We have a lot of people ask if we can make them a website. While we do love building websites, it can be expensive. If you are looking to save some money, here are some things we recommend to our clients.

I love building a good website. There really is something magical about sitting down with a client and making magic happen right in front of their eyes with features they never dreamed of.
Unfortunatly, custom website designs can be pretty expensive. I have some things I recommend to clients to help relieve some strain on the pocket books and still end up with a fantastic looking website.
Did you know that you can pay upper-wards of $2000 just for a corporate website design? That doesn’t include the cost of getting that design turned into a real functioning website. That is just the design.

At GroveNET we are all about saving as much of our client’s money as possible. We know the better your bottom line, the happier you are. That is why I recommend that our clients consider the following when wanting to build a website. These are listed in the order they should be considered:

• DIY Website Builders. There are some fantastic and easy to use website builders out there and they are only getting better each day. Sites like wix.com, site123.com, and weebly.com just to name a few. For a nominal mothly fee (between $5 - $30/mo), these sites provide an easy to use interface and some ready made templates. You just provide content and voila, website complete. These sites are somewhat featureless, so if you want advanced features (like intelligent search, dynamic content, or real time data) you might want to consider our next option.
• Pre-built Website Templates. Sites like Theme Forest, Colorlib, and Template Monster charge a one time licensing fee to purchase a template/theme. Most of the fee goes to the designer/developer and the site gets a small commission. This will let you save the cost of the website designer. Unfortunatly, you will still need a website developer to add in any extra features you want. However, you’ve cut your costs in half if you find a decent template on here. These templates are mass sold and not unique. So if you want a highly customized and unique template, check out the last option.
• Custom design. Lastly, you can pay to have a highly customized very unique website designed. Your site will be highly optimized to your needs. While this is the most expensive way to get a website, there are some things you can do to save money.
  • Do your homework. Look at other sites or look at templates from the previous step. This will give you some examples to show your designer.
  • Write down what features you want. Be as precise as possible.
  • Anything you can do to save time will save you money in design and development time.
    

So having your own piece of web realestate doesn’t have to be expensive. You can make it cost as little or as much as you would like. This really is a case of you get what you pay for though. Custom websites generally have better SEO (Search Engine Optimization) than the cheaper templates. Personally, I usually choose option 2. It seems to get me the most bang for the buck. Option 3 is a great choice if you are building a full web application like a portal for customers to log into.

The choice is yours. If you would like one on one consulting for your choices, GroveNET Solutions would love to help. Shoot us a message or e-mail us at contact@grovenetsolutions.com us and one of our project managers will get in contact with you and help you choose the right plan for you and your budget.