Website Build Quote Excessive?

pitkin2020

terra_ferma wrote: »

I don't disagree with the quote (I actually got quotes from £250 to £1500 for designing my website). Personally if my webstore takes off I will want to get professional advice (I have a business to run, no time to be a designer/programmer/SEO expert/marketeer etc etc).
What I'm saying is that if I got someone to do it for me I would want them to use a proper cart, maybe Magento, as with EKM you have to pay a monthly fee, and their features are very limited. It would still be a half-baked attempt.

I believe the cheap/free all in one packages are a great place to start for a new business, to test the water when then don't have a lot of cash, if it works and they want to take it to the next level they would need to call in the professionals.

I don't disagree with you either but it is very catch 22. If you really don't have the skills or budget to start a decent online shop then a bodged attempt at trying to get one up and running for the sake of it could do you more harm than good. If you site looks very amateurish it can have that dodgy look about it which will put a lot of people of. Instantly your avoided and people tell others to avoid you, read the threads on here alone how many people scream SCAM at the slightest thing lol.

Its the minor details in how you want people to perceive your business that makes the world of difference. I'm in the sign trade and sometimes trying to get customers to see that their hand painted misspelled sign is doing them more hard than good is like trying to get blood from a stone. Of course if your aiming at the bottom of the market, i.e the poundshoppers then fine they see your cheap image and they expect a cheap product!!

Everything the client sees from your website, business cards, advertising, signage and even you has a reflection on your businesses image.

Regarding the website do it yourself if you can but take your time, look at others see what you think works and what doesn't. What does their website make you think their company is like. Keep it simple and clean whilst being easy to navigate. Ensure you get your T&C's right and the payment system is secure.

People (and I know we shouldn't but we are all guilty of it and if you say you don't then I would say you are lying!!) base your impression of people and companies on the first image they present so that impression has to be the best it can be!!

terra_ferma

pitkin2020 wrote: »

I don't disagree with you either but it is very catch 22. If you really don't have the skills or budget to start a decent online shop then a bodged attempt at trying to get one up and running for the sake of it could do you more harm than good. If you site looks very amateurish it can have that dodgy look about it which will put a lot of people of. Instantly your avoided and people tell others to avoid you, read the threads on here alone how many people scream SCAM at the slightest thing lol.

Its the minor details in how you want people to perceive your business that makes the world of difference. I'm in the sign trade and sometimes trying to get customers to see that their hand painted misspelled sign is doing them more hard than good is like trying to get blood from a stone. Of course if your aiming at the bottom of the market, i.e the poundshoppers then fine they see your cheap image and they expect a cheap product!!

Everything the client sees from your website, business cards, advertising, signage and even you has a reflection on your businesses image.

Regarding the website do it yourself if you can but take your time, look at others see what you think works and what doesn't. What does their website make you think their company is like. Keep it simple and clean whilst being easy to navigate. Ensure you get your T&C's right and the payment system is secure.

People (and I know we shouldn't but we are all guilty of it and if you say you don't then I would say you are lying!!) base your impression of people and companies on the first image they present so that impression has to be the best it can be!!

I think we'll have to agree to disagree. I think the free/cheap websites are a fantastic tool opening up opportunities to people who wouldn't otherwise be able to have a webstore.
I think of crafts artisans selling their first product, hobbyists, people trying out new ideas, they are incredible value for money.
Some look really good for what they cost, nothing outstanding but they serve a purpose.
Webstores for the masses, in a way.
But they have limitations, good to start up and test an idea, but they won't take you very far.

It's a bit like someone doing a bit of DIY decs, and having things done professionally (or learning to do it to high standards if someone is really keen...).

pitkin2020

Its horses for courses. Don't expect to sell top market products through a website that looks like its been made by a 5 year old. Would you buy a brand new BMW from the fancy showroom or the man who has a portakabin as his office............image is everything.

I'm not saying for one minute if you are making handcrafted goods that are selling for a fiver each you should go and spend 1k on a website but if you can't stretch to a reasonable site, take your time and learn to produce a site not just buy hosting and stick a shop on it. Too many people do just that and it looks awful then they wonder why they aren't showing up on google and the few hits they do actually get not many of those go onto purchase.

zackary71

Feel bad now...started a thread and caused a bit of healthy disagreement !
I'd be going high end of the market paying more to suppliers to source better quality raw product so obviously want this reflected in a professional website. The budget isn't an issue but I don't want to pay money for money's sake. Likewise, I don't want to get involved in the design side...just the concept of what I want site to look like. The primary concerns is the site matches the aspirational level of the product, yet allow me to add simple updates weekly.
I think with all the responses, all of which I greatly appreciate, I've got plenty to investigate further.
Thanks again.

terra_ferma

zackary71 wrote: »

Feel bad now...started a thread and caused a bit of healthy disagreement !
I'd be going high end of the market paying more to suppliers to source better quality raw product so obviously want this reflected in a professional website. The budget isn't an issue but I don't want to pay money for money's sake. Likewise, I don't want to get involved in the design side...just the concept of what I want site to look like. The primary concerns is the site matches the aspirational level of the product, yet allow me to add simple updates weekly.
I think with all the responses, all of which I greatly appreciate, I've got plenty to investigate further.
Thanks again.

I forgot to mention the crafts forum, even if it's not your area it's a good place to see examples of various shops, from the cheapest all on one packages, to some DYI open source work. Some of them look really good, although they may not be right for your high-end website.

During my searches (looking at competitors shops) I've bookmarked a company I stumbled across (you never know, one day I may need them....) , they designed a some very successful online shops I've been following, and one in particular has exceptionally high ranking on Google.
http://www.eventureinternet.com/

Good luck!

pitkin2020

zackary71 wrote: »

Feel bad now...started a thread and caused a bit of healthy disagreement !
I'd be going high end of the market paying more to suppliers to source better quality raw product so obviously want this reflected in a professional website. The budget isn't an issue but I don't want to pay money for money's sake. Likewise, I don't want to get involved in the design side...just the concept of what I want site to look like. The primary concerns is the site matches the aspirational level of the product, yet allow me to add simple updates weekly.
I think with all the responses, all of which I greatly appreciate, I've got plenty to investigate further.
Thanks again.

If your products are high end you want a high end website, that doesn't mean you have to pay huge amounts. Get quotes, more quotes and a few more quotes. Choose the company that have designs you feel would be best suited to your business and a price that is within the quotes you feel are acceptable. If they are doing all the design work for you aswell don't forget that you should be able to carry that over to literature, business cards etc.

The saying is you pay for what you get. You should still take some time to learn a little SEO to ensure your site is performing well in the search engines.

zackary71

I'm reeling now...found a likely designer who specialised in photographer website builds...they quoted £6000 !!
I'm scared to even ask if there was one too many zeros in the quote

pitkin2020

zackary71 wrote: »

I'm reeling now...found a likely designer who specialised in photographer website builds...they quoted £6000 !!
I'm scared to even ask if there was one too many zeros in the quote

They would have to be offering something pretty special for that lol. Not the worst quote I have ever heard.

gamma

As a web developer who does this for a living, those prices aren't too bad.

You are basically taking an off the shelf product and getting it customised for you.

If you were getting a custom built platform I would probably charge you ten times that much.

I would probably charge the same - for an off the shelf product, but as any tradesmen I have my preference in tools.

Depending on the store, what you're selling I can recommend a few products. Not trying to sell you my services ( I'm too busy at the moment anyway ) but it may be useful as a comparison. I need to know what you're selling or perhaps an example of a store that you like..

hth