All websites are not created equal

In addition to building social media packages, I also do website consultation. 90% of the companies out there are lacking in their website presences in one way or another. This can be a small easy fix, other times a major overhaul, and sometimes even a demolition and re-build. What are you willing to do to make sure your company is represented professionally and sociably online?

Sometimes I get calls and the folks say "I got this website for free..." and I immediately tell them they did not get a website. A college kid may have practiced on you for his freshman final project, but that is simply not good enough. When I can build a Blogger Blog that looks better than your main website presence online; you do not have a website.

Then folks tell me "I need a website!" I say "ok, what type of website are you looking for?" "Something nice and pretty" is the top answer I receive. I smile and say "what is your budget? Are you ready to spend $500, $5000 or $500,000? What do you think you want the website to look like and what do you want the website to accomplish?" For the most part, you get what you pay for. Yes, there are people that will do it cheaper, but not better. And there are people that could do it better, but not cheap. Get it?!

Here are a few prices for websites that I keep in mind:

$500 for a down payment (if this is what you want to pay for a website, you do not believe in the Internet yet)

$1000 - $3000 for a premium theme Wordpress website + simple custom logo, buttons, banners.

$5000 + for a Drupal website

Depending on what your business is pulling in, you may want to allocate a certain percentage toward web design and updates. For example, if your business is grossing $1 million dollars per year, maybe you should put .033% toward it over 3 years, so you can get a nice $100,000 website that will keep you ahead of the curve. Grossing several million dollars yearly with room to play hard? What about a custom $250,000 - $500,000 website that will stun the world and give you every feature imaginable? CALL ME!!! Lol, I do not build $100k or $500k websites, but I have some reputable friends that do :)

Just having a website does not mean much anymore. Make your website one of the top priorities for your business. Put something into it, get it out online with SEO and social media, and watch it work wonders for you. Get your return on investment and then put aside more money to update monthly or yearly with the latest and greatest. Do it right!