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by Chris Peer on Tue, Sep 25, 2012 @ 11:14
What is the cost of a small business website?
This is a question I get asked all the time and the answer varies. For most small businesses (annual revenues from $100,000 to $100mm) the price for a new website can vary from a couple thousand dollars to over one hundred thousand dollars. The good news for small businesses is that website pricing has come down quite a bit over the last five years. With the spread of WordPress, Drupal and other open source content management systems, website design, programming and add-on features are becoming increasingly standardized and competition is growing, so prices are dropping.
So what dictates website pricing and how much will you need to spend on a website? The answer lies in you and your goals. Sometimes a website is just a website. Other times it is an integral component to a greater ecosystem of marketing and sales initiatives. How integrated and complex your needs are will dictate pricing. Below I have provided some basic guidelines to help get your budget in the right bucket.
The Basic Website:
On the low end, ($1-$15K) you should expect a professional looking website with limited features. Websites at this price range usually have 1-20 pages and are essentially online brochures. Don't expect this price point to drive leads or solve business issues. For some businesses this may be all you need. There are some great resources for websites at this level. On the lower end of this range you can probably build the site yourself with tools from Godaddy, Hostgator or Intuit. On the higher end of this range you may find local firms that specialize in these size sites. For $15K you can expect a more professional level of design, some additional features and usually some search engine optimization mixed in. Websites in this price range may or may not have a content management system (CMS).
Beyond the online brochure, websites can get quite sophisticated and can actually help grow your business by driving qualified leads and improve sales.
Mid Tier Website:
Website & Online Marketing
Above the $35K price point and beyond, your development agency should be focusing a greater deal of their efforts on your growth strategy and tactics, including inbound marketing, landing pages, social media, videos, content marketing, keyword optimization, blogging, email integration and a robust platform for measurement and analysis. Depending on your overall needs, you may find that some of these initiatives can be found at the lower price points.
At SyncShow Interactive we start with the end. Early in the relationship we complete an analysis, diagnosis and plan for our clients online strategy. This strategy is closely aligned with the customer's business growth goals. Often times this includes an assessment of lead value and establishing key performance indicators (KPIs) for measuring success. Above $35K you may find that agencies will roll up the website costs into a monthly retainer that also includes the implementation of your strategy. Should your business require a more comprehensive implementation as outlined above, expect monthly retainer fees to range from $3K per month to $15K per month.
Image courtesy of Stuart Miles via FreeDigitalPhotos.net