It might be obvious that huge brands such as Nike might pay millions of dollars for a snazzy WordPress website, but the average individual or business is working with a much more modest budget. Even still, the prices that people pay for WordPress websites can range from free up to $250,000, on average. Website cost is most often impacted by the kind of site you want to have built as well as the person you are tapping to create it. For instance, there are WordPress developers that build websites and design themes completely from scratch. These developers may consist of entire teams of coders, designers, and WordPress experts who make nothing but aesthetically pleasing, original, and unique WordPress sites. Then you’ve got your average computer science student who may be pretty good with PHP but not so well versed in design. The results may be fair, but they won’t be awe inspiring.
The Basics of WordPress Website Development
If you need a basic WordPress website that looks good but doesn’t necessarily need to be 100% original, you can purchase what’s known as a premium theme. Premium themes include both the design and the structural elements of WordPress sites in a convenient package. There are usually multiple customization options available so that you can change the orientation, color scheme, and layout of a single theme to look different without any major work. These kinds of WordPress websites are really good for startup businesses and people who are just getting their feet wet in the WordPress development world. More established companies, internet marketers, and individuals who have a lot of experience with WordPress are just more likely to pay to have an original WordPress site created.
It’s All in the Theme
Did you know that you can technically create a WordPress website and have it hosted for free? There are honestly more free WordPress themes around than you can count on your own, and free WordPress hosting services that will help you to get online in just hours. At the same time, these free themes are also being used by millions of other people, so your website is going to look very generic if you go this route. Other then that some free themes are poorly coded and can have a serious effect on the load speed time and performence. Because new WordPress websites go up by the dozen every second, most online businesses and entrepreneurs believe that paying for original websites is the best possible plan. Note that premium themes can also be tweaked and improved upon so that you get a website that functions well and still looks like it has been designed specifically for you.
Is Content Included?
The appearance and navigation of a WordPress website is important but so is the content. Too many businesses spend their entire budgets on WordPress websites without realizing that they are going to receive empty themes and templates that don’t contain any words, posts, or visual aids. If you are paying a developer to create your WordPress website, you should know whether or not it is coming with content included. More times than not, website developers have relationships set up with content writers who create clean web copy and web content – for a fee, of course. When discussing prices, learn how much you will pay for content and ask for samples so that you can be certain that the text fits well with the design.
What About images?
Charts, pictures, infographics and videos can not only keep visitors for longer on your website, they’re also good visual aids that prevent web surfers from getting bored. Not all internet users like to read article after article or big chunks of text. To keep all visitors happy, you’re going to need some kind of visual aids that can help to add variety on your website. Now, you can find and add your own stock photos and even look for videos to source, but it isn’t going to be free. And if you are having a team of developers build your website, you might not be web savvy enough to embed videos by yourself. Tell your WordPress website developer that you would really like a complete website package that includes written content, web copy, pictures, and other visual aids.
The bottom line is that you could pay as little as $100 and get a WordPress website that includes a homepage and a couple of other links. It’s better to be prepared to spend at least a few thousand dollars for a WordPress website that looks great, is easy to manage from the backend and is completely yours to upgrade and make other changes to.