Budget Web Design - The Word On The Street

It still amazes me that people are paying web design studios thousands to build a website that can be delivered for far lower cost. Perhaps the cost of running a fancy studio has something to do with it. All those overheads, staff and skinny latte's don't pay for themselves you know. Care to guess who gets to pick up the tab? That would be you.

Another thing you need to keep an eye on are the upsells and cross sells. Again, a larger studio is more likely to try pedal you services or products you don't need (because they have professional sales people), but it can happen with smaller studios too. This can include silly things like charging extra to embed a youtube video in a web page; charging hundreds for a simple submission form; and of course, the dreaded web hosting charges. When you add all these items to your final bill it can really add up.

In particular watch out for the hosting charges. This is a element many people's lack of knowledge about web servers and hosting is merciless exploited by a cunning web design studio sales experts. A good independent web designer will usually provide web hosting with your own control panel and .com domain for around one hundred a year. If you're pay twice that much, or more (it happens!) then you need to ask some questions about what you're paying for!

Small studios tend not to have substantial rent and rates, staff and coffee overheads (okay, maybe the coffee overheads), and as a result the price you're quoted really is that bit more affordable while delivering the same product as a larger studio. A good sole-trader or freelance web designer will outline what is included within your charges up-front, so you're not losing sleep at night wondering if the extra button at the bottom of the website will double your final bill.

• *The website itself

• Website domain, e.g. www.mywebsitename.com

• Website hosting – you need this so your website is visible online

• Email set-up

• Sound advice from your web designer

* Don't forget you'll have to provide the website content for your web designer.

There are a huge amount of budget web design packages to choose from, so when enquiring about low cost web design services make sure you get the designer to quote you a fixed price for the web design package up-front, and be aware that adding on pages and changing design elements will cost a little extra (so avoid this if possible).

While Facebook and similar free web page services are excellent, a small business that wants to come across a being professional in the eyes of their customers needs a business website. As discussed, these websites can be both affordable and professional, so your business can look good online without blowing all your marketing budget.