Custom design or template?
Especially for most (relatively) small businesses, this decision will often come up when researching the costs of having a website built. You’ll find yourself facing an important choice: do I want a
custom website or a website built using a template?
But what exactly is a template? A template is an existing layout with components that multiple companies or websites use to build their sites. This way, it saves
web design agency where you have your website developed saves you a lot of time, which also reduces costs. Currently, there are over 11,000 premium templates on
themeforest.net (one of the largest providers of WordPress templates). So, fortunately, there’s plenty of variety.
But is it actually wrong to use a template for my website? You might be wondering. We certainly don’t think so, but of course it also depends on your budget for website development. If you’re a new entrepreneur or your business isn’t yet large enough to spend €4,000–€5,000 on a website, a template-based website is definitely a good option.
Advantages:
- Professionally designed
- Templates often come with a wide range of features that you can use on your website
- It is relatively easy to manage
- Plenty of options for customization (such as using a WordPress child theme)
- Relatively competitively priced compared to a custom-built website
Disadvantages:
- A custom website is completely unique; a template, on the other hand, can be used by multiple companies
- A custom-built website is often just a bit faster, because a template might offer more features than you actually need (and that can slow the website down slightly).
JKC Media can create a custom website for you or a site based on a template: we can do both.
How extensive should the website be?
Of course, a website that requires only 5 pages is less expensive than a comprehensive website with dozens of pages, features, and links. In addition, we recommend that you, during the initial phase,
web design agency Be very clear about how many pages you think you’ll need and what features you want.
Content management system (CMS): yes or no?
Most websites these days are developed using a CMS (for example
WordPress). But if you know in advance that you won’t be making many changes and won’t be publishing articles or case studies on your website, it can sometimes be more cost-effective to have a website developed without a CMS. This is often slightly cheaper, and your website may even load a bit faster!
There is a downside, though. If you don’t know the first thing about programming languages like HTML, CSS, or JavaScript, it’s difficult to make changes to such a website (especially if you’re thinking about the future). In that case, you’d have to contact your web developer every time. Another downside is that a maintenance contract for a website built in HTML, CSS, and JS usually costs a lot more, while offering fewer features.
In short: don’t try to cut corners on a content management system, especially when thinking about the future!
Freelancer or web agency?
Hiring a freelancer is generally more cost-effective than hiring a web design agency. However, both freelancers and web design agencies have their pros and cons.
Web design agency:
- Advantage: Multiple people are involved (which means that a wider range of expertise can be drawn upon to develop your website)
- Advantage: Greater long-term stability; generally speaking, an internet agency is more sustainable than a freelancer. This means you’re less likely to face unexpected issues if your freelancer decides to stop working
- Downside: It might be a bit more expensive
- Disadvantage: You may not be assigned a dedicated project manager, so the interaction may be slightly less personal than with a freelancer.
JKC Media, a web design agency, would be happy to help you create a brand-new website.
Freelancer:
- Advantage: It's a bit more affordable
- Advantage: The interaction is more personal
- Disadvantage: Only one person is involved, and you’re more dependent on them. If your freelancer ever gets sick, there’s usually no one available to take over the work on short notice.
- Disadvantage: Your freelancer might decide to quit, since it’s easier for a freelancer to quit and switch to a salaried position than it is for the owner of a web agency with a staff of employees, etc.
Should you write the text yourself or have it written?
Do you write the content for your website yourself, or
have the content written? This also makes a big difference in price, depending on the amount of text, of course. In some cases, it might be better to outsource the writing of texts
Does SEO come included?
What many people forget when they have a website built is the SEO (Search Engine Optimization) aspect. Even if you have the most beautiful website in the world, if you or your web developer don’t do anything about SEO, your website won’t be of much use to you. Otherwise, potential customers will never be able to find you online!
And to what extent is SEO taken care of when a web developer promises to
Optimize SEO on your website? We deliver on our promise and boost your website’s search engine visibility (in the long term).
- Add meta titles, meta descriptions, and alt tags?
- Conduct keyword analysis and use the results to develop various unique landing pages?
- A comprehensive link-building and marketing strategy that spans months or years?
How much should I expect to pay to have a website built?
Of course, this varies widely and depends on many factors (as mentioned above). We have outlined several types of scenarios, each with its own estimated costs.
Freelancer / New entrepreneur:
Most people are looking for an affordable yet high-quality website. The website should serve as an online business card and help attract potential customers.
- But with a CMS, so it’s easy to edit yourself (if necessary)
- Between 5 and 15 pages
- SEO-optimized (otherwise, the freelancer wouldn't be found on Google, of course)
- Features such as a contact form, etc., but no extensive or complex features.
- Based on a template
- Estimated costs: €750–1,500 (excluding VAT)
Small business:
Most people are looking for a high-quality website that can achieve specific goals. The website should help the company grow its online presence and attract even more customers.
- But with a CMS, so it’s still easy to manage on your own
- Between 15 and 45 pages
- SEO-optimized (otherwise, small business owners wouldn’t be able to be found on Google)
- Marketing strategy and planning for regular articles and updates (such as blog posts, etc.)
- Features such as a contact form, etc., or an advanced quote form. Not too extensive, but not complex either.
- Based on a template
- Estimated costs: €1,500–4,000 (excluding VAT)
(Psst! JKC Media B.V. offers a package like this for
only €2,795 (excl. tax), check out the selection now to find your
have a website built).
Medium-sized company:
They are usually looking for a unique and sophisticated website. The website is designed to help the company grow further online and enable various integrations, such as with CRM systems.
- A custom CMS or a CMS like WordPress
- Between 45 and 100 pages
- SEO-optimized (otherwise, small business owners wouldn’t be able to be found on Google)
- Marketing strategy, link-building strategy, and scheduling for regular articles and updates (such as blog posts, etc.)
- Extensive features and integrations with various systems, such as a CRM system, etc.
- Fully customized
- Estimated costs: €4,000 – 15,000 (excluding VAT)
(Unfortunately, JKC Media B.V. does not yet offer this type of website; however, behind the scenes, we are already hard at work learning the latest techniques and gaining experience so that we can eventually offer this type of comprehensive website.)
Conclusion: Are you clear on the costsof having a website built?
Are you still looking for an experienced web design agency to create your new website? JKC Media B.V. would be happy to assist you. Dozens of satisfied customers have already gone before you! Feel free to request a no-obligation quote, and we’ll be happy to help!
