How Much Does a Website Cost?

Here’s a question we never get tired of hearing:

“Why does a website cost so much?”

Why do we love it, you ask? Because it gives us an opportunity to educate and inform clients about the effort and expense that goes into creating a beautiful and effective business website.

Web design is a complex and highly skilled undertaking, with websites often taking 100+ hours to be properly built, tested, and published. Like any specialization, the skills needed to produce professional grade websites takes years of hands-on training and experience to acquire. The rate a web designer charges is often less about turning a large profit, but rather about creating a reasonable turn for this investment.

Many business owners today still question the importance of investing in a professionally designed website, especially with the emergence of “free” website builders. In theory, it makes sense – Why would you pay someone thousands of dollars for something you can do yourself for free? While it’s true professional web design can come with a notable price tag, the benefits offered over “free” website options are invaluable. This includes search engine optimization, mobile responsiveness, social media integration, custom content, e-commerce solutions and analytics tracking, just to name a few.

Having a company website is no longer an option or a luxury: it’s a requirement for success. That being said, there is no ‘one size fits all’ pricing in the realm of website design. The cost of a website can vary greatly – even among companies in the same industry – depending on an ever-evolving number of design variables. Functionality, number of unique pages, complexity of design, incorporated features, degree of SEO implementation – any one of these factors can dramatically impact the total cost of a website.

A professional website does more than simply “get your business’ name out there.” It enables you to be found by potential clients who may not have discovered you otherwise. It creates a platform from which to engage customers at any time from anywhere. It represents who you are, what you do, and how you can be the solution that satisfies your target audience’s needs. Take it from us – we’ve designed hundreds of websites for businesses and organizations of all sizes, industries and budgets.

Now, let’s get down to why you’re really here – to find out how much a website costs. The answer is: it depends. We’re sure that’s not the clear-cut answer you were hoping for, but let us explain the elements that go into determining the cost of a professional web design project.

website marketing company nj

Before we dive in too deep, let’s first lay out what one of our standard websites looks like. Standard websites feature a simplified design structure which keeps costs low and quality high. These sites are great for branding and promoting your business, and help to answer any who/what/wheres in a simplified format. They are also a fantastic way to spotlight your products and services and convert visitors into customers with lead generating contact forms. While often lacking in more advanced features, standard websites are the perfect option for smaller, potentially newer businesses with limited budgets.

Standard websites typically range from 5-12 unique pages in size. They utilize basic graphic 87 and design content to enhance consumer traffic and promote sales. Existing branding elements such as logos or trade characters can be implemented into the site’s visual design, or created from scratch for an additional fee. SEO and blogging can be integrated as well to boost search engine rankings – an absolute must have for local companies just starting to get on the map. 

Creative Click Media offers a project rate between $5,000-$10,000 for a standard website.

View examples of our standard web design:

Standard Website Design
Standard Website Design
Standard Website Design
website design

If a standard website isn’t enough to meet your business’ needs, integrating advanced options might be the solution you’re looking for. Our advanced options are a popular choice for small to medium-sized businesses looking to attract new customers, drive sales, and increase their bottom line. These sites contain more intricate content and design elements than standard websites. Features available on these sites include fully customized elements such as tables, calendars, forms, e-commerce solutions, and even animated and video content.

Advanced websites typically range from 10-30 unique pages in size. Their site content, written copy, and visual design elements are more robust – resulting in a more effective sales funnel and an increased conversion rate for your larger pool of customers. As with standard websites, advanced websites feature research driven SEO implementation as well as the ability to run a company blog.

Creative Click Media offers a project rate between $7,500 and $25,000 for websites with advanced options.

View examples of our advanced web design:

Advanced Web Design
Advanced Web Design
Advanced Web Design
digital marketing companies

Custom features are most commonly integrated on websites for larger, more established businesses looking to succeed in aggressive and competitive industries. These are our most technologically advanced, high-concept website designs, built to help businesses out-rank their competition and maximize their marketing ROI. Custom websites are digitally engineered from the ground-up, ensuring that every image, word, and design element is expertly tailored to the particulars of your business and industry.

Custom websites typically range from 25-100+ unique pages in size. They feature a fully customized site architecture and uniquely tailored design elements that are truly ‘one of a kind’. These sites include custom designed graphics and images, highly polished and persuasive sales copy, and integrated conversion rate optimization, making them the perfect vehicle to drive sales and increase revenue. Our custom websites also feature our most comprehensive and aggressive SEO implementation, helping to ensure that your website shows up prominently in the search results for your industry’s most relevant and profitable keywords. 

Creative Click Media offers a project rate of between $15,000 and $100,000 for websites with custom features.

View examples of our custom web design:

Customized Website Design
Customized Website Design
Customized Website Design
website development

With more than 2.1 billion online shoppers in the world, e-commerce purchases accounted for approximately $4.13 trillion in 2020 alone. Yes – that’s trillion with a T! This probably sounds like great news if you have an e-commerce business, but don’t celebrate just yet. If you aren’t already providing your customers with a quick and easy way to make purchases on your website, you could be missing out on hundreds if not thousands of potential sales. Our e-commerce website solutions have a proven track record of fusing modern and classic design elements with a user-friendly interface to make the buyer’s journey down the sales funnel a breeze. In our digital world, a beautiful and functional e-commerce is a must-have for businesses looking to attract more customers, move more inventory and generate more brand recognition.

View examples of our e-commerce web design:

E-Commerce Website
E-Commerce Website
E-Commerce Website
digital marketing company nj

The web design process doesn’t end once your website is created. The key to finding long-term success on the web is keeping your website fresh, relevant and up-to-date. Your website visitors want to know what is happening at your business and in your industry right now, not when your website was first created. This includes routinely updating stale copy, adding images of new projects you’ve worked on, and so on. Our team provides content management system (CMS) web access and comprehensive training in the operation, maintenance, and updating of your website. This allows you to swap out photos, update product or service descriptions, add staff bios, and even manage your company’s blog. We understand how important it is for business owners to have full control over their valued assets, and our team of expert web designers will work with you until you feel confident managing your website on your own.

web design nj

As you’ve no doubt noticed, there is a tremendous amount of swing in the rates charged by different website developers. Why would one company charge $10,000 for the same site that another is quoting $3,000? Two big reasons:

First of all, not all websites are created equal. One of the main factors that drives up the cost of a website is the size and degree of customization your business needs to accomplish your goals and create the ideal user experience. Consider, as well, that more ‘expensive’ website builds typically include features that are integral to the success of your online presence, such as SEO, web traffic analytics, mobile device optimization, and web support that extends well past the completion date of the project. Customers care a great deal about the overall quality of the content and appearance of your site – the more eye catching and informative your website is, the more your customers will want to come back. And you should care too, considering your website is the lifeline of your company’s success on the web! 

Second, not all web developers are created equal. There is a massive divide in quality between a custom, professionally built website, and one that was pieced together by someone who develops websites as a hobby. That’s not to say hobbyists are ‘lesser than’ compared to career web developers, but there can be a stark difference in the level of commitment and quality of work you’ll receive when you sign on with someone who builds websites full-time. If a web developer hits you with a low-ball quote, do yourself a huge favor and explore the quality and quantity of their past work. If they do not have an online portfolio, ask them to provide you with work samples. Also, see if they have any client testimonials available, either online or by request. If a web developer can’t provide examples of satisfied customers, there’s a chance they might not have one yet!

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