As a general rule, web design cost is determined by several factors. The final price can be influenced by the number of pages wanted, whether or not content is provided, what features are included, and more. And, just like other major business expenses, companies are often looking for advice on how to keep costs down.
Yes, a well-designed website can be expensive. But, it pays to view your site as a property. Your physical property requires regular attention. You have to vacuum, dust, and maintain it. In the same way, you should be paying attention to your website. You have to add content, update pages, and – yes – redesign it every two to three years.
When planning your new site, though, there are several ways to cut down on your web design cost. If you’re willing to do some scouting, put in a little work, and realign your objectives, you can get everything you want out of your website without compromising your vision. Let’s look at a few ways you can reduce costs and save money without sacrificing the quality of your finished site.
Avoid surprises by researching your design team
If you follow any single piece of advice in this post, follow this: research, research, research. While it can be time consuming to find the right design team, it pays dividends. Before you sign a contract, be sure you’ve researched all of the top agencies in the area. Look at their portfolios. Get on conference calls. Ask about their design processes.
One of the most expensive mistakes business owners make is hiring an agency that can’t deliver on their expectations. In the end, you want to work with a team that has proven their ability to deliver high-quality websites.
What to look for when hiring a web design agency
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- How long have they been in business? How long an agency has been in business is a good measure of the level of service they provide. But, more importantly, an agency that has a long history also has a long future, ensuring they’ll be around when you need changes, additions, or updates.
- Do they have experience in your industry? While exact experience may not be necessary, projects tend to go smoother when the design team has completed similar jobs in the past. Additionally, sites related to your industry can give you a glimpse into how the agency will approach your project.
- How big is their team? A professional website is the product of several specialized skills. To get the most for your money, you want to be certain that the team you’re hiring has a copywriter, graphic designer, developer, and project manager so that no single person is juggling too many tasks.
- Can they handle all your needs? If you’ve outlined exactly what you want out of your website, the agency you hire should be able to deliver all of it. Whether you need ecommerce, reputation management, or other online services, sourcing them from a single team streamlines your project and your marketing efforts.
- What do their customers say about them? There’s no better way to gauge how a team works than to listen to what their customers have to say. Pay close attention to comments about the team’s responsiveness, professionalism, and the quality of the work that they deliver.
Limit your scope to reduce web design costs
When building a website, size is one of the main factors that influences its price. If you’re building a small, five-page website, you can count on a relatively low price tag. Conversely, a site that needs two hundred pages is likely to cost substantially more. But, most sites fall firmly on the lower end, with twenty to thirty pages. And, in most cases, those pages can be consolidated to reach a final count of ten to fifteen.
By striving to reduce the number of pages your site has, you can drastically reduce your web design cost. More importantly, you create a better customer experience by serving visitors with longer, more authoritative pages that provide in-depth answers to their questions.
What a web page should and shouldn’t be
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- Pages should be focused. If the core concept of your page can’t be expressed in less than four words, it doesn’t need to be a page. Instead, incorporate its content onto a relevant page. Or, if it’s extremely specific, create a blog post about it in the future.
- Pages shouldn’t conflict. No two pages on your website should be similar enough that they could be confused. If you find yourself wondering whether a bit of information should be on one page or another, combine those pages into a single, longer page.
- Pages should encourage action. Every page on your site should guide visitors toward the action that you want them to take. If a page isn’t driving form fills, sales, or in-person visits, consider eliminating that page or moving its text to a more action-oriented page.
- Pages shouldn’t be too short. In most cases, pages should contain at least three hundred words, as this helps with your site’s SEO. If you’re struggling to reach that amount, you can likely find a home for your content on a similar page that already exists.
Save money by providing your own content
Your website is, at its heart, a vehicle used to deliver content to its visitors. For all intents and purposes, content means the written text that appears on your site’s pages. By writing your own content, you reduce your web design cost by eliminating the need for a copywriter. And, while the assistance of a professional copywriter can lead to more engaging, more effective content, it may not be necessary if you’re able to devote time and effort to it.
As the leading expert on your company, there’s no more qualified person to speak about its offerings. With a deep understanding of how your business works, you can explain its products, benefits, and services better than anyone. And, while you may need help optimizing your content for search engines, you can still reduce your costs by providing your designer with a clear, informative content document.
How to write quality website content
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- Define the page’s goal. Before you write anything, ask yourself, ‘What’s the purpose of this page?’ Are you trying to get visitors to fill out a form? Pick up the phone? Make a purchase? Write your content with this goal in mind and, wherever possible, encourage visitors to take action.
- Determine a primary keyword. In most cases, your page’s title will be its main keyword. In our case, we’ve chosen keywords like, ‘website design,’ ‘local listings,’ and ‘search engine optimization.’ These keywords should inform your content and should be used at least once every two hundred words.
- Discuss the topic at length. As we’ve said before, every page should be at least three hundred words. At this length, your pages are appealing to search engines and, more importantly, they establish you as an expert and give visitors enough information to make their decisions.
- Divide the content into subtopics. In other posts, we’ve discussed how important it is to create skimmable pages. When writing, break your pages down into subheadings, bulleted lists, and short paragraphs. This structure makes your pages more digestible, increases dwell time, and leads to more conversions.
- Consider internal links. As you write your pages, look for opportunities to link to other pages. By creating a large network of internal links, you give visitors multiple routes through your site. This can help you reduce your site’s bounce rate and increase its visibility on search engines.
Lower website costs by building in stages
When it comes to planning projects, most people’s instinct is to start big. But, if you’re hoping to reduce the costs of building your website, you’ll want to look at cutting unnecessary features. While these features don’t need to be cut permanently, planning to release them at a later date can save money on your initial design.
By informing your web designer that you’re hoping to integrate additional features in the future, they can leave room for those features without increasing your price. In the industry, we call this building in stages. For the first stage, you launch a low-cost website to establish an online presence, generate interest, and attract regular visitors. In subsequent stages, you capitalize on that interest by building out new, engaging ways for visitors to interact with your website.
Features and functionality that can be added in later stages
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- If you’re operating an ecommerce store, you can cut costs by choosing to limit your catalog of online products to less than ten items.
- If you’re running sales software at your physical locations, you can lower your budget by planning to integrate your website and in-store software at a later date.
- If you’re hoping to have user accounts to manage personalized content, you can allow user accounts to be created with the promise of adding content in the future.
Cut initial costs with low monthly payments
Let’s face it, a lot of small businesses can’t afford a $1,500 to $6,000 down payment for a website. This, along with all the other factors involved in web design cost, can be a real dealbreaker. With most web agencies in Kalamazoo requiring large, lump-sum payments to even start work, you can often avoid those upfront costs by investigating other options.
When you opt for monthly payments, you’re not only eliminating the need to fork over a huge chunk of change, you’re gaining the promise of a better web design experience. With a monthly structure, you’re gaining a partner. You’re choosing an agency that will be there when you need help. And, above all else, you’re working with a team that is invested in your success.
Benefits of low monthly payments
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- No down payments. Down payments can be one of the most prohibitive aspects of a new website design. With monthly payments, you don’t have to shell out thousands of dollars to get a memorable, high-quality website built by a professional team.
- A responsive partner. A subscription-based website package ensures that you always have a responsive, helpful team ready to assist you. You’ll be able to call, email, or chat with them at any time to make additions, adjustments, and updates to your site.
- A new website every three years. If you’re tired of having to worry about ensuring your site is up to date, monthly plans are for you. Every three years, you’ll get a brand new website designed, built, and launched for no additional web design cost.
Looking to keep your web design cost down?
When companies want to hire the best Kalamazoo web design team, they turn to Creative Marketing Group. With a roster of highly qualified professionals, we’re the area’s go-to source for memorable websites. We provide everything that you need to launch a stunning, memorable website of your own: copywriting, graphic design, development, and project management.
No matter the size of your business, the scope of your project, or the breadth of your vision, you can count on us to exceed your expectations. So, if you’ve been considering a new – or updated – website for your company, don’t hesitate to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation with us today.
