model. Website hosting prices range between $20 and $300 yearly. Below are common hosting types.
• Managed Hosting
Managed hosting services are best for businesses that require a different company to handle their software and hardware. Hosting companies conduct server maintenance and manage updates allowing business owners to focus primarily on their business. There are other advanced hosting options, such as cloud hosting and dedicated servers. Managed hosting is the most expensive compared to standard shared hosting, but it is necessary for larger businesses with high traffic.
• Shared Hosting
Shared hosting means that your website data will be stored on a server together with data from other different websites. It is recommended for entry-level websites because it is cost-effective. However, you need to note that there may be user experience issues if traffic spikes because the processing power and memory are shared.
• Virtual Private Server
A Virtual Private Server (VPS) is an upgrade of the standard shared hosting. Even though your website will be on a shared server, it will have its own space. VPS also provides you with more storage and customization options. However, just like shared hosting, it is not the best if your website has high traffic.
The majority of hosting providers offer small businesses a chance to bundle their SSL certificate, domain, and other hosting services together. It is easy to manage your payment in one place because you get reduced monthly pricing for the services.
It is recommended you pay for the services for at least a year in advance to benefit from the incentives provided by hosting providers. The good news is that when you require more server resources, you can upgrade your plan at any time.
3. SSL Certificate
Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificates offer protection for site visitors and websites. Regardless that an SSL certificate is optional, it is essential for most businesses. It helps build the trust and credibility of your website. It motivates your users to purchase your product. SSL certificates protect your business and brand by safeguarding your customer data from hackers.
In some cases, some web hosting companies offer free SSL certificates with a subscription. However, you may have to buy an SSL certificate based on your needs. The cost can range from $10-$200 monthly.
4. Number of Pages
Websites vary significantly in size. For example, a service-based company may have ten pages or less, while an e-commerce store may feature 100 pages or more. Even if the pages have a similar layout, it takes time to build and design the pages. The web design and development process determine the cost. Page costs for sites that have 1 to 50 pages can range from $1,000 to $5000.
Web design agencies usually offer the price ranges in tiers such a 1 to 10 pages or 10 to 20 pages, and so on. It means that if you need 15 Pages, you will fall in the 10 to 20-page category and pay the stated tier’s rate.
5. Design
Design is a significant cost factor when it comes to small business web design costs. One company may require a straightforward design, while another may need one that is high-end and complex. Some pages require multiple templates or designs, such as product or service page, contact page, and homepage.
Design cost ranges between $2,000 and $15,000. You should talk to several web design agencies and make comparisons of the design costs. Ask for high-end designs and basic designs and compare to come up with a realistic budget.
6. Additional functions
Additional functions may impact a website’s cost and range from $2,000 to $25,000 on top of website development costs. A small business website owner may need to customize features such as user profiles and online payment. Building a web page and expecting to generate high amounts of traffic is unrealistic.
Website owners need to employ marketing practices to attract potential business. To become an active marketer, you need a Content Management System (CMS). CMS tools like WordPress are practical marketing tools and can range from $2,000 to $25,000.
Marketing and Maintenance Costs for Small Business Websites
After you are done building your website, there are other costs associated with sharing and storing data. Ongoing fees contribute to the overall cost of a website. It is essential to invest in ongoing maintenance because every website has routine expenses. Maintenance is necessary to maintain the excellent performance of the website.
You will also have to pay for any changes that you make to your website. The cost will vary depending on the option you will have selected and their recurring costs.
Website maintenance cost include:
· Payments to a designer to make the necessary changes
· Annual web hosting fees
· Annual cost for SSL certificate
· Annual cost for renewal of domain
· Subscription for anyone WordPress plugins
· Subscription for your website builder
Common Mistakes to Avoid when Building a Website
It is crucial to note that your choices when creating a website will impact the overall cost. You need to know how to avoid unnecessary spending. There are a lot of common mistakes that many small-business owners make when building a website. Below are the most common mistakes.
Avoid paying for services and features that you won’t use
Keep in mind that your website setup can grow as your business expands. It doesn’t make sense to pay for features that you currently don’t need for your business. Instead, you should select hosting services, plugins, and themes that you need. The hosting service you choose will determine the overall cost of creating a website for your business.
Choosing the wrong hosting service type can cost you hundreds or thousands of dollars annually. You should check out your traffic to determine if you should pay for more features. There are many services and features that will not benefit you unless you get consistently high traffic to your website.
Not creating a marketing plan
For your website to be successful, you need to establish credibility and authority. It can take many years to build traffic, even if you have SEO in mind when creating your website. A marketing plan will help you reach your audience fast and convert them to website visitors. Conduct research on ways to attract visitors to your website. Find out information that will help you to drive more traffic.
Failure to capture sales and leads
Your website should have all that is required features to capture leads. It may be in the form of a sign-up, subscription, or newsletter. The primary purpose of a website is to drive revenues. It is not wise to have a website and not convert people to customers. Optimize your website to capture sales and leads.
DIY Web Design vs. Professional Web Design Cost
Some small business owners believe that it makes sense to create a DIY website. A self-service website cost can range between free to about $1,000. Hiring a professional, on the other hand, ranges from $2,000 to $10,000. The difference in the price of several thousand dollars makes self-service website building the most cost-effective alternative. However, the lack of experience in website building has many downsides when it comes to web development.
A DIY web developer has to learn the ins and outs of using a website builder. On top of that, they need to know and understand the basics of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and web design practices. To find a website and be motivated to use it, there need to be effective SEO practices.
For someone to build a website correctly, it takes a lot of time to learn. It means that a DIY web developer may save on website design costs but use a lot of time to learn. You will have to do all the work by yourself, which can cause a significant delay in launching your site.
You will also have to learn how to maintain the site and troubleshoot issues. Eventually, you may pay twice for the website if the DIY provider failed to deliver the first time. Unless a business owner fully understands the intricacies of web design, they will have no choice but to settle for a plain and basic web presence.
It is not good because the website will not illustrate well what they offer to customers. Website design and development is a full-time job.
In most cases, small business owners lack time to learn about the process of designing a web page. Hiring professional web design services is the best option for you to get a functional and engaging website. When you compare the average cost of hiring a website designer and building a DIY website, it makes sense to hire a professional because you will gain more from the investment.
Consideration Before Hiring a Website Designer/Agency
Before you consider looking for a web designer for your small business, you need to outline your needs. Keep in mind that the complexity and scale of your project will have a significant impact on the team you will hire.
There are many factors to be considered at every stage of development, such as the content you have, the technology integrated into the website, and how the project will impact those who visit the site. Below are considerations that will help you hire the best web designer.
Identify your goals and priorities
You need to identify your goals and priorities. Ask yourself if you will be selling services or/and products or simply providing information. A web designer will most likely provide you with answers to these questions but at that fee.
Instead, you can search online and identify websites that are similar to what you want. It will be easy for you to develop a clear outline of what you wish your website to accomplish. Knowing why you want a website is a good starting point as it determines how the project will turn out.
Estimated time to complete the project
The overall time you have work on the project is of great importance. Content gathering, meetings, approvals, communications, and reviews are all part of website design and development processes. You want to work with a web developer who can include your internal team during the design and development processes.
Consider the location of the agency. Give priority to one that is nearest to you to encourage fast communication and approval. Hiring an agency that is far away may discourage timely services because of different time zones.
Budget
Building a website, in most cases, costs more than your budget. You should create a flexible budget for any additional features or functions that you may need. Before you consider even talking to potential web design agencies, consider finding out the rates of web design services within your area.
Talk to other business owners within your locality. They will give you a rough estimate of the total cost. Use this information to come up with a reasonable budget. It is tempting to opt for a designer who charges the lowest rates. It is not a good option because it could be detrimental to your business. The cost should match the value of services offered for you to gain the most from the investment.
Find out their web design process
Having clearly defined processes is what streamlines projects to ensure the agency meets your goals and deadlines. Choose an agency that has a timeline for all deliverables. It will be easy for you to plan for your availability for approvals and reviews. A good process will help save time and lead to great results. If you find that they don’t have a streamlined web design process, avoid them because it will lead to a delayed launch.
Services provided
Regardless of whether you want to build a new website or re-design an existing one, it is paramount for you to know the exact services offered by the web developer. Check out the services provided by multiple agencies and make comparisons. Comparing their portfolios will enable you to identify those that have the most potential to meet your needs.
You should also go through online reviews to get more information about their credibility from past clients. If you find that they have many positive reviews, it is an indication that you can rely on their services.
Experience
It would be best if you chose an agency that is an expert in your area of interest. Ask for a similar sample project of what they have done. If you find that their portfolio is impressive, it is an indication that they will exceed your expectations. Most web designers have vast expertise in different technical languages and skillsets.
Hiring an expert who can handle your specific type of project will give you comfort in knowing that you are dealing with professionals. Confirm that they have the necessary background required for them to deliver the best results. If they have any certifications and awards, it is a further indication of their credibility.
Future plans
When planning for your website, you need to put your future in mind. A good web designer will deliver everything you need and ensure your website is scalable. The website needs to accommodate your business growth. It should be easy for you to incorporate additional features to match the growing needs of your business. If you find that they are not knowledgeable about creating a scalable website, you should move on to the next agency.
Building a website doesn’t necessarily have to be costly. As long as you pick the right web designer, you will get good value for your money. Your goal should be to select a development and graphics designer who will work with you when new projects come up.
It will help maintain the consistency of your brand. Because your website will need regular maintenance, you want to find a developer who will attend to your website needs. Choose a team that you can communicate with easily on any additional services you may require.
As a small business owner, you should develop extensive plans for your website. It is good to be realistic and set achievable goals when starting. It is common knowledge that a new website will not match high-end websites that have existed for many years. Your tech skills, budget, and time, will determine your website goals.
It means that you need to spend your money and time wisely to achieve the best results. Keep in mind that there are many things involved when developing a website other than the costs. It would help if you thought about how you plan to run the site daily.
