As part of your growth strategy, a re-design can be a powerful, profitable thing. My last re-design upped my sales 700%. A site I did recently multiplied their number of monthly enquiries by 3. A friend of mine had a re-design that turned her on to an entirely new kind of client that adore her and her work. People are always telling me crazy-awesome stories like that. Updating your online space is powerful.

Sometimes it’s monumentally obvious that you need a re-design (when you’re apologizing for your website every time you give someone a business card, for example). Other times, it’s a little more subtle (when you can’t keep someone on your site for more than five seconds). And really…I should have broken this down into a five-part series, but I doubt you want to read about how to know if you should re-design your website for the next month. So here are my Five Rules of Thumb. (Yes, Thumb. In capitals.)

The “Egads…I Have A Sucky Site (or many of them!)” Rule

You know you’ve got a sucky website if…

• You can’t update the site’s content yourself, so it hasn’t changed in months (or years).
• You’ve got several related sites that are on separate URLs (they should be ONE, folks…you’re watering down your effectiveness).
• Your site is all about you and what you’re selling (it should be about your audience and what they’re looking for).
• You don’t have a way to keep people coming back.
• The design doesn’t represent your level of quality or credibility.
• You know that your website sucks without anybody telling you.

The “My Sidewalks Are Broken Or Overgrown With Weeds” Rule

Sidewalks are the way that people get to your stuff. The way people interact with you. The process they take to get what they need. Your sidewalks may be broken from overuse if your site wasn’t built to handle your current traffic flow. Or they can be outdated and under-used.

My sidewalks are suffering from overuse right now. When I started offering LiteSites, the whole structure of my service offerings changed, but my navigation system wasn’t built to handle it. The result? My services are confusing. What’s ‘from-the-ground-up site development?’ What’s a ‘hot new website’? What’s a LiteSite? What’s ‘pumping it up?’ What’s ‘just a website’? The vocabulary used to work when I had more limited service offerings. Now it just makes it confusing. And the simplistic navigation doesn’t help.

You may not be able to tell right away if your sidewalks aren’t working. A few hints:

• If you get a lot of enquiries from people who are confused.
• If people ask you where things are all the time.
• If people contact you without even looking at your sales pages (they probably looked, but were just confused and gave up.)
• If you get a lot of traffic, but not many sales.

The “My World Has Changed” Rule

Your business is a living, breathing thing. Thinking back on where I was last year at this time and where I am this year, I belong in a completely different phone book. That’s how it is with small business. We’re flexible, and we definitely use it to our benefit. And as we make significant changes in our businesses, our online presence needs to keep up. Here are some things to consider:

• Did you start offering a different product since your last re-design? A different service?
• Has the economy changed?
• Has your audience’s worldview changed?
• Have you started serving a different audience?
• Has your business plan changed?
• Has your product or service improved?
• Has your marketing strategy changed?

The “Everybody Else Looks Cooler Than Me” Rule

Sometimes when everyone else is doing one thing, the smart move is to do the exact opposite. Other times, you’ve got to keep up with the pack, or they’re going to leave you behind. If my web site was in a 90s-era time warp, you’d better believe I’d be on the curb, no matter how much you guys love me.

So look around. If you feel superior or at least on the same level as your competitors, you’re on solid ground. If you get a sick “Oh My Gosh, I SUCK” feeling, then it’s time for a re-design.

The “It’s Been Two Years or More” Rule

If your business hasn’t changed much, a good design can last for a couple of years without showing its age. But after a while, even the best design starts to look shabby. Technology changes fast, and the web goes with it. If you want to be a modern, current brand, your website has to feel modern and current.

The late 90s was all about flashing banners and animated gifs (Look Mom, see what I can do!). Then we went in the opposite direction with the ultra-professional, corporate look. Then things got shiny and three-dimensional. Then they got HUGE. Then they got messy and hand-drawn. Now…well…it’s really hard to see where we’re at now, but I’ve got my theories.

Re-designs take time; start planning now

I probably won’t re-launch the site until late winter/early spring of next year (my last re-design was in March), but I’m definitely putting my plans on the table now. I’ve got to take into consideration LiteSites and where they’re going in the future, how my custom site intake process is changing, if I want to start doing more consulting and coaching, if I want to start running online classes for DIY-ers. It’s all got to be thrown into the mix.

I’m really glad I re-designed the website when I did (I’d probably be living on cat food if I hadn’t), but the design would have worked for longer if my business hadn’t changed so substantially in the months after the re-launch. Sigh. And I so love my website.

But you know what? I love my clients more. I love growth more. I love improvement more. And that’s what re-designs are for — improving, growing, and re-staking your flag.

How has your business changed since your last re-design?

I love my blog reader. Because sometimes it brings up some really useful stuff — like this design checklist for clients. If you’re wondering what kind of information your web developer or graphic designer will need, just check this handy list so that you will be running on all cylinders. Or something like that (I never quite get those car analogies right.)

In other news, we recently wrapped up a really cool project for Talking House of Virginia and North Carolina. The site went so smoothly from start to finish, and I really appreciated the great communication that we had with the owner. And just for the record, I am loving the flexibility of WordPress.

The past few weeks have been nuts. NUTS, I say. But the nutty ones make you appreciate the smooth and creamy ones all the more. So I’m definitely not complaining.

On another note, I just read this article that answers the question: “Couldn’t anyone do what you do?” (Thanks Natalie.) If nothing else, reading this article will let non-web-types in on a little secret: This is the Worst Question to Ask a Web Designer or Developer. Unless you have some strange need to make an enemy in about two seconds flat.

You know, adhering to web standards really isn’t all about ranting. Maybe only two-thirds.

Here’s an interesting post featuring designs that clients didn’t choose. I love hearing the reactions of other designers to their clients’ decisions. Because ultimately, the final outcome is the client’s decision. The most complicated thing about being a designer is educating your clients and coming up with solutions that work for everybody (most especially the users!). I’ve personally noticed several types of design mentalities:

1. The “client is always right” mentality
   The client pays, the designer does what they say…end of story. After all, give the people what they want, right? In a sense, yes. But designers should be more concerned about truly serving their clients — not just doing what they say. Often the thing that the client wants is not what they THINK they want.
2. The “designer is always right” mentality
   They’re the designer after all…they know what they’re talking about. They are highly educated in their field, it’s true. But the client has experience in their own field that the designer does not have. Their perspective is highly valuable if the end result is going to be effective for the market that they are trying to serve.
3. The “we’re a team” mentality
   Rah rah sis boom bah…designer plus client equals successful completion of goals. (I suggested that we use that cheer as our studio motto, but for some reason it wasn’t adopted. I’m hurt.) In an ideal scenario, the designer does what they do best (design) and the client does what they do best (make sure that their market is being served.) Everybody’s happy.

So the real trick is setting up those expectations in the beginning. Still figuring that one out, but I have noticed that it’s much easier to do in person than over the phone. When we can shake our clients’ hands and they can look into our eyes, it’s much easier for us to develop the trust needed to work well together.

Here’s your mission: Go to 9rules. Look in the right-hand column. View their advertising button. Note that it says “We only accept advertising from companies with money.” Laugh and laugh and laugh some more. Because they’re serious.

Okay, so you’re wondering why I am laughing? Well. You should read my emails some time. I get things like “Hey, I love your website re-design! It is totally awesome! I am starting this company and we need a website. We don’t have any money, but when we make millions, we will totally let you have some.”

Thanks…

And, “Hey, we need a website by Friday. Our budget is $150. We want it to be super-cool with flash and stuff.”

Yep. Sure. And design is so EASY that I’ll just whip some up for you right now.

I hate to sound snarky, but after I received the 100th “I am poor but lovable, and I’ll be your friend forever” email, I started putting up a general price guide for our services. Do I have a sign on my back? Oh dang. I guess I did. It said “Works 12 hour days for free!” Dang, dang, dang.

But seriously. I don’t go to Wal-Mart (Yep, I am poor, too. That’s why I shop at Wal-Mart.) and say, “Hey, can you give me groceries for a month? I know I’m going to be a super-star web designer one day, and then you are going to be SO glad you did.”

I think there is a conception somewhere that we designers are making a TON of money. Well, some of us are to be sure. A lot of us are not. “Well how in the heck can you NOT make money when you charge $90 an hour?!” Please…calm down. Let’s talk rationally here.

Say I have a $90 per hour design/development rate (hypothetically speaking, of course). If I had a $90 an hour rate, that would mean I’m probably running a pretty small operation. The going rate is between $75 and $250.

Let’s also consider that half of my time is billable. That means 20 of my 40 working hours are directly billable to the client (which is pretty good for a startup.) That means that I’m actually making $45 an hour.

Then let’s consider that the company has bills. Overhead, if you want the fancy term. Computers, software, transportation, advertising, promotional materials, outsourcing, etc. etc. Let’s say you run a tight ship and are left over with $30 an hour.

But THEN consider how fast the web design/development world changes. Consider how you have to keep yourself educated and all of that fun stuff. You don’t really have 40 hours a week to work, then. You might use 5 or 10 hours to keep yourself in the loop of your craft.

So then half of the LEFTOVER hours are billable. Which leaves you with maybe $25 an hour when you are blessed enough to be booked solid. The other times you’re making less. And let’s also remember that design is HARD work. Contrary to popular belief, designers do not just slap some type and pictures on a page and be done with it. There is really an art to what we do.

And I love what we do. I really, really, really do. So I’m not complaining about the profession. I’m complaining about the PERCEPTION of the profession. How do we change that, I wonder?

Carolyn Wood of A List Apart recently wrote an article describing how us “web folk” are pretty…umm…committed to our beliefs. I think she mentioned nine millimeter handguns somewhere in there. For shame!

Anyway, she’s completely right on the money. Funny thing is, I’d never thought about it before. And then I was reading an article by Natalie Jost that was jabbing at us webophiles for speaking above our clients…using big words to feed our superiority complex, basically. Ouch! But that was on target, too.

I’d love to say “Except for me. I’ve never done either of those things. I’m just way too cool for all of that.” But just the other day, I did it. Without even thinking, I was babbling on and on about CSS and web standards and the importance of usability…blah dee blah. I could see my listener’s eyes glazing over, but I was not about to stop. Nuh-uh. I knew what I was talking about after all.

So anyway, there’s my kick in the pants for the day. I’m going to try to go a whole week without saying “Content Management System.” Because really…that label does not help anyone at all. Except for me, apparently.

This is an out-moded, dated post. I won’t delete it because…well, why would I do that? But we’ve moved up, and so have you.

I recently read an excellent article by web developer/author Emira Mears on the cost of a website. It’s the million dollar question, isn’t it? It’s highly intangible at first, and most developers don’t want to answer it too quickly without knowing the full scope of your project. There are as many answers to the question as there are design studios.

All I can tell you is how we answer the question. In other words, I’m going to list real prices that WE actually charge our clients, at the risk of giving off the impression that I’m trying to sell you something. I’m not. These numbers are purely to inform you of what the market looks like for a small, young (as in…we’ve only been open since February 2008), independent studio such as ours.

For your additional info, we are based out of a private residence, and we are not located in a high-priced locale such as New York or San Francisco (we’re in Virginia Beach, which is not “up there” as far as cost of living goes, but it’s not “down there” either.) These factors affect our prices.

With that warning in place, here are some benchmarks to consider when trying to figure out how far your budget will take you:

1. The smallest of the small budgets ($300+): If your budget’s pretty tiny, you can still have a nice website. There are hundreds of excellent WordPress themes out there (and no, your website does not have to be a “blog” for it to be powered by WordPress…that’s a misconception.) You can usually get a website like this customized for you for as little as $300, not including hosting and a domain name ($100+ per year.)

   Granted, you will have limitations, and you will have to add all of the content yourself, but the Content Management System (i.e. WordPress) that you use should make that relatively simple. That’s an additional bonus to using a CMS, in fact. Your maintenance costs will be lower because you can do the majority of it yourself. Template customizations are the Ramen noodles of the web design world. Tasty and cheap.

   (Note: Not ALL template customizations are simple. They can range in the thousands if the theme is complex or if you need additional modifications and functionality that the template does not provide. The Revolution theme comes to mind as an example of a theme that requires more complex customization.)

2. A small budget ($900+) (yeah I know…that still seems like a good chunk of change to most of us): Let me just be honest here. If you want a professionally-designed website on the cheap, go for a template customization. Even the smallest, simplest of websites require a LOT of time in every stage of development. Yes, even a website that is small (determined by number of pages) and simple (determined by level of functionality) is going to be much higher-priced than a template customization.

   So let’s just throw it out there — the simplest websites that we create start at $900. And no, this is not expensive in the web design world. It’s about on the same level as Chef Boyardee. Not quite Ramen noodles, but we’re close.

   And what does a small, simple website look like? Mainly a static website (one where the pages are always the same, no matter which way you click) that has a handful of pages and a contact form. Not huge, but it’s a start. And it can definitely be enough to get your name out there.

3. A small-medium budget ($2000+): With a little bit of a larger budget, you’re going to get more pages and more functionality. Your website might have a blog in place. It might have a newsletter. Our website fits in this category. If you were eating it for dinner, it’s more like the store-bought Rotisserie chicken, mashed potatoes, and green beans of web development.
4. A medium budget ($3500+): In addition to more pages and more functionality, here’s where you get to start adding things like shopping carts and integrated payment systems into your repertoire. It’s not going to get you anything like Amazon, but you can definitely cover your basic shopping cart needs if this is your budget. Kind of like your Sunday dinner of websites.
5. A medium-large budget ($5000+): Here’s where you can start getting a little dynamic. Instead of having a static (non-interactive) website, you can start to add some user functionality. Maybe you want to offer an online help desk to your clients. Maybe you want them to be able to search for your products in a slew of different ways. Maybe you want your visitors to be able to create a simple profile that they can update themselves. Now we’re getting to the Thanksgiving dinner of web design.
6. A large budget ($8,000+): If you want to start your own social networking site or site that has a lot of different things that the user can do, you could do it with a budget this size. Granted, on the lower end of this scale, you’re going to have much less functionality than the higher end (and believe me folks, some websites take half a million or more to produce…these are usually developed by large studios or are done in-house). So here we have the filet mignon of website development.

Now if you go with a larger, more established studio or a highly talented, established freelancer, you can pretty much double or triple those base prices. If you go with a less experienced freelancer, or a designer who uses HTML-authoring software to produce horribly mangled code (sorry…couldn’t help but throw that in there!), you can cut those base prices in half or even thirds.

So you see, that’s why developers generally avoid the “How much do websites cost” question. Because it’s absolutely impossible to answer. And I probably shouldn’t have even attempted it, but I’m a glutton for punishment. I have to be because I’ll probably get lots of nasty emails from web designers who say I’m completely off the mark. Which is okay. You can’t compare apples to oranges, and you can’t compare one web developer to another based on price alone.

A better way of figuring out how much a web developer charges is actually not based on the quote they might give, but on their hourly rate. $75-$250 is the going range at the time of this publication. (Our rate is currently $90.) In the past several years, I have only seen one professional who charged less than $75 (and no, I don’t remember who it was.)

Another factor to consider is the level of service that a web developer offers. For example, for us, the cheapest template customization is probably going to consist of one or two consultations, via phone or email. There would be no more than one mock-up and one round of modifications. Once the template was implemented, it would be in the owner’s hands. We really are loving about the whole thing, but we can’t do more than that or it would cease being a cheap option.

A fully developed website is a whole different sack of potatoes (I’m not sure why I’m into the food analogies today. Perhaps because I just came back from the dentist, and it hurts to eat. Moving on.) That level of service would include several phone or face-to-face meetings, a full range of creative concepts discussed, a plan for the information architecture of the site, one or more fully developed mock-ups, several rounds of modifications, implementation of a test site, rigorous testing before the launch, etc. etc.

A wise sage (okay, my husband) once told me that there are three factors in any project: price, quality, and speed. You can only pick two. I think that about sums it up.