What is your website worth?
Almost daily the question is asked of us "how much do you charge for a website?". To which our answer is always "it depends on what you want". After a few minutes of us explaining how it all depends, the potential client usually understands that just throwing a number out there won't be of much use to them and we need to be more specific on the scope of the project before we can say "your website will be...". However, lately I've been wondering if the question that they should be asking is "what would a website be worth to me?".
What would a website be worth to you?
Rather then thinking about the cost that you have to pay for your website, perhaps you should be thinking about what your website will do for you once it is built. For instance if you build a website and within the first year that website brings in $20,000 of new business, then isn't your website worth $20,000 at least? So the price quote you got for $5000 is only a quarter of what your website is worth. If you had an employee that brought in 4 times what you paid them would they be worth the cost? I certainly would think so, and I'd probably even give that person a raise.
How do I know my website will be worth anything?
You don't know for sure what your website will or will not bring in, but chances are if you skimp on the development costs the return will be less. Think of your website like a house, if you do an addition and you use the cheapest material and cheapest labor chances are you won't be very happy with the end result and people who come see the house probably won't be very impressed. You also won't get as much when you go to sell the house because the inspector will notice the imperfections. A website is no different. You have visitors coming to your "house" (website) everyday and if your developer didn't understand usability then you'll have some very disappointed visitors, which could result in lost/unseen business.
So do I go with the most expensive developer every time?
Absolutely not. What you do need to do is make sure you are comparing apples to apples. The page counts, what platforms they are programming on, what you are and are not getting with your contract, etc. You also want to be sure you see samples of previous work and call a few of the portfolio clients they have. Don't ask for a referral you can call because they will always give you the best client they have. Call any one of the samples in their portfolio and get the raw reaction from the client.
So what is a good price?
It all depends on what you are getting and what you expect to get. $5000 might be cheap if you are getting a lot for it and feel confident your site will be built to convert visitors into leads/clients. $5000 might be expensive if you don't have the confidence in your developer. Knowing what you are getting is key and working with a company you feel comfortable with and can freely express how you feel about certain things, and answers all your questions is very important.
Remember: A websites value is based on what it does for the business, not on how much it cost to build.
--------------
Ignite MediaLLC, Ignite Your Site™
http://www.ignite-media.com/
Website Design & Development eCommerce Development Search Engine Optimization
What would a website be worth to you?
Rather then thinking about the cost that you have to pay for your website, perhaps you should be thinking about what your website will do for you once it is built. For instance if you build a website and within the first year that website brings in $20,000 of new business, then isn't your website worth $20,000 at least? So the price quote you got for $5000 is only a quarter of what your website is worth. If you had an employee that brought in 4 times what you paid them would they be worth the cost? I certainly would think so, and I'd probably even give that person a raise.
How do I know my website will be worth anything?
You don't know for sure what your website will or will not bring in, but chances are if you skimp on the development costs the return will be less. Think of your website like a house, if you do an addition and you use the cheapest material and cheapest labor chances are you won't be very happy with the end result and people who come see the house probably won't be very impressed. You also won't get as much when you go to sell the house because the inspector will notice the imperfections. A website is no different. You have visitors coming to your "house" (website) everyday and if your developer didn't understand usability then you'll have some very disappointed visitors, which could result in lost/unseen business.
So do I go with the most expensive developer every time?
Absolutely not. What you do need to do is make sure you are comparing apples to apples. The page counts, what platforms they are programming on, what you are and are not getting with your contract, etc. You also want to be sure you see samples of previous work and call a few of the portfolio clients they have. Don't ask for a referral you can call because they will always give you the best client they have. Call any one of the samples in their portfolio and get the raw reaction from the client.
So what is a good price?
It all depends on what you are getting and what you expect to get. $5000 might be cheap if you are getting a lot for it and feel confident your site will be built to convert visitors into leads/clients. $5000 might be expensive if you don't have the confidence in your developer. Knowing what you are getting is key and working with a company you feel comfortable with and can freely express how you feel about certain things, and answers all your questions is very important.
Remember: A websites value is based on what it does for the business, not on how much it cost to build.
--------------
Ignite MediaLLC, Ignite Your Site™
http://www.ignite-media.com/
Website Design & Development eCommerce Development Search Engine Optimization
Labels: small business, web site design
posted by Ignite Media LLC at
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
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