As of late, 29% of small businesses still do not have a website. The reason for the missing websites — lack of technical skills. With the ease of most content management systems technical skills should not play a factor in whether or not your small business has a website. In this article you’ll learn how much should a small business website cost and how we got to those investment totals. And a list of a few key items that your website should have. Let’s begin.
National Freelance Hourly Average
In 2017 the U.S. national hourly average for a freelancer is $53 per hour and varies from state to state. From our research we found the most expensive states to be Oregon and California, the least expensive; Iowa and Missouri.
What Does a Small Business Website Need?
- Responsive / Mobile Friendly Layout
- Easy Content Management System (CMS) such as WordPress
- Optimized for Search Engines
- SSL Certificates for security
- Google Analytics
- Specific website goals
Website Development (Tempalte)
When you build a website from a pre-built template and modify it, your initial investment would total $5,500. This includes content migration, eCommerce store, SEO research and on-page development.
Custom Website Development
When you want a unique look for your website, your initial investment would total $7,000. This includes custom design, custom development, content migration, eCommerce store, SEO research and on-page development.
Website Maintenance
Once your website is built and online you will need to maintain it. Leaving the website as is, over time, can become vulnerable to malicious activity and get hacked. Checking for updates, running backups and security checks should be done on a regular basis.
Invest In Your Business
Your website is an investment and a marketing tool for your business. When receiving quotes from website designers don’t be frightened by the amount. If it’s easier, break the initial investment down by months. So in our examples a template website would cost $459/month and a custom $583/month for the first year. And remember to talk with the website designer and ask questions.
