You’ve done it! You’ve busted your behind, dreamed big, been smart with your finances, and now the fruits of your labor are there for the taking. You built a business with a great product or service and it’s a success.
To ensure that the hard work that you’ve put into your business doesn’t go to waste, you’ll want to make sure that you get the best looking website you can. It’ll be money well spent – it’s an extension of more than just the business, but the brand as well. That means that it needs to look sleek, operate well, convey your message and your services correctly, and rank well in the search engines, too.
As a successful business owner, you want to know what goes into the price of your website design before you commit to building the website of your business’ dreams. What goes into the cost of your web design project hinges directly on time and features.
Time
When discussing the budget of your web design project, time means literally the time that the project team will need in order to complete your project. This can include designers, developers, project managers, copywriters, and more depending on the scope and scale of your project. The higher your budget, the larger amount of their time you acquire for the website and the greater ability to customize your site to your exact specifications.
The time allotted to your project team is separated into approximately four stages that will encompass the totality of your project from beginning to end. If your team discovers that additional time is needed for a particular part of your project, they will discuss the extra time needed with you and obtain approval before billing for any extra time.
Kickoff and Planning
The pricing for the kickoff and planning stage tends to be flexible because each project is different – no two websites and businesses have exactly the same needs. During this stage, your team will meet with you to discuss your vision and needs for the site and begin planning the foundations that the site will be built on. This is when your site hierarchy and wireframes will be constructed – the skeleton of your web design project.
Design
The design stage will incorporate a chunk of your budget. This is the phase when your web design will start to take shape. After the structure and the wireframes of the site have been established, the designers will diligently begin to work on designs for your site. By mixing colors, fonts, shapes, and dynamic elements in order to promote you and your brand to the best of their ability, they work with your ideal clients in mind to ensure that your site is both beautiful and effective.
Program Development and Content Support
A large portion of your cost will be attributed to the development stage. Once the design of the website has been approved, developers and programmers will begin to turn the design into reality. This involves fine attention to detail and skill as they code your web design into a functional, beautiful website.
Testing, Launch, and Website Training
A predetermined amount of time will be set aside for this final stage. The site will be tested to make sure that every part of it is functioning properly and that it also looks beautiful in every browser and search engine. Once completed, the site will be launched and you and your staff will be properly trained in how to use your new website.
Features
In addition to the time that it takes to build, design, and test your web design project, cost also comes out of particular extra features that your site might need.
Content and Copywriting
When it comes to customizing your website, you definitely want your site to be unique and get your message across. If you haven’t had a website for your business before or if your old site’s content is out of date, you may be interested in an extra budget for expert content and copywriting for your site. Skilled writers will work with you to ensure that your brand’s voice shines through on every page of your new site, but the writing time is an extra feature.
Images: Stock or Authentic Photography
One feature that always makes a site pop and creates engagement with its visitors are stunning images and photos. Depending on your industry, you may need to enlist extra image help during the design phase which can cost more. Stock photos tend to cost less, but look less custom and can end up making your company look generic. Professional photography can make a huge difference in the overall look and appeal of your website but can cost you a lot more.
What’s a Website Cost?
The answer to this question tends to be an old adage: you get what you pay for. A beautiful, new, custom web design will cost more, but the benefit to your business and your brand will offset the price.
Contact Your Houston Web Design Agency Today
Costing your web design project doesn’t need to be a mystery. Call one of our representatives today to schedule your free consultation at 281-764-9070 or fill out our form.
