Website Design costs
- Thread starter debayo
- Start date
handsonhosting
New member
Well it really depends on what you're looking to do. Many people use Wordpress for their own main site as it can be tweaked out to no end. If you're selling things online, you may not need a custom design but rather maybe a template for the store software you're using. The type of software you use will determine the costs.
If you're looking at Interspire, there's about 100 themes included, and most are really good. The software runs about $2k, so if you need a design done, you can expect to pay $1500-3k on top of the software.
Other carts like Magento or X-Cart have many free themes which you can tweak, or inexpensive themes (just like wordpress runs free and paid themes too).
What type of software are you using for selling online, and what kind of end products? That information will help guide you on what kind of template and/or design fees might be involved.
If you're looking at Interspire, there's about 100 themes included, and most are really good. The software runs about $2k, so if you need a design done, you can expect to pay $1500-3k on top of the software.
Other carts like Magento or X-Cart have many free themes which you can tweak, or inexpensive themes (just like wordpress runs free and paid themes too).
What type of software are you using for selling online, and what kind of end products? That information will help guide you on what kind of template and/or design fees might be involved.
You run the entire range when pricing out templates - depends on your market and tastes. I've seen companies pay thousands for a standard website template and wonder to myself, WHY?
HostMantis
New member
With the economy the way it has been, there are plenty of designers offering dirt-cheap prices just to have some income. So cost really shouldn't an issue at the moment. What you need to worry about is the trustworthiness of the designer. I've seen so many people lately pay a huge deposit for design work only to have the designer disappear before doing any work.
Thanks for replies. They certainly offer useful insight.
To begin with, I plan to sell digital products. I guess I'll have to do it my own blogger's way then. That is, to start with whatever templates I can find and tweak them. Wordpress allows that flexibility indeed.
Just a thought. A friend of mine who sells flowers online hired someone to do his payment system for him. Incidentally, this programmer did something funny and attempted to redirect the payment to his bank account. My friend was lucky that the programmer was not as good as he thought. The payment system didn't work. So, he investigated and was shocked at his discovery.
To begin with, I plan to sell digital products. I guess I'll have to do it my own blogger's way then. That is, to start with whatever templates I can find and tweak them. Wordpress allows that flexibility indeed.
Just a thought. A friend of mine who sells flowers online hired someone to do his payment system for him. Incidentally, this programmer did something funny and attempted to redirect the payment to his bank account. My friend was lucky that the programmer was not as good as he thought. The payment system didn't work. So, he investigated and was shocked at his discovery.
HostMantis
New member
Wow, that's pretty dirty. Did the programmer really think it would go unnoticed? I think it would be more than obvious if you received a few orders, yet zero payments for those orders. :uhh:
handsonhosting
New member
I've seen those types of setups before, but usually they would just piggyback on the order and send the credit card details to an alternate location. I don't want to point any fingers, but it usually happens with the "cheap" programmers from other countries.
Any decent shopping cart on the market these days already have the billing process built in, so you shouldn't have to worry about getting custom programming done for that end of things.
Any decent shopping cart on the market these days already have the billing process built in, so you shouldn't have to worry about getting custom programming done for that end of things.
A couple years ago, I would have told you that website designs, especially the professional ones, can cost $100 and up...And then I came across some artsy people that I made friends with. If you have friends that know at least a little about graphic design and templates, they can make something for you, either free or very cheap. The designers I know used me as a guinnea pig while they they made designs to add to their portfolio.
For me, these are the best people to turn to rather than buying a design right off a website or trying to design one yourself if you aren't that good at it. The only problem is that it make take some time before your design is finished. Just depends on the person. One took literally months while another finished in a couple days.
For me, these are the best people to turn to rather than buying a design right off a website or trying to design one yourself if you aren't that good at it. The only problem is that it make take some time before your design is finished. Just depends on the person. One took literally months while another finished in a couple days.
That programmer obviously thought his scheme would go unnoticed. But it did! That programmer has a very disturbed personal life. On the strength of the friendship my friend once had with that guy, he didn't send him to jail. He could have, but he let the guy go. Creep.
Back to my concern, I'm inclined to use free templates to the fullest extent that I could tweak them. Then I'll use third party payment systems. I got the affirmation from Tim Ferris, author of Four-Hour Work Week. Has anyone read that book?
Back to my concern, I'm inclined to use free templates to the fullest extent that I could tweak them. Then I'll use third party payment systems. I got the affirmation from Tim Ferris, author of Four-Hour Work Week. Has anyone read that book?
Not yet, but maybe I should - I'm working a whole lot more hours than that!!
handsonhosting
New member
I had the pleasure of meeting Tim a few years ago at a conference. The methodology is very simple - take the stuff you can't do and outsource it to someone else who can. Then take the stuff you don't like to do, outsource it. Then take the stuff that's repetitive, and outsource it. Then finally, take the stuff you don't WANT to do, and outsource that.
Eventually you end up being just a paper pusher who only manages the end result of things and you have secondary controls in place to check things off before final aproval by you.
He is a very good public speaker, his book has sold like crazy and he is well versed in various languages and cultures.
Work smarter, not harder. Make your money work for you.
Eventually you end up being just a paper pusher who only manages the end result of things and you have secondary controls in place to check things off before final aproval by you.
He is a very good public speaker, his book has sold like crazy and he is well versed in various languages and cultures.
Work smarter, not harder. Make your money work for you.
Well, I believe in working smarter, not harder. And making my money work for me sounds good too. LOL
Unfortunately, I'm not rich enough to outsource all that, so if there's something I can't do, I pretty much have to learn how to do it. And the stuff I don't like to do, I just do it anyway. And if it's repetitive, I set up a macro.
Unfortunately, I'm not rich enough to outsource all that, so if there's something I can't do, I pretty much have to learn how to do it. And the stuff I don't like to do, I just do it anyway. And if it's repetitive, I set up a macro.
csn-uk
CSN-UK | Charlie
I like the ideas of Tim Ferris in terms of perhaps many physical businesses or physical items, however in software even being a paper pusher has its difficulties as the legal implications of outsourcing what may potentially be a very large and lucrative site, service or product (say Facebook, cPannel etc) are massive.
A key example of this is that of a non-competence agreement or clause, this simply allows a company to outsource the development of a product or service to another in a way that restricts their ability to later work on or produce that will compete directly or indirectly within the same or similar markets.
A Little known disadvantage of this or a means of breaking poorly written versions is that of "the restriction of the right to an income" as you are essentially restricting a companies or persons income, as a result a compensation has to be incorporated, thus it costs you money long term even after you have the produced work.
Thus the more outsourcing the more long term costs which depending on the size of the company of which you outsource to, may be substantial. So many don't use such agreements or poorly written versions only to find spinoffs or almost identical copies sprouting up.
Bit off topic to the thread but hopefully useful
A key example of this is that of a non-competence agreement or clause, this simply allows a company to outsource the development of a product or service to another in a way that restricts their ability to later work on or produce that will compete directly or indirectly within the same or similar markets.
A Little known disadvantage of this or a means of breaking poorly written versions is that of "the restriction of the right to an income" as you are essentially restricting a companies or persons income, as a result a compensation has to be incorporated, thus it costs you money long term even after you have the produced work.
Thus the more outsourcing the more long term costs which depending on the size of the company of which you outsource to, may be substantial. So many don't use such agreements or poorly written versions only to find spinoffs or almost identical copies sprouting up.
Bit off topic to the thread but hopefully useful
$100 is too much, Americans make a lot of $$$ but do not want to spend them on web design and hosting.
handsonhosting
New member
Depends on the market you're targeting. I know plenty of American companies that I deal with on a regular basis that pay anywhere from $10k to $300k for webdesign and interaction sites.
$100 is not a bad price for a template site. I'd never say that it's "too much". Template sites that I've built in the past I've paid between $500-$1500 depending on the needs.
I have a blog site that I"m working on with a customer currently and the design fees are currently in excess of $2500 - too much? not according to the me or the client!
$100 too much for a template site? Hardly - I routinely have clients that pay $1000+ and stay with me forever.
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