Designing a Cost Effective Web Site
You have a great idea for a web site but don’t have a design for it yet. What are you going to do about it? Depending on your online marketing budget and how skilled you are with designing websites, there are several options available to you.
My company, Green Chair Marketing Group, has designed over 180 web sites for clients in California, Colorado, Florida and beyond. I hate to take business away from myself, but I recognize that some web design clients don’t have the budget to invest in a professionally designed site.
But if you do have the finances, don’t scrimp. Your web site is a reflection of your company. It is a very valuable asset as it grows in maturity and traffic. Take a look at the options below and make up your own mind.
Design it Yourself
If you or someone in your company knows how to design sites, then this might be a good option for you. If you don’t know how to design sites, then there are companies that have content management systems where you can make changes yourself. I’ve been impressed with a company called CityMax. You log into to an administrative backend area to customize generic templates and then create pages from the templates with your own words and pictures. You should use this solution if you have more time than you do money.
Hire a Beginner
If you have a small budget and no time, you can hire out the design to a young designer or someone who is just learning how to do it. There are plenty of people on Craig’s List who offer inexpensive design. Be careful to choose someone who seems reputable and can show you a good amount of sites they have created. Normally, when you have a site designed you pay for half up front and then the rest after it’s completed.
Pre-designed Templates
There are pre-designed DreamWeaver templates on places like Monstertemplates.com where you can buy a template for about $50. You will still need to have a designer change the navigation and input your content and pictures. Normally something like this would cost you around $500, and it will be even more if you are going to change any of the Flash.
Professional Design
A professional web design company like mine will put together a custom design for your site. They will normally start off with a static image of what your site will look like. Once the design has been approved, then they will start creating the individual pages from that design. They will also add any kind of programming that you will need, such as contact forms or a shopping cart.
So, get together with your people and start writing out what you want on your site and discuss how important the design and function is to your profit. You may find that you want to start with a less expensive site until you have the budget to bring in a professional design team. Many of the designs that Green Chair create are redesigns that companies had put together early in their company lifespan.
You can have a cost effective site designed, whether you are paying $50 for it or $50,000. It’s a matter of how much value it brings to you, your company and your customers.
Dave Carlson owns Green Chair Marketing Group, a Denver Internet marketing firm specializing in driving visitors to web sites by search engine optimization, pay per click advertising, and web site design/redesign. Call him at 720-922-3124.