What Does It Cost To Have A Web Site Professionally Designed?
What does it cost to have a Web site professionally designed?
Well thats a loaded question and one of the most common ones in our industry. Ill try to tackle this question and give you the honest, straightforward answer you are looking for.
Like anything else in life, good things dont come cheap. It isnt cheap to own and operate a top branding and design firm, trust me. It takes creativity, technical know-how, marketing skill, and a significant investment in talent, ongoing education, and infrastructure to build an industry-leading Web site the only kind of site we build.
Step 1: Start with a realistic overall marketing budget.
If you run or manage a company that sells more than $1 million a year in products and services and think you can get a high-quality site for less than $5,000, you need to either realign your thinking or go make a $5,000 mistake. And then revisit this article.
Your marketing budget, depending on your industry, should be between 3% and 12% of GROSS sales. This is for ongoing advertising and marketing for an existing brand. That means a $1 million company should budget a minimum of $50,000 to build its brand, and then plan to spend $30,000 to $120,000 in ongoing marketing and advertising. Here is a good article that gives more details on how to set an effective marketing budget:http://www.imageworksstudio.com/client-lounge/articles-tips/setting-a-marketing-advertising-budget.html.
Im not giving you this information so I can jack up my rates as a marketer. These costs are publicized by organizations like SCORE and the USSBA. They are benchmarks based on real statistics and actual business case studies. These benchmarks are the reason why any venture capitalist worth his or her weight will make SURE he has a reasonable marketing budget or risk failure. Start with a realistic overall marketing budget, and youll be ready for the next step.
Step 2: Realize that you are doing more than designing a Web site. You are building a brand.
Budget for the full scope.
Your Web site is not a stand-alone marketing tool. It is, in many cases, prospects first impression of your brand. It is also the place your prospects go to form or validate an opinion about your company before they decide to take the next step. It is the most important element of your brand image and overall sales process. But its not the only element.
You are looking for Web site design or maybe even a complete Custom Web design for your business. But its not that simple. Not even close. Just getting to the design phase requires an in-depth marketing discovery and strategic plan. To build a site without this plan is like building a house without a blueprint its going to fall apart.
Here are a few of the basics that need to be discussed with marketing professionals outside your internal team (inside-out thinking must be combined
with outside-in thinking):
Ah, now youre ready to start designing something dz almost.
Step 3: Understand the full scope of your true needs.
To be successful, your Web site will need to include some of the following components and media. To build a site without them is like going game hunting with a pocket knife: its just not smart.
Components and media needed for an effective online brand:
A branding blueprint (marketing strategy as outlined in Step 2).
A Web outline that fully integrates all navigation and makes it completely user-centric.
Visual direction and messaging, aligned with your marketing objectives.
The physical design of your Web site home page based on agreed-upon visual direction and messaging.
Physical design of an interactive subpage template that will inform your visitors and guide them through your site while maintaining brand identity.
Professional copywriting or content optimization (yes, you do need it) that allows prospects to scan information that will pique their interest and drive them toward your calls to action.
Flash animation to stimulate interest and communicate key points without crowding the page.
Custom-designed blog. This is critical: Its todays free PR machine and a SEO staple.
E-mail template design that matches your new online brand. This is the best ROI in marketing a must-have!
Online downloadable PDF brochure, something your prospects can forward to a decision maker or read on the Metro, with easily digestible information. Yum!
Online forms why make it difficult for someone to contact you? Interactive forms make inquiries a breeze and data capture automatic.
Internal search engine. Forrester Research says that users abandon sites when they cant easily find what they are looking for. This was a top abandonment complaint in 2007. A Web site search tool enables users to quickly find the information they want, without hassle.
Search Engine Optimization(SEO) Your Web site should be designed in a way that is search-engine friendly. By thinking ahead, youll have a site that is well-positioned for SEO results.
Social Media Optmization (SMO) SMO lets you get your message, image and valuable content in front your customers through some of the most effective channels that exisit. Expect to see social media climb the ladder as one of the most effective ways to reach and influence your target market
RSS Feeds Theres no easier way to provide your visitors with fresh content than through RSS feeds not to mention the SEO value!
And the list goes on
Since most of the above items cost $2,000 to $5,000 or more each, you can
quickly see that building a highly successful online brand and custom Web site is going to take a serious investment. Yet, a Web site that is built correctly will grow revenues and awareness of your brand more than you can imagine. Who
wouldnt invest in building and marketing their brand when the result increases sales exponentially?
Whatshould you look for in marketing and advertising firms that can build highly effective online brands and sales conversion processes?
Its not about design, so dont hire an art major. Its not about coding, so dont hire a developer. It about building a brand and being able to persuade prospects purely through their online experience that they have a substantial interest in your products and services. You need a firm with a full-time creative staff, marketing experts, graphic designers, Web marketing specialists, project managers, Web developers, copywriters, and a network of proven contractors to help facilitate the many areas of successful branding.
OK, OK, I get it! So what does it cost?
The cost should easily fit into the budget guidelines mentioned above. The bigger your company, the more you should invest in your online brand and the
more features and functionality you can afford to enhance your online presence.
If you invest the way a $5 million company does and youre a $45 million company, youre going to fall behind your competition and fail to impress your customers. Allbusiness.com (see link below) states that a name and logo alone by a professional agency costs between $25,000 and $40,000 on average. Yes, thats just the name and logo! http://www.allbusiness.com/marketing-advertising/branding-brand-development/1040-1.html
Madison Avenue and other high-profile agencies will charge mid-six figures and more to build an online brand. On the other hand, you could hire a freelancer or a small Web design team to build something for less than $10,000. But that would be more likely to hurt than help. Putting the right assets in place to build an effective brand is costly, but the rewards are substantial and ongoing.
Depending on the size of their company, our clients typically pay us $25,000 to $100,000 to build their offline and online brands. The determining factors are whichbranding elements will be required, the features
and functionality of the web site and the complexity of each.For example: a FLASH animation for a online tour of a product could eat up a substatial portion of a budget, but could also be a huge conversion tool for valued prospects.
Remember, your ongoing budget for advertising, search engine optimization, Web marketing, social media, print advertising, trade shows, direct mail, PR, etc., should be based on a percentage of revenue multiplied by your
industry multiplier, as referenced here: http://www.imageworksstudio.com/client-lounge/articles-tips/setting-a-marketing-advertising-budget.html
The power of your new brand:
Hopefully, you now realize what it takes to build an effective and conversion-oriented custom Web site and online brand. The rewards will be tremendous. Here is what you can expect with a Web site done right:
Your employees, prospects, and clients will have confidence in your brand.
The number of prospects who visit your site will substantially increase.
Visitors to your site will be impressed, making them more likely to want to learn more about your products and services.
Measurable results will be obtained that can be used for online improvements.
With an actual system to convert prospects, youll be able to take advantage of the 80% or more of prospects that have a buy later mentality.
More referrals will come your way.
Your investment will be paid back in spades, and then some, resulting in substantial revenue growth.
Scott Margenau is the founder and CEO of ImageWorks Studio, an award-winning Web design and branding firm.
Well thats a loaded question and one of the most common ones in our industry. Ill try to tackle this question and give you the honest, straightforward answer you are looking for.
Like anything else in life, good things dont come cheap. It isnt cheap to own and operate a top branding and design firm, trust me. It takes creativity, technical know-how, marketing skill, and a significant investment in talent, ongoing education, and infrastructure to build an industry-leading Web site the only kind of site we build.
Step 1: Start with a realistic overall marketing budget.
If you run or manage a company that sells more than $1 million a year in products and services and think you can get a high-quality site for less than $5,000, you need to either realign your thinking or go make a $5,000 mistake. And then revisit this article.
Your marketing budget, depending on your industry, should be between 3% and 12% of GROSS sales. This is for ongoing advertising and marketing for an existing brand. That means a $1 million company should budget a minimum of $50,000 to build its brand, and then plan to spend $30,000 to $120,000 in ongoing marketing and advertising. Here is a good article that gives more details on how to set an effective marketing budget:http://www.imageworksstudio.com/client-lounge/articles-tips/setting-a-marketing-advertising-budget.html.
Im not giving you this information so I can jack up my rates as a marketer. These costs are publicized by organizations like SCORE and the USSBA. They are benchmarks based on real statistics and actual business case studies. These benchmarks are the reason why any venture capitalist worth his or her weight will make SURE he has a reasonable marketing budget or risk failure. Start with a realistic overall marketing budget, and youll be ready for the next step.
Step 2: Realize that you are doing more than designing a Web site. You are building a brand.
Budget for the full scope.
Your Web site is not a stand-alone marketing tool. It is, in many cases, prospects first impression of your brand. It is also the place your prospects go to form or validate an opinion about your company before they decide to take the next step. It is the most important element of your brand image and overall sales process. But its not the only element.
You are looking for Web site design or maybe even a complete Custom Web design for your business. But its not that simple. Not even close. Just getting to the design phase requires an in-depth marketing discovery and strategic plan. To build a site without this plan is like building a house without a blueprint its going to fall apart.
Here are a few of the basics that need to be discussed with marketing professionals outside your internal team (inside-out thinking must be combined
with outside-in thinking):
- Your marketing goals and objectives measurable, specific, and realistic. (If we dont know where were going, how will we know if weve arrived?)
- Your value proposition from the customers perspective and how best to reflect that value proposition in the Web site strategy.
- The step-by-step conversion process from entry to conversion and everything in between. Consider the four major personality types and their varied buying processes.
- SWOT analysis: how the strengths and weaknesses of your company, combined with the opportunities and threats, affect your Web site strategy.
- The current AND desired position of your brand in relation to your competitors, and how that affects your Web site design strategy.
- An analysis of what your competitors are doing and how you can outperform them.
- A clear assessment of the benefits conferred by your products and services. Features are cool, but people buy benefits.
- Your sales arguments why should people buy what youre selling?
- Calls to action how will you get prospects to act and what actions do you want them to take?
Ah, now youre ready to start designing something dz almost.
Step 3: Understand the full scope of your true needs.
To be successful, your Web site will need to include some of the following components and media. To build a site without them is like going game hunting with a pocket knife: its just not smart.
Components and media needed for an effective online brand:
And the list goes on
Since most of the above items cost $2,000 to $5,000 or more each, you can
quickly see that building a highly successful online brand and custom Web site is going to take a serious investment. Yet, a Web site that is built correctly will grow revenues and awareness of your brand more than you can imagine. Who
wouldnt invest in building and marketing their brand when the result increases sales exponentially?
Whatshould you look for in marketing and advertising firms that can build highly effective online brands and sales conversion processes?
Its not about design, so dont hire an art major. Its not about coding, so dont hire a developer. It about building a brand and being able to persuade prospects purely through their online experience that they have a substantial interest in your products and services. You need a firm with a full-time creative staff, marketing experts, graphic designers, Web marketing specialists, project managers, Web developers, copywriters, and a network of proven contractors to help facilitate the many areas of successful branding.
OK, OK, I get it! So what does it cost?
The cost should easily fit into the budget guidelines mentioned above. The bigger your company, the more you should invest in your online brand and the
more features and functionality you can afford to enhance your online presence.
If you invest the way a $5 million company does and youre a $45 million company, youre going to fall behind your competition and fail to impress your customers. Allbusiness.com (see link below) states that a name and logo alone by a professional agency costs between $25,000 and $40,000 on average. Yes, thats just the name and logo! http://www.allbusiness.com/marketing-advertising/branding-brand-development/1040-1.html
Madison Avenue and other high-profile agencies will charge mid-six figures and more to build an online brand. On the other hand, you could hire a freelancer or a small Web design team to build something for less than $10,000. But that would be more likely to hurt than help. Putting the right assets in place to build an effective brand is costly, but the rewards are substantial and ongoing.
Depending on the size of their company, our clients typically pay us $25,000 to $100,000 to build their offline and online brands. The determining factors are whichbranding elements will be required, the features
and functionality of the web site and the complexity of each.For example: a FLASH animation for a online tour of a product could eat up a substatial portion of a budget, but could also be a huge conversion tool for valued prospects.
Remember, your ongoing budget for advertising, search engine optimization, Web marketing, social media, print advertising, trade shows, direct mail, PR, etc., should be based on a percentage of revenue multiplied by your
industry multiplier, as referenced here: http://www.imageworksstudio.com/client-lounge/articles-tips/setting-a-marketing-advertising-budget.html
The power of your new brand:
Hopefully, you now realize what it takes to build an effective and conversion-oriented custom Web site and online brand. The rewards will be tremendous. Here is what you can expect with a Web site done right:
Scott Margenau is the founder and CEO of ImageWorks Studio, an award-winning Web design and branding firm.
