How much does it cost to build a website?
Discover what to consider when building a new website for your business.
Whether you are setting up your business for the first time or expanding onto online the one thing you will want above all else is a professional looking website to advertise and promote your brand online.
However, this can be expensive depending on how much you want to include on your site and whether you need to hire any professional designers / developers to create it.
Why is it so important to have a professional site for my company?
A website is one of the biggest assets your company has. It is often the first place any potential consumer will engage with your business, so it is important that it not only reflects your brand but also that it is easy to use and navigate.
According to a survey conducted by Adobe, 38% of those surveyed said they would leave the website if it was not properly laid out or attractive. This means that 38 out of 100 consumers could potentially be lost if you have a poorly designed site which could severely affect your sales.
Your website is your chance to show off your company, to sell your brand to the masses and encourage others to find out who you are, so you need to make the most of this.
How much does it cost to build a website?
This is the big question but there is no simple answer. The website cost will rely purely on what you want to include on the site, whether you need to hire designers and how professional you want it to look. There are cheaper options out there, but you need to ask yourself what you want your site to look like and whether these platforms can offer this.
Remember, this site is your virtual store front, so it needs to be attractive, interesting and it needs to grab your target market’s attention.
What should you consider for your website?
There are several factors you need to consider before building your website. These will also help you decide on other important decisions during the design and creation of your site.
Size
This is an important point to consider, are you looking for a big, fancy, all in one website with all the trimmings.
Alternatively, you may be looking to create a basic site where you can promote your business and encourage them to contact you via email or phone.
When it comes to designing websites, size matters so consider the purpose of your site and just how big you envision it to be.
Hosting
Some CMSs come with built in hosting but not all. You need to consider whether you want a platform that hosts your site or whether you will be hosting through a 3rd party platform.
Either option comes with extra fees so make sure you are aware of how much this is. Also, if you do decide to host your website through a 3rd party platform ensure you trust the company.
Ask around for recommendations to get the best, most reliable service. The last thing you want is to sign up to a company who continually has technical issues, meaning lengthy downtime for your site and potential loss of income.
Technical Features
This is often another fee on top of everything else but for many companies it is a necessity. Before designing your website consider what technical features you want to add to your pages.
It could be as simple as a contact us form or you may need complex ordering systems for your ecommerce platform. Consider what technical features you need and whether it is something you can do in house or whether you will need to outsource.
Agency vs In House
This brings us nicely to the next point to consider. To keep in house or outsource to an agency, that is the question?
If you have skilled designers and professional developers, you may feel confident in keeping it all in house. However, if you don’t have the resources then you may decide outsourcing to a design or marketing agency may be a better option for you.
The benefit of going with an agency is that they will provide all the resources from designers and developers to content writers to meet your exact requirements.
They can save you a lot of time and money and will create a high quality product for you at the end. Similarly, to the hosting platform, make sure you shop around to find the agency most suited for your requirements and who have a good reputation.
Design Features
One of the most important aspect of the website to consider is the design elements. This will help you create the final look of the site, so it is a vital part of the planning process.
Do you want a static site or a dynamic one which updates as you add new content? Do you want an optimised site to make it mobile friendly?
Consider all the design features you want on your site. This will also help you decide on other factors such as whether you need to outsource design to an agency and what CMS is more suited to your needs.
Website CMS Costs
We have written a post previously about the different CMSs and their benefits and to help you out we have provided you with some website cost ideas. Please note, these are only rough prices and will vary for each company and each plan.
WordPress
This CMS is an open source platform so is suitable for any type of site from ecommerce to a general blog.
The platform itself is free to use but you do need to buy a domain and either host it on WordPress or another platform. Expect to pay anything from £3 to 60 a month depending on your requirements for your site.
If you don’t have a designer there are lots of theme templates which you can purchase as well from as little as £30. There are also other costs involved especially if you need to incorporate an ecommerce platform into your site.
Wix
Wix offer some business website plans which start from £16 a month. These often include an ecommerce platform, a free domain name for 1 year, as well as other benefits depending on the package you opt for.
OroCommerce
OroCommerce have two different editions, a free one called OroCommerce Community Edition and an elite package called Enterprise.
This CMS is geared towards B2B ecommerce so is more expensive than many others. But as a leading B2B ecommerce platform provider they are experts in the field and can help you build and develop your ideas into the perfect website.
Shopify
Shopify is another ecommerce platform and unlike many others it is an all in one tool which includes domains and hosting.
Similarly, to other platforms it offers a selection of plans to help you build the website you have in mind with the budget you have allocated. Prices start from $29 a month (roughly £22) and each plan increases in price as well as offering more in depth features.
As this is an all in one platform, you can end up spending a lot of money as they offer a variety of ecommerce features as extras so if you opt for this one keep an eye on your budget.
Drupal
This is another open source platform, although not as simple as WordPress to pick up. If you aren’t skilled in web design, you may need to hire developers to build a website for this platform. So, bear that in mind when you set your budget.
Prices are available on enquiry.
Overview
The cost of your website will all depend on your expectations and your ideas for your site. The more features and the more options and professional design you want, the more you are likely to pay.
However, you need to consider that this is a long term investment. Once your website has been built this will be one of your biggest assets and potentially a big part of your sales drive.
If you are looking for advice on which CMS to use or what to do next to get your website up and running look no further.
We are experts in all aspects of marketing from website design and development to SEO and can help your brand succeed. Whether you are a new company or looking at a bit of a refresh we can help you to create and launch your ideas.
Contact us today to find out how we can help your company succeed through marketing.