Chris Muller

Web Development Spot

What does a website cost?

Price is one factor in determining the cost of a website but since it is not an off the shelf commodity (although it is often treated this way) the actual cost involves a number of risk factors.

Risk factors involved in determining cost:

In the words of Ronald J. Baker in "Implementing Value Pricing":

  1. Performance risk is the chance the service provided will not perform or provide the benefit for which it was purchased.
  2. Financial risk is the the amount of monetary loss incurred by the customer if the service fails.
  3. Time loss risk refers to the amount of time lost by the customer due to failure of the service.
  4. Opportunity risk refers to the risk involved when customer must choose one service over another.
  5. Psychological risk is the chance that the purchase of a service will not fit the individual's self-concept.
  6. Social risk is closely related to psychological risk, and refers to the probability a service will not meet with approval from others who are significant to the customer making the purchase.
  7. Physical risk is the chance a service will actually cause physical harm to the consumer.
Our Guarantee:
Our work is guaranteed to the complete delight of the customer. If you are not completely satisfied with the services performed by Chris Muller we will, at your option, either refund the price or accept a portion of said price that reflects your level of value received.

Any dissatisfaction should be communicated in writing to Chris Muller within 10 days from the provision of the service after which it will be considered as satisfactory.

Furthermore, if you ever receive an invoice without first having authorised the service, payment terms, and price, you are not obligated to pay for that service. 

Our price and payment terms will be given upfront before you make a decision.

Getting back to the question of what a website costs, it should be noted that there is actually not such thing as a standard price for a website. 

The situation can be compared to asking what the price of a house is. Houses are not all the same. Some houses have one living area, a kitchen space, a toilet and a shower while other houses have many rooms, with bathrooms on suite for each room, a dining room, lounge, TV room, study areas, an entertainment area, a gymnasium and so on. Even when comparing one bedroom houses there are many differences that make each one unique.

The price of a website can only be determined once the "architectural" plans are available:

  • What functionality and performance should be included?
  • What is the purpose and goal of the website in other words, what should be achieved?
  • When will it be considered successful?
  • What should it look like? What is the expected appearance and how does it portray the character of the owner? 
  • Which elements that are to be used on the website will be provided by the customer and which need to be created?
  • How much time is available to complete the job? In other words what is the deadline?
  • What are the consequences of not meeting the deadline?
  • What amount of customer interaction will be required during the development process? In other words what are the expected intervals between progress reports? 
  • What are the financial constraints? In other words what is the budget?
  • What will be the reporting structure? Will there be a number of people relating to the developer (requiring the need for group meetings) or will there be a single point of contact.

When starting a business, most of the time there are limited financial resources. This does not mean that one should let go of one's goals or expectations.

Ways to manage a cash strapped situation: 

  • Start with building only core requirements and expand as the capacity increases.
  • Amortise the expense over a period of time.
  • Aim for the achievement of short term goals that form part of medium and long term goals.
  • Prioritise expenses that will enable the achievement of follow up goals.

By breaking down goals and plans into manageable chunks and by setting milestones for achievement, it is possible to start with any resource.

Send me a message - Let me know what you have in mind, I will send an estimate.