So you are looking to create a new website for your business.
Or maybe your current website is in dire need of an upgrade?
After just a little bit of research into web design prices, you’ll probably be asking yourself questions such as ‘how much should web design cost?’, ‘why does it cost this much?’, or ‘what do I get for that investment?’. With all these unanswered questions, it can be quite difficult to gauge whether a particular price or investment is good or not for a new website design.
Here we’ll look at understanding the different elements that affect the price of your web design and why your website needs them.
First off, Manage Your Expectations
Your website is the online home of your business, therefore when you are looking for a web design company to work on your site, you are looking for quality that also fits your budget.
When you are shopping around for web design prices, you will find that prices will vary greatly, but then so will the quality and design of your website.
Therefore, it’s important to know what you can expect from your website and match that with your available budget.
For example, you can’t expect to get a seamless eCommerce website that runs itself for R10 000, something like that would take time and money to develop so that you can start seeing the results you are looking for.
Firstly ensure you know all the necessary features your website needs and be realistic when it comes to what it would cost to fulfil your specifications.
The cheaper options will always seem more enticing, but this may mean that you partner with an inexperienced beginner who won’t be able to deliver what you envisaged.
This will end up costing you more time and money in the long run.
Therefore, it’s important to be aware of the different elements that influence the cost of your website design.
Understanding What Influences The Cost Of Website Design
Web development, optimization, user experience, user interface in e-commerce. Website layout elements, photo, video, program code, search bar, site wireframe. Vector illustration on white background
The cost of website design can range from just a once-off payment for design services to monthly payments that allow your web design company to maintain and host your website.
Because of this, website design can cost R7000 – R100 000 or more, all depending on what you need your website to do.
Other things that influence the cost of your website design include:
- The size of the website – Are you needing a 5-page simple website displaying what your business does, or do you need a 300-page website with a complicated sitemap (like Takealot)?
- The level of security your website needs.
- The functionality of your website – Do you need a simple website to give your business an online presence, or do you need an eCommerce website that runs seamlessly, taking orders and making payments, with a 24/7 chatbot for customer queries (something like Cotton On’s website)?
- The actual design and look of your website – Are you okay with using a template from somewhere like WordPress, or does your website need a custom design from scratch with unique graphics, photography, animations etc?
- The time that you need it in – How quickly you need your website up and running will affect the cost and potentially the quality of your website.
Now, let’s delve a little deeper into the specific elements that affect web design prices.
Elements That Affect Your Web Design Price
- Domain
Every website has a domain name that they own and is one that represents their brand. For example, our domain name is https://www.theweblab.co.za/. When you choose to register a domain name, there will always be a yearly cost involved, your choice of .com, .co.za, .org, .net etc will also determine this fee.
- Hosting
All websites, no matter how big or small, have to be hosted on a server.
When you choose a website company to host your website, they may have different packages to choose from, they may or may not include weekly backups, security checks, and frequent updates to improve your site’s performance.
Going for the cheaper option with website hosting can put your website at risk, and you may have to pay a lot more to fix it in the future.
Most websites these days are built on platforms that require ongoing website maintenance and updates. Ensure you are not cutting corners here, as your brand’s reputation could be at stake if your website is compromised.
- Theme
The theme of your website directly represents your brand through the look and feel of your site as well as introduces the colour scheme, design elements and layout.
Depending on what you are looking for, you can choose your theme from a template from somewhere like WordPress.
Or you can have a custom-built theme that will affect your web design price and take more time but can include all the unique design and layout elements you want.
- eCommerce
Having an eCommerce site is very different to a traditional ‘information only’ site and allows users to make purchases directly from your site. Your eCommerce site can also range from being a simple site that just uses the shopping cart feature to one that offers product suggestions to visitors, sends follow up emails and specially crafts each shopping experience to the current user.
- Apps and integrations
An added feature that your site can have is the ability to run and connect to 3rd party apps and integrations. These expand the functionality of your site and, depending on your offering, are a must-have feature! For example, if you sell products, you may want the ‘pin it’ feature, connecting your website to Pinterest and expanding your audience.
- SSL
Protecting your site is a much-needed service that your web design company should provide. An SSL certificate ensures that your website isn’t flagged as ‘not secure’ by Google, which can be a major red flag for users when they try to visit your site. Having an SSL certificate also ensures that all your data stored on your website is encrypted and safe, such as emails, passwords or credit card details.
Most decent website design companies will include some sort of SSL for free.
Others may charge you. If you are very concerned about security then you may want to consider investing in a more secure SSL solution.
- SEO optimised
An essential aspect of web design is making it ‘web friendly’. No matter how beautiful your site is and easy to use, it will mean nothing if your users can’t find it. Therefore, having your site search engine optimised (SEO) to be found by Google for your particular keywords is a must-have!
Remember hiring an SEO agency is not a once-off fee, SEO will most likely require ongoing work to be competitive in your niche.
But having the SEO basics sorted from the start will help you, especially if you are not in a competitive market.
- User experience
User experience pertains to how easy your site is to navigate by your users as well as the overall experience your site can bring them. This element requires further research into your target audience and testing the seamlessness of your site, all leading to your visitors completing a desired action.
- Content
The content of your website is what speaks directly to your audience and keeps them on your website for longer. Copywriting is an incredibly important element of your overall website design and an essential service to look out for in your web design company.
Website Pricing Conclusion For South Africa – What Should You Be Paying?
On your journey to find an online partner that can take your business to the next level online, you are going to find a massive gap in the quotes you receive.
We can’t speak for every website design and online marketing business in SA, but we have a few pricing guidelines that you can follow to get aligned with what you should be paying for quality work.
Remember each business you approach will have different approaches, some JUST help with your website, and others will help you with a range of services that will help you grow your business online using your website as the tool to do so.
You need to decide what is important to your business and what your goals are long term for your new website.
- Basic 5 page website: +- R10k – R15k
- Intermediate website that has up to 20 pages: +- R15-30K
- eCommerce website: +- R20k-R50k
There are simply too many other factors involved to price out every type of website. But if you are paying far less than the above, then you need to ensure you have the right partner for the vision and goals of your business.
What We Offer At The Weblab
At The Weblab, we offer a number of web design packages, all depending on your needs. This includes being able to get a 5-page informational website ready for you in under a month or taking the extra time to create an easy to use eCommerce site that will start raking in the sales.
All our websites are mobile-optimised, quick to load and uniquely designed. We can also host and maintain your website as well as ensure that it is SEO optimised. We will specially craft a custom package that suits your exact requirements. To find out more about our web design prices, visit our web design page and get a free quote on our web design prices now!
