How Much Does a Website Cost in 2024 to Design and Build, and Will it Improve Your Business?
How much does it cost to create the right digital presence for your online or bricks-and-mortar business? The short answer: Well, it all depends. Professional web design is a complex business.
Part 1: What a Website Builder Should Do
There are many factors involved in to create a website design whether it’s for a small business or a big corporate entity. Because of that, I’m going to split the subject of website building into 2 articles. The first is about the rationale and the why of building a professional web presence. It will answer the more immediate questions about:
- Why you would rebuild rather than renovate a website
- What functionality you need to build into a website regarding generating organic traffic and leads to GROW and SUSTAIN your business
- Building a website to create a valuable asset and not just a pretty business card, and
- Building it to be properly Search Engine Optimised (SEO) from the get-go.
Part 2: What All the Costs Comprise
The second article will delve into the nitty-gritty of the actual costs, both expected and unexpected additional costs. Most people don’t think of the behind-the-scenes fees that go into running a website. They range from the procurement of the actual domain name, through to the mechanics of the design and implementation, through to security certificates and maintenance, and also digital marketing. We tend to forget about the costs per month which include website hosting fees, managment, updates and security etc. All will be revealed in part 2. And at the end of it all, you’ll get an indication or a range of what your total cost might be. Waiver: Without knowing anything about you or your business, I can only give you ballpark answers but I’ll be as forthcoming as I can.
In the meantime, let’s dive in and flesh out part 1 starting with how much you expect to pay…
The Cheeky Answer: A Website Can Cost Anywhere Between $500 and $500,000!
When people ask how much it costs to design a website, our playful answer is usually, “It could be anywhere between $500 and $500,000!” I can hear you say “that’s not even an average cost.” Why such a wide range? Because the cost of a website depends on far more than the price of a website designer and the web development. If your web design agency is worth their salt, then they’ll be able to demonstrate the value in what they propose to you!
Why is the Cost to Build So Variable?
It depends on your business goals, the type of website, your needs, and even your long-term exit strategy. The design and development of a simple website that gives information about a product or service, is completely different to an ecommerce website that presents hundreds of products and takes the customers through payments and more.
Do You Have an Exit Strategy?
Whether you’re planning to sell your business down the road or not, having a solid exit plan is crucial for making informed decisions today.
Renovate or Rebuild? Sometimes It’s Cheaper to Start Fresh
You want the very best you can get from your investment. While you might want a cheap website, you don’t want it to look cheap. It MUST be fit-for-purpose and be functional and engaging enough for your potential customers and visitors to stick around… You want them, most importantly, to take some kind of action (buying, contacting you, visiting you, making a purchase).
You want to build the best website for your budget and for your business.
Advantages of Building a New Website From Scratch
Many business owners think a website renovation will be cheaper than building a new one from scratch, but that’s not always the case. Legacy websites can come with a host of issues—outdated coding, bloated backend, poor SEO, and slow loading times. They can be built on obscure or difficult platforms or themes. All those problems would be inherited and make renovation a complex and costly process. Sometimes, it’s more efficient and effective to build a new site, where we can start fresh, ensuring everything is optimized from day one. For example, these days, most professional web designers use WordPress themes and while there are other successful ways to build, WordPress websites are everywhere.
Building a new site also allows us to work on a staging site, meaning your current website stays live while we perfect the new one. This ensures there’s no interruption in your online engagement or connection with customers.
Web Designers that Build Websites to Win Customers, Not Just Awards
At SunCoast Digital, we don’t aim to create websites that simply look pretty and win awards (though we’ve been known to do that, too!). Our primary goal is to build websites that win customers. A website shouldn’t just be an online business card that proves you’re a bona fide business—it should be a valuable asset that drives leads and sales through organic traffic.
Good SEO: The Key to Long-Term Value of a Website Design
One of the cornerstones of a valuable website is good SEO. Without it, you may find yourself relying heavily on paid advertising, which, while effective in the short term, isn’t a sustainable strategy for long-term growth. Organic traffic, on the other hand, builds your website’s domain authority and showcases your expertise. It’s like planting seeds that will grow over time, yielding ongoing returns.
Fast and Functional: The Way We Build Websites
We believe that speed matters, and we build websites with that in mind right from the start. A fast-loading website not only provides a better user experience but also avoids penalties from Google for slow performance. That’s why we avoid overly complex designs with fancy moving videos or heavy image carousels. Instead, we use well-optimized static images with subtle loading effects, ensuring every element is as lean and efficient as possible.
Our approach to website design means you won’t need to hire an expensive technician down the line to fix performance issues. We optimize every single image, not just for fast loading but also for SEO, giving your website the best possible chance to rank well and perform effectively from the moment it goes live.
Final Thoughts on Web Design Cost
If you’re serious about making a success of your business, then you’ll want to get serious about your web design and development, Modern businesses need professional web development because without a solid and credible online presence, website visitors will go elsewhere. Be wary of any person who can tell you the cost of building a website is a fixed number, especially if they have no knowledge of you or your business. By the same token, unless you know the ins and outs of building a small business website, never DIY your own website. You should leave website development to a designer who not only can build you a custom website, but who can build and maintain a user-friendly website that attracts and engages your ideal customers.
A Solid Investment in Your Company
Designing a website is an investment, and like any investment, its value depends on the strategy behind it. Whether you’re looking to renovate an existing site or build something entirely new, it’s crucial to approach the project with a clear understanding of your business goals, customer needs, and long-term plans. At SunCoast Digital, we’re here to help you navigate those decisions and build a website that doesn’t just look good but also drives real results for your business.
