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You may be wondering "Should I hire a web
designer or just build my website myself?" That's a great
question! The answer is ... it depends.
Whether or not you should hire a web
designer depends on a lot of different factors. Most people just
look at the up front costs involved but there are other factors to
consider that you need to think about.
1. Do you want your website to
have a lot of bells and whistles?
What I mean by that is do you want your
website to do things that a regular website can't do.
A website that you can build yourself
can be pretty fancy. You can easily add music, video, RSS feeds,
forums, basic password protection, shopping carts, credit card payments
and other items to your website with just a click of a button. You
don't need to hire a web designer for those things these days.
If you want your website to do more
things like be a Facebook or Ebay clone or set up user logins or do
anything fancy or special like that then hiring a web designer is your
best bet.
2. How much do you want to
spend on your website?
If you choose to go with a web designer
to build your website you are usually looking at a cost of $500-$1500
for just a basic website that you could build yourself for less than
$10.
Normally the quoted price a web
designer gives you ends up going up by the time your website is
finished. Sometimes it's the web designer who adds on extra fees
and sometimes it's the client's fault because they keep adding more to
the website.
When considering the cost of your
website don't forget to include the costs of updating your website.
If you build your website yourself it doesn't cost you anything extra to
make changes to your website. If you hire a web designer to build
your site it will normally cost you about $50 or more for the web
designer's time to make the changes for you. So every time you
want to make a change to your website it's going to be expensive.
3. How reliable is the web
designer you are considering?
Web designers burn out quite often and
some are just flakes. If you go with a web designer you want to
make sure that you go with one who will be there if and when you need
them.
A lot of times people do web design for
a short period of time then find out it isn't for them. Trying to
get those people to help you when they have moved on to something else
is really frustrating.
Other web designers just build sites
here and there to earn extra money and once they are done with the
project you are on your own.
It's VERY important that if you do
decide to go with a web designer that you hire one that has been in
business several years and you have talked to at least 3 of their
clients for references.
Unless you know that the website
you want to build requires a web designer I STRONGLY suggest that you
build your own website.
It will be MUCH easier and better for you in the long run.
IF you don't want to build your
website yourself, and want a great looking regular website, check out
Act Now Domains. They have web designers on staff that will
build and maintain your website for you for around $45/month.
If you decide to go with a web designer
check out my article below about what to look for and look out for when
hiring a web designer.
Related Articles:
How to Hire a Web Designer - Do's and Don'ts of Hiring a Web
Designer
Disclosure: I am affiliated
with about 25% of the companies I recommend on this site. This means
I receive a commission from some of the companies I mention if you sign up from
this website. My credibility is VERY important to me, therefore, I only
endorse products I have personally used and truly believe are good. If I
don't like them or don't think they are any good I refuse to recommend them.
I send my own family and friends to this site for help. Speaking of this
site, it is independently owned and the opinions expressed here are my own.
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