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Archive for the ‘Web Design’ Category

How much does a website cost?

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

howmuch Well this is a difficult question to answer and to coin a well-known phrase it’s very much ‘how long is a piece of string?’ Rather than start with ‘how much’ we need to identify things such as what is the the website for? Who will use it? What are the goals and objectives of the site? And lots of other questions so that we have a firm platform to start the quotation process.

Websites can be as simple or as complicated as you like and that goes for design as well but when it comes to business you only get one chance to make the first impression and a naff website will blow that for you.

So pricing, what to expect?
Lets look at a marketing brochure website that displays info about a business and invites a person to make contact. Well a good graphic designer will charge £300-£400 for a layout and ancillaries such as extra buttons etc. Then to turn that into a website that is coded to standards and looks the same in all browsers and is search engine ready (ie it’s been specially optimised to maximise its effect in search engines when people are searching for a service or product that you offer) then you’re looking at around £500 upwards depending on many variances. So for the website itself then budget for something in the region of £800-£1000.

Wait, it doesn’t end there…
Don’t forget you need great copy for your website that engages people and calls them to do something and makes them want to get in touch. There’s no point having a great looking website if the text on it lets it down, and it’s not the job of the web designer to write this! Hiring a professional copywriter might cost you around £100-£300 depending on how much text is required for the full website. And last but by no means least, what about a logo? You need great looking branding that will make you stand out from your competitors, a logo will cost from £150 up to say £400 to design, however a logo designer will supply with all the files you need for a website or printing of business cards and other marketing materials in the future.

If you’re needing something more complicated such as E-commerce or a database driven website then this will cost more and can go up into the thousands depending on your exact requirements

The DIY Route
OK so building a website is something that can be done yourself but when it comes to presenting your business is the DIY route really going to save money in the long run? I mean would you pull your own teeth out to save a bill from the expert dentist? How much damage would pulling your own teeth out do without the proper tools and expertise? The same goes for web design. Not using professionals will save you money but at what price?

Using cheap professionals
WARNING: There’s plenty of folk out there who are offering websites for £100 or less even but if you are serious about your business is a £100 primary marketing tool really going to make you the next big thing and a success? People are fickle, you get just a few seconds to capture them and keep them on your website rather than them clicking away and spending their money elsewhere.

So, if you buy cheap then you will pay dearly; that’s the best advice you can get. If you pay too much for something then all you loose is that extra you’ve paid, if you pay too less than you risk loosing the lot and your reputation at the same time!

Posted in Company Information, Graphic Design, Web Design, Web Marketing, e-commerce | No Comments »

Choose a User Friendly Website Designer who can communicate

Friday, October 2nd, 2009

choosingdesigner Finding the right website designer who will be come up with the goods that you are looking for is quite a tricky business. The interpretation of your website dream, the way in which you business will be fronted, is quite an intricate undertaking, and you need to make sure that you select a user friendly website designer who you will work comfortably with.

Even where you may be given a personal recommendation for a supposedly good website designer, it doesn’t necessarily follow that you, personally, will be able to communicate with them. Excellent communication of course is absolutely vital to any project, but in terms of designing a new website, it is imperative that you choose a website designer who can turn your ideas into a user friendly site to move your business forward.

Most projects that we undertake in our working lives are actually more about people than anything else. Whether you are buying, selling, designing, or whatever you are interfacing with other people, and being able to communicate with them effectively is key. Design and concept are probably the most difficult things to be able to communicate. Concept is more about thoughts, ideals and aspirations than say, a set of figures for example. Choosing a communicative website designer to whom you can convey your ideas to, and one which understands each business has individual requirements, is hugely important.

Ideally you need a website designer who has empathy. You want someone who is good at listening; someone who can grasp the nettle of your idea and your concept and run with it. However, they must instinctively be able to run in the right direction. It’s no good your design company haring off at one hundred miles per hour in the wrong direction. That just wastes time and money, and will result in frustration and disappointment for all parties. You want a user friendly website designer who will pick up on your needs and goals and who will translate them into reality.

Ideally you should go through a tendering process when you search for any sort of supplier though you can only go so far by measuring certain criteria such as quality, timescale, and price. Then when it comes down to choosing somebody that you feel you can work with in a productive way, you need to have a face to face meeting. So, if you are going “cold calling” to find website designers the ideal is to start by going out to tender with the same loose specification to a number of potentials; say up to three as an example. Once you have received their “ball park” quotations, you can then narrow your field down to your two best hopefuls, and then arrange that face to face meeting to try and find the most user friendly website designer amongst them.

When you arrange your meeting, you must ensure that it will be with the people that you will work with if you chose that designer. It’s no good meeting up with some sales guy whose sole job it is to get your order and then pass the brief on. The whole object of the exercise is to locate the people that you feel you will be best able to communicate with, and that you will work with to see the project through to its successful completion. Make sure this is clearly understood when you arrange your meetings to find the best user friendly website designer.

Posted in Company Information, Internet, Web Design, Web Development, Web Marketing | No Comments »

Recommended Website Designers – Looking out for the Quiet Ones

Thursday, October 1st, 2009

choosingdesigner If are looking for a company to design your website, you obviously want to find the best company for the job; but how can you go about finding just such a company? One of the best methods is to seek recommended website designers.

The great majority of businesses, no matter what industry they are in, advertise their service in one form or another whether by using marketing campaigns, trade directories, advertising campaigns, employing sales representatives, or even affiliate marketing programs. These are the some of the ways that businesses attract enquiries from potential clients in addition to relying on the traditional method of personal recommendations.

There are some companies who do not advertise at all beyond just having a listing in a local trade directory and very often, if you come across such a small company you may find you have struck gold. The way that these sorts of companies survive and prosper is through personal recommendation, and personally recommended website designers can be worth their weight in gold.

The very best website design companies (the crème de la crème) will often start from small beginnings by designing websites for people that they know. The successful ones (the ones with great original ideas and state of the art techniques) thrill their clients, who are then delighted to make personal recommendations of the designers’ services to friends and business colleagues and share in some the kudos of being able to propose personally recommended website designers. A designer or any small company who doesn’t prosper so well often resorts to advertising, which is quite possibly why we think asking around your friends and colleagues works best.

Of course that doesn’t mean to say that all website designers who advertise are second rate, but with a great personal recommendation, you have a superb starting point for your exciting new venture. It is also worth bearing in mind that whoever is doing the recommending is putting their own reputation and judgment on the line too, so you will usually find that personally recommended website designers are definitely companies to look into.

Obviously everyone is in search of something unique, and what suits one person is not necessarily the next person’s cup of tea. In other words there is no cast iron guarantee that the recommended website designer that you approach will suit your own particular requirements. But the chances are that they will, or that they will know someone that they themselves are prepared to recommend who operate in your particular market niche.

Some people like the razzmatazz of dealing with huge website designers of enormous reputation however, these large companies can sometimes be rather too impersonal. They often tend to do things somewhat at arms length and employ too many people in various functions, so you might find you talk to a salesman who then talks to his designer, and then the brief gets passed down to a techie to actually builds the site. Before you know it, the original concept has “gone to the wall”.

On the other hand, a smaller personally recommended website design agency will give you that more intimate one to one service and you will often work with an individual who will see the project right through with you from conception to launch. It is exactly this sort of small company that will suit you best and that will do a stunning job. So start asking around for personal recommended website designers now for the best starting point.

Posted in Internet, Web Design, Web Development, Web Marketing | No Comments »

A Busy Website Design Company is a Company in Demand

Wednesday, September 30th, 2009

choosingdesigner Whether your website designer is a local developer or part of a big national company, one of the important factors that you should take into consideration in your search for the right website design company is how busy they are; the size of their order book. This can actually be a double edged sword because on the one hand a busy website design company may have to quote longer lead-in times, but the activity does of course indicate that their services are in demand. If their services are in demand, the logic is that their product must be good. Based in Norfolk we know there are lots of super companies around but it should be easy to find the best developer for your site?

There are certain cases where a big order book or the long lead-time a busy website designer quotes can be misleading. If this apparently busy website design company is a relatively new start up for example, the clientele may not yet have had the time to evaluate the designer’s performance, so look out to make sure that there is a client list that you can follow up to interrogate. Any local developer, Norfolk or beyond should be happy to assist as they want your business.

A short order book, and a therefore rapid response time could be a sign that nobody wants to use them, or it could simply mean that they are very fast and efficient in keeping up with things, either way the presence of testimonials and following them up is again an invaluable process and one that perhaps should not be rushed but done methodically if you have the time.

Any local developer or designer would tell you that design is not something that should be hurried and a busy website design company will not only know this, but will stick firmly to their guns and refuse to be hurried. This is actually good brand marketing in progress and whilst at times this sort of attitude can be very frustrating, it speaks volumes for their integrity, and if they won’t allow other projects to get rushed along they will not permit yours to be rushed either.

A busy website design company that holds to this principle is worth their weight in gold. It should however be made very clear through the tendering process just exactly what their lead times are, and at that early stage you have the opportunity to question this and to perhaps seek permission to even talk to some of their current project owners for real-time feedback – see our testimonials article for assistance with this part.

Any sort of design work is a process where there will be discoveries along the way: new suggestions about the best way to lay a site out, or how to arrange the navigation etc. which is all part of developing the best product for your business. A busy website designer may even adopt a new technology in the process of fulfilling your design, to stay at the forefront of website design and to ensure that they offer state of the art product. It would actually be very annoying if your website were to just miss out on a new innovation simply because your chosen local developer couldn’t make time to incorporate it.

They do say that patience is a virtue, and in the case of good website design this is very true. Don’t lose sight of the fact that your website is your shop-front. Once it’s out there in cyberspace you need it to do an effective job for you. The “window dressing” is key and fashions change, as do new technologies, and in order to stay at the cutting edge you will want to incorporate these changes in your website. A busy website design company will be busy partly because clients return to them again and again for these state of art or fashion updates; another thing you can check out amongst their client list be it Norfolk, London or anywhere else.

In the majority of instances, a busy website design company is a good design company; it’s a local web design or graphic design company with integrity, with flair, and with dedication. If and when you find one, stick with them for the best site that works for your business.

Posted in Company Information, Web Design, Web Development, Web Marketing, e-commerce | No Comments »

Affordable Web Design – Comparing Website Prices and Value for Money

Tuesday, September 29th, 2009

choosing designer Typical website prices in the UK vary a tremendous amount but what kind of company do you choose when looking find affordable web design locally or within the UK?

A company that gives you an on the spot quote for a designed website instantly isn’t doing their homework. Though this kind of fee is exactly what some people want they perhaps also do not understand entirely how a website really can work to increase business, profitability and to raise a business profile.

Per page flat rate prices advertised on their site or in advertising literature should be a slight warning sign if you are looking for a website that is more involved than perhaps a small ten page information site. This might appear value for money and might work for some but not all businesses understand in depth how a good website can really help their business expand. So website prices, without being obviously excessive, should reflect exactly how your finished site will work for you.

Finding affordable web design in the UK really depends on the type of value you are looking for. A fixed price custom made website which includes a specified number of pages which costs a few hundred pounds is fine – if that works for your business – but what about finding a custom web designer that can create a website that works for your business and brings in more profit? How about branding, marketing your website online and what about hosting a large site?

Value can only be measured on how much time and money you spend with your designer and how much they put into the site so that the outcome works for you. Maybe the whole aim of your website is to sell more of your products, to advertise your business and create a modern business identity, or even a straight forward way of bringing a long-standing company out of the nineties. Whichever your reason, affordable web design should reflect what you want the finished product to do and get you there.

An Example of Bad Research and Overspend
I cringe every time I think of this, an old employer in a multi-million pound company could never sell products on his website due to the industry and services they offered, would not generate profit simply using the website and only employing around ten people there was never exactly daily news or events to announce.

Spending circa £6,000 on two versions of a custom made website he did not shop around or gain advice and simply chose a UK company that was local to the office. He spent in the region of a week specifying what he wanted, writing text for a few pages of the new site and learning how to use the content management system they had built in and also paid the company to host it on their servers etc

The finished site looked okay though he was not happy to market the site, it does not generate extra customers or profit, fails to give visitors any exciting information and was simply an exercise to modernise an old site. Visiting this site as I write this, its last piece of news piece was something that was added almost two years ago – has it increased the companies online presence? The answer is a certain no!

Value for money in this case there definitely was not, the website prices might have been fine had the owner used the site as an expansion of the business or to generate more business (it was a site made for ecommerce and incorporated an admin area to make it easy to use and update quickly), what an oversight and obvious lack of communication between two parties, had this company shopped around and gained advice from even just one more company they may have realised how not to do it!

This example should help you to see that affordable web design is dependant on your final requirements and what you aim to do with a new custom made website. We know that you want to know the price of web design immediately and a good design company should keep no secrets about pricing however a site design should come with a tailored price and at the very least a good indication of website prices on fixed websites (specified amount of pages and extras).

Posted in Web Design, Web Development, Web Marketing, e-commerce | No Comments »