You get what you pay for… a quality Website should never come cheap

If I got a penny for every time someone came to me for a Website and acted shocked at my rates (they’re really not that steep) I’d be a really rich man. Many people for some reason don’t understand the quality/quantity idea at all. The quality when it comes to a quality Website often correlates to the amount (quantity) of money that is spent.

Web design… well good Web design is an art, a skill and something that needs to be learned and developed. Anyone can pickup a book and learn some HTML and slap something together, but are they are most likely overlooking some very important details that shouldn’t be neglected. Are they taking into account design and coding standards? Do they know that if a site is coded poorly it doesn’t view the same way in different browsers or even different computers? Do they know that if you code your site right, it will appear higher in the search engines less optimization? The answer to many of these questions and a whole lot more is No. This is because these flyby night designers and are just joy-rigging a site together to put something up. They don’t do Web design professionally or full-time. They aren’t up-to-date on the latest technology and news from the Web design space and because of this what they end up producing leaves lots to be desired. These less than perfect designs can also potentially have an adverse effect, that they weren’t expecting, on their company’s brand and image.

Often, I will have people come to me to redesign their site. They are unhappy with how their site turned out and don’t understand what went wrong. I often ask them what was their top priority during the last build — more than 95% say low-price. Though I don’t say it to them, they got what they paid for.

In order to get quality, you need to pay for it. It’s that simple. Now I’m not saying go out and spend thousands and thousands on a simple 5 page site. What I’m saying is shop around and be realistic. If someone is saying that they can do a 200 page site with e-commerce functionality for $400, run the other direction. Now, if they say they can build a simple e-commerce site for $3,000 to $5,000 then I’d be a little less worried about what might be produced.

Personally, I don’t do any sites for less than $1,200. Some people see that price think it’s really inexpensive. Others see it as really pricey. What I tell both types of customers is that I’m charging for the time it takes for me to develop the site. To have a site designed professionally and look top-notch will take some time. You really can’t rush quality or skimp on price.

All in all, when you’re out looking to get a site developed you need to look around, get a sense of the range in prices and also look at the person’s portfolio. If it looks like the sites are circa 1998, walk away. But if you like the person and their portfolio and you feel like you can work well with the person, spending extra money it will be well worth it.

What do you think? Post your thoughts below in the comments.