Website Design – How Much Does it Cost?

I’m asked this question often.

In fact, it’s probably the most common question a prospective client will ask me.

And it’s often their primary focus.

I don’t blame them. Marketing dollars are precious and they’re entering a territory they know little about—website design and development.

Whenever I’ve hired a contractor, price was always a top consideration and I wanted to know… How much will it cost?

So when it comes to website design and development, what’s the answer?

Well, it depends.

Why? Because each job is unique and there are so many variables that go into a website design. I’ve talked to business owners who’ve come to me confused because they have three bids from three web designers, with prices ranging from $3,500 to $35,000.

So, when it comes to hiring for website design and development, the client has to play a guessing game…

Who is legit?

Is it a matter of inexperience vs. experience?

Small firm or freelancer with low overhead vs. big firm with high overhead?

Or fair vs. inflated pricing?

And the big question: How much should a website cost? Really?

The truth? There is no clear cut answer because there are so many variables.

You must first consider the following… what exactly, does a new website mean to my business?

If you’re now in the market for a new or revised website design, I think you need to stop and reexamine what web design is and should be for your business.

In fact, I think doing a bit of planning and research before you talk to any firm or freelancer about website design is going to save you a ton of pain and frustration.

Plus, you’ll go into the process feeling comfortable, confident, and ready.

First, create a basic website checklist.

A website checklist with questions that not only address website design, but your brand and your ongoing marketing needs.

So, How Much Does Website Design Cost?

Filling out your own checklist is the best way to answer this question. Because if you want a website that reflects your brand, clearly articulates what your business does, and is built to be a part of your marketing machine, you must consider all the elements that go into it.

A website design checklist will not only help you go into the process prepared and ready, it will also help you think through what a powerful tool your website can and should be.

Before I go any further, I wanted to let you know I’ve created a worksheet so you can easily follow along with this series:

For the worksheet, go to Branding Worksheets and click on “website design checklist”

Now, let’s get rolling, shall we?

How Much Does Website Design Cost?

To gain some clarity, read the following and follow along with your website checklist. Below are 10 components to consider when designing a website…

1. Logo and branding development.

You might have a logo you want to update, or it might need a full redesign.

And what about your overall visual branding? Color standards, typography, etc.? Oftentimes a website redesign is the perfect time to address a company rebranding. And a huge part of that is a cohesive visual style, for your website and any other marketing materials that might be part of the process.

Do you need logo and branding development? If so, this should be part of the process.

2. Brand positioning.

By positioning, I mean a short, descriptive statement that clearly articulates your brand, what makes it unique, and who your customers are?

This statement is oh-so-important because it brings clarity to your brand.

In the marketing world we call this a positioning statement—a concise paragraph that clearly defines your brand DNA.

If you can’t define the essence of your company in short form, take a step back and start defining.

This is part of brand development. And brand development gives your brand clarity. Clarity helps your site do what it is supposed to do: clearly define your business, attract and convert new customers, and show them exactly how you can solve their problem.

The best place to start? See my post on writing a positioning statement.

If you feel you need help, make this step part of the web design process.

3. Content.

It doesn’t matter if you’re redesigning your current website or building a new one, content (read: good copywriting) should not be an afterthought.

Many companies are so focused on website design they don’t think about copy until the very end.

Me? I like to include copywriting at the very start.

Why?

Think about it. If you want to clearly tell your ideal customers what you can do for them, isn’t copy where you should start?

Of course, and step 1 above is your bedrock for good copy.

Copywriting is an essential part of a new website design. Ideally you should start the copywriting process in conjunction or soon after step 4…

4. Site structure.

How many pages will your website need? What about navigation? What pages will be top-level and what is the best way to get a viewer from one page to the next?

Do you want to build a site ready for future expansion, so you can add additional pages, links, and copy?

Will there be other needs like creating a library of pdfs to download?

5. Photography and/or illustration.

A photo shoot might be needed—to create “at work” shots or to photograph your employees and feature them on an “our team” page.

You may forgo custom photography for illustration. Or simply opt for more budget-friendly stock photography.

Whatever medium you choose, it needs to be included in the budget.

6. Interface design.

This is the look and feel of your site. The visual design of your home page, secondary pages, headers, fonts, colors, opt-in boxes, social media icons, page footers, etc. And help with the photography and/or artwork mentioned above.

In this era of ready-made templates, a well-designed layout that helps bring your brand to life is often sidelined.

You can get a canned theme but if you want your site to stand out, you’ll need to invest time and money in good design.

7. Website functionality.

What happens when a prospect lands on your home page? Is there an opt-in box asking for an email signup?

Will your contact page have a detailed contact form?

Does your home page need animation? Video? Complex forms?

What about products? Are you in need of shopping cart functionality?

You should consider all the details here. What you really want and what should be cut out. And this should be part of the initial conversation with your web designer.

8. Blogging and social media.

If you want blogging and social media integration that’s great. If you go with the WordPress framework, this is a natural part of the design and development process.

But have you thought about your after-launch marketing?

If you want to include content marketing as part of the process, you need to include blog functionality and social media integration, and work with someone to help plan this all out or at least help you get started with an integrated marketing approach.

And make sure there is someone at your company who can manage, and preferably, contribute to this process.

9. Testing and site launch.

Testing is an important and necessary component, with so many browsers, mobile vs. desktop, and bugs that inevitably come up. You need to make sure your site works.

And what about your web host? Do you want to keep the current hosting plan or migrate to another? If so, someone has to do the installation and make sure all is in proper working order before your site goes live.

10. Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

Every page (and post) on your site should be optimized so both people and Google like your content. Analytics should be setup so you can track site visits. Items like Google Webmaster Tools should also be considered.

There are also a multitude of things you can do to help your site’s search engine ranking off-site too. If SEO is important to you, this should be part of the process, and SEO best practices should be a part of any site design.

There!

Now, just to review, here are the elements you should consider with any site design or redesign…

  1. Logo and branding development.

  2. Brand positioning.

  3. Content.

  4. Site structure.

  5. Photography and/or Illustration.

  6. Interface design.

  7. Website functionality.

  8. Blogging and social media.

  9. Testing and site launch.

10. Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

So, How Much Does a Website Design Cost?

First, let me tell you, you can get a site designed for $3,000-$5,000, but this is usually only slightly beyond the generic WordPress template. In other words, it won’t be a completely custom design, and it will have minimal or no brand development, custom copy, or training included.

So, to make this easy, I’ve broken this down to three tiers of site design…

1. Basic website design.

2. Medium website design.

3. Advanced website design.

1. Basic Website Design Fee Range: $7,000 – $12,000

Here you can get a customized design. The reason I’m calling this a “basic” site design is because it is of course going to be a well-designed, clean, and easy-to-navigate site, but it won’t come with all the bells and whistles you might want.

Here you can fit in a minimal amount of help with branding and copywriting, but if you’re looking for a site in this price range, you should come prepared with these items in hand. The creative time here is focused mainly on overall site design.

Extras like help with positioning, blog training, and research are not included.

You will get a site built with current best practices in mind. Including testing, basic SEO, and a site optimized for speed and functionality.

Here is what this price range includes:

Initial meetings and planning
Site structure (site map and wireframes)
Visual Site Design
Development (programming)
Content porting
Testing and site launch

Photography and/or illustration (stock sources)

Training documentation

Search Engine Optimization (SEO): Basic SEO best practices included with the site.

Some help with:

Logo and branding development

Content

Blogging and social: Basic setup with social media icons. Standard WordPress blog setup included.

Does not include:

Positioning, blog training, and research.

Total average cost: $7,000 – $12,000

2. Medium Website Design Fee Range: $8,500 – $16,000

In this range you get more pages, additional functionality (more complex forms, maybe a photo gallery or two, etc.), with more time dedicated to research and design. Basically more bells and whistles added to the mix.

Here, there is a bit more help with visual branding and copywriting, client training, and more robust keyword optimization. Initial research is also part of the process.

Extras like help with positioning and blog training are not included.

You will also get a site built with current best practices in mind. Including testing, SEO best practices, and a site optimized for speed and functionality.

Here is what this price range includes:

Initial meetings, planning, and research
Site structure (site map and wireframes)
Visual Site Design
Development (programming)
Content support and porting
Testing and site launch

Photography and/or illustration (mainly stock sources but can explore options)

Client training and documentation

Search Engine Optimization (SEO): Basic SEO best practices and more involved keyword optimization.

Some help with:

Logo and branding development

Content

Blogging and social: Basic setup with social media icons. Standard WordPress blog setup included.

Does not include:

Positioning and blog training.

Total average cost: $8,500 – $16,000

3. Advanced Website Design Fee Range (more pages, additional functionality, with more time dedicated to research, design, content, process flow, SEO, and training): $17,000 – $30,000+

This is where you can get just about everything you want. Here, we’ll spend time on branding and logo design, and you will be working with a copywriter who will help you with page copy, initial blog content, and keyword optimization.

This is where a firm comes in and does it all–design, copy, development, and training. It’s the best mix of creative, programming, and consulting.

Another benefit: Branding development is part of this process, so you’ll have great copy to work from and full design standards for future marketing materials, both online and off.

Here is what this price range might include:

Initial meetings, planning, and in-depth research

Brand positioning statement

Full copywriting services
Site structure (site map and wireframes)
Visual Site Design
Development (programming)

Includes Search Engine Optimization (SEO): SEO best practices, and more advanced SEO strategies, including off-site SEO are included
Content support and porting
Testing and site launch

Photography and/or illustration (here we will most likely work with a photographer or illustrator, but those costs are not included in the range)

Client training (there will be an on-site workshop) and documentation

Includes 1-2 on-site blog training sessions (we’ll also cover social media and SEO)

Search Engine Optimization (SEO): Basic SEO best practices and more involved keyword optimization.

Basic visual branding needs: Style guide, and business card and letterhead design

Total average cost: $17,000 – $30,000+

It can also include a great deal more and sites can cost way in excess of $30,000. But since these are the price ranges we most often deal with, and for the sake of simplicity, I’ve focused on these three tiers of pricing.

Other Considerations

Reviewing Firms and Individuals

If you read this post in detail and go through the worksheet, you’ll have a better handle on this process. If you do so, I don’t think you’ll see pricing from $3,500-$35,000.

Chances are though that the pricing might be fairly broad, even if you’ve provided apples-to-apples detail. At this point you need to interview the individuals or firms and 1. Make sure you’re going to get all that you ask for, 2. Review the experience and references of the company or individual, and 3. Trust your gut.

You need to know what you’re getting but you also need to feel comfortable and confident when it comes to interacting with this person or firm, because the process could take several weeks to several months.

Just make sure you go over the details and feel a sense of rapport. That last part is extremely important, and a harmonious relationship might be one of the most important—yet often overlooked—parts of the entire process.

After Your Website is Launched.

When your site is finally live it’s not the end of the story, of course. And it’s best to think through this extended (after launch) phase at the very beginning. Backups, site upkeep, blogging and content marketing efforts, social media marketing, tracking and analytics, etc.

You may want to work with a firm that provides training so you can do all of the above. Or you might want your web design firm or freelancer to handle it all. Just make sure they can.

It is very important to make sure you have a plan for this extended marketing phase—it’s what your website can and should be built to do.

This is all covered in the website design checklist. For the worksheet, go to Branding Worksheets and click on “website design checklist.”

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