Nowadays, anyone can create a website (yes). Just create an account on Wix, Go Daddy, Squarespace, Weebly... Name it! Finding a model is as easy as pie.

But building a website that really attracts target users and pushes them to take the desired action cannot simply be done from a pre-designed template.

But what is the real cost of a professional, effective website that will above all help your business grow?

This is a difficult question to answer in a blog post since it's really case-by-case. However, here we want to offer the same advice and recommendations that we give to our customers. Kind of like a free online consultation.

A price is very difficult to find on the web when talking about a site made by an agency or a web developer. In most cases, we read that features determine the price, that's it. And this is where we notice that customers are wrong in their project.

Factors that influence the price of a website

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Let's do an exercise together, look at these two websites:

These are two companies that offer a relatively identical service and whose website offers the same functionalities.

Let's say you are looking for a notary, which company would deserve your call after a first look..?

Let me assume that most of you would lean towards the former.

However, they offer the same thing.

This is because a completely custom website, created by an agency, often offers a much better first impression.

Did you know that the average user forms an opinion of your website in 0.5 seconds? And that 75% of users admit to judging the credibility of a company with their website?

The features to incorporate into your website are indeed very important in determining the cost of your website, but a web agency can offer you much more. A tailor-made website like the first requires significant support, much more programming for animations (the wow effect), design and maintenance.

A $5,000 website can easily have the same functionality as $15,000. The difference is the work and therefore the time that the agency puts into the website.

A low-cost website contains a lot more automation to save billable time.

This means at the website level:

• The general design is taken from a template
• The added features will be non-custom plugins.

And in terms of support:

• Much less time researching competitive keywords in your industry.
• Some steps are not taken into account at all (storyboarding, wireframes, stress testing...)

For some, using a theme with photos from image banks does the trick. In addition, customers who are ready to invest in their website will benefit from services with great added value such as:

• Keyword optimization
• Creating a persona
• Wireframe and prototype
• Internal link creation strategy
• CRM integration
• Geo-targeting
• Online store with hundreds or thousands of products

It is these additions that have the most added value and allow the customer to see a real increase in their traffic and sales. So we go far beyond the website design. We are building a complete web marketing strategy. The cost of a website will therefore be influenced by its functionalities, of course, but it is in the support that we see all the difference. The procedure to take and the price always depend on the needs of the customer. Some only want a landing page while others need a complex online store. The important thing is to know what the purpose of the website is in order to be able to determine the support and customization that will be required.

How to make a successful first impression: the key elements of a website:

Define your target

Giving the best possible first impression involves defining your persona. This may seem like an unnecessary step in building a website, but in reality it is essential to know who you are talking to. The architecture of the site and its design will be greatly influenced by your persona. For example, your website won't have wow effects for people aged 50 and over if it was designed for 20-35 year olds.

Defining your target also makes it possible to predict through which channels your customers will find you and how.

The “wow factor”

An effective website will mark your visitor in a way that they will remember it. Leaving a strong impression will increase your engagement and conversion rates. The wow effect often comes through a surprising design. This is the reason for animating an elephant on a bike when you arrive at Walter's site.

SEO friendly

A good website generates the right type of traffic.

By optimizing your website to perform on search engines, all your design efforts will pay off since it will be your persona who will visit your website.

To understand your agency's SEO strategy, ask your potential supplier what tools they use (dozens of them exist), what is their approach to web site design SEO and what site structure they recommend for your industry. All this in order to create the best sales funnel for your web marketing campaigns.

The steps to follow: determine the cost of your websiteThe more time we have to spend on a client's project, the more the bill goes up, of course. There is Several very easy steps to execute for a successful website that helps your business grow. However, many customers are not always aware of certain steps. This is normal, not everyone works in web design. To give you an idea of the steps to take, consider the list below. Not all of them are necessary for design of your website. It depends a lot on your needs for web support and digital marketing. The preparation phase

• First website or not: Need a logo, help with its branding, graphic standards notebook
• Marketing support: need for help with your business plan, an industry analysis, definition of the target to be reached, analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats...
• Screenwriting: flow, charts, user case
• Advice, information architecture and content plan: page architecture, number of pages, page length

The design phase

• Level of digital creativity: animations and interactions on the site
• Length of pages
• Content creation: writing texts, photos, videos...
• Custom design
• Technical level required: features to be incorporated
• Analytical ability: tag the site, google analytics
• Buying plug ins: ssl certificate, delivery module

The post-launch phase

• Need for training: on the use of its website
• Maintenance of the website: updates
• Website promotion: seo, sem, newsletter, web campaign
• Warranty purchase: 15 business days to fix bugs at no cost
• Adjustments
• Email automation
• Seo continues (optimize afterwards, constantly)

So how much does it cost? Here are the highlights: A starter site with a purchased themeTemplateCost: Starting at $3,000Features: A startup website is usually a business's first. It serves a bit like a business card, its purpose is to briefly present the company in an aesthetic and striking format.Example: visibilitycups.com

‍This includes:

• Installing a WordPress theme
• Home, About, Contact, Services (up to 5 pages)
• SEO optimization
• Cover images for your social networks
• Google Analytics installation
• Installing a newsletter manager with 1 email template
• Mobile compatibility
• Training to update content
• Content management tool

A corporate site with a themeCost: $3,000 to $5,000Features: A corporate site is relatively similar to a startup site. However, we will find more pages, maybe a blog, a portfolio... It is not necessarily a sales tool yet, we are still talking about working on the reputation of the company.Example: pareassurances.com

‍This includes:

• Installing a WordPress theme
• Home, About, Contact, Services, Services, Blog (up to 10 pages)
• SEO optimization
• Cover images for your social networks
• Google Analytics installation
• Installing a newsletter manager with 1 email template
• Creation of 2 personalized email lists
• Mobile compatibility
• Training to update content
• Content Management Tools

A tailor-made corporate siteCost: $6,000 and moreFeatures: A tailor-made site allows the company to adjust the site so that it is 100% in its image. We can then go further in design. A tailor-made site also makes it possible to offer functionalities specific to the business and the needs of its customers (such as a subscription platform for example)Example: gdln.ca/

‍This includes:

• Custom site design (no template)
• SEO optimization
• Content management tool
• Cover images for your social networks
• Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager
• Newsletter manager and 2 email templates
• Customized lists for managing newsletters
• Mobile compatibility
• Training to update content

An online storeCost: $6,000 and moreFeatures: We are talking here about websites that have transactional needs. The online store can be made from a template or not, can be connected to an inventory or even an accounting system.Example: https://www.bijouterieitalienne.com
Example: https://www.dermablend.com

‍This includes:

• Support in choosing a platform
• Custom design for the site and the shopping cart
• Connect to an inventory (if required)
• Importing products
• SEO optimization
• Content manager
• Training to update content
• Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager
• Newsletter manager and 3 email templates
• Customized lists for managing newsletters
• Mobile compatibility

For your website to help you acquire new customers, increase your turnover and especially position yourself as an expert, you cannot turn round corners. If you have not looked at your website for some time, go for it. Evaluate whether they are portraying your business today. Your audience forms their opinion of you in milliseconds. Make sure you're making a good impressionSources:
https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/223150
https://www.websitebuilderexpert.com/how-much-should-a-website-cost/ https://www.executionists.com/much-effective-website-cost-2017/
https://www.methodandclass.com/articles/what-are-the-different-types-of-website
https://www.markbrinker.com/website-cost