Since 2020, online selling has consistently gained pace. Any new, growing, or established small business needs a website. Nowadays, it is a key touch point for connecting with customers. The only issue is that many micro-enterprises work with tight budgets. The reality is that building an attractive website on a budget is possible. What a micro-entrepreneur needs is to know what features are a must for their website. Choose the right hosting and domain name platform. Work with a budget-friendly website developer and use free graphics and images. A good website builds credibility and brand identity. It improves relationships with customers and improves sales. If you are working with a tight budget, here are tips to help build an effective website.
Effective tips for affordable web design for small businesses
Know what you should budget for
A website for your small business is a necessity if you want to grow. The cost of ordinary websites could go beyond your budget. What you need is a customized website that factors your budget. To do this, you need to know the items that are a must and what is not a must. This will help you know the things you will budget for and stay within that limit. To build an effective website on a budget, here are your must-haves.
Although websites are hosted on a hosting platform, you need to consider the importance of gadgets to the process of web development. You need a computer with fast speed such as a MacBook. Sometimes Macs may experience problems if they are not well maintained and this could be frustrating and affect your website development process. It is necessary to use apps like CleanMyMac X to remove unwanted apps, malware and improve the overall speed of your Mac. To avoid frustrations during the design process, make sure the computer performs optimally by regularly tuning it for best results.
Domain name
Your website cannot run without a domain name. The name will cost you money but you have many options. Some names will cost you $3 and below while others may cost over $50. Choose your extension wisely and determine the amount you want to spend.
A hosting platform
You need a platform to host your website. The cost of the platform depends on the features it offers you. Some will charge you about $2 while some will charge over $250 per month. You have so many options but do research and compare the prices. Compare the features or the value you get from each.
Website builders
Website builders will include other items like themes and plugins. The cost for builders may range from $100 to over $500 annually. Themes or templates could cost from $0 to over $50. Plugins might cost from $40 to over $200. Compare all the options and pick the one that is friendly to your budget.
Storage and backup
Your website will begin to generate data from the first minute after its launch. You need a plan on where to store it and create backups. The cost of storage and backup depends on the size that you need. Your hosting platform will offer storage solutions. You need a budget for the data backup. Pricing may range from below $5 per month to over $150 per month.
Security and encryption
No website is not prone to attacks and breaches. You need a security plan for your small business website. Security measures may include antivirus protection, online security, and encryption. Combined, all the website security measures could cost about $2,000 to over $100,000 annually. Compare the security options available and the costs. Choose an option that is friendly to your budget.
Website development team
If you do not have development skills, you need to hire a developer. Some developers may charge $1,000 and below. Others may charge more than $100,000. It depends on the details your website needs.
Understanding the things you need for your website can help you break your budget down. You will get a general idea of the amount of money you need. With this idea, you will decide the best approach to take based on your budget. All the actions that will follow will be guided by the must-haves list.
Choosing the right website-building platform
A website-building platform is crucial and could significantly impact your budget. You must select the right one before you start the process. The platforms offer different pricing but you have many options to choose from. Here are the important things you should consider.
- Choose a platform that is affordable and flexible. Consider the total cost for all the features offered by the platform. Find out whether the platform allows you to choose the features you need.
- Consider whether the platform is scalable. Look into the future to visualize how your small business will be in 10 years. The platform must be scalable to accommodate growth.
- Coding requirements. Consider a platform that requires limited or no coding experience.
You may consider using one of the popular CMS that offers website-building tools. An example is WordPress, Shopify, and Weebly. These platforms offer you a large pool of plugins to choose from. They have intuitive interfaces that are easy to use. The platforms are scalable allowing you to expand your website as your business grows. They are cost-friendly and require minimum coding knowledge. The platforms offer you a large library of highly customizable themes.
Deciding on domain name and hosting
Considering the cost of a domain name is important. Many platforms sell domain names but you need to compare prices. More popular domain names and registers cost more. The TLD you choose such as .net, .com, and .org also determines the cost. The entity selling the name also determines the cost including the length of the extension. Take your time to research and choose a provider and TLD that fits your budget.
Consider shared platforms
When choosing a hosting platform, cost can be determined by the type of sharing. The entity providing the services matters too. Shared plans cost less than paying for a server alone. In a shared plan, you share the hosting resources with other entities. Due to this, the total cost gets split among the website owners. Shared servers will offer you all the features you need for your small business.
Go for discounts
Another option you can consider is discounts. At the time of purchase, some hosting platforms offer huge discounts. Search to identify such platforms and take advantage to save costs. Discounts can be useful when building an effective website on a budget.
Subscribe long term
The subscription plan you choose also determines the cost. Short-term subscriptions could cost more. You will be safer to go for long-term subscription plans. Consider plans that run for 1 year, 2 years, or more.
Shop around
Hundreds of platforms offer hosting services online. This is an advantage to you because you can compare prices and services. Shop around online to decide which platform fits your budget. Compare things such as price, features offered, and support provided. Consider the security of the platform, scalability, and ease of use.
Choosing a budget-friendly design
The design of your website matters due to user psychology. A beautifully designed website is attractive. A poor design gives a negative impression on users. What visitors see the moment they land on your site determines their next action. They could leave immediately or stay on. You don’t need to spend your entire budget on design. There are many money-saving options for you.
Consider free visuals
Visuals for your website such as images and graphics could cost you a lot of money. Consider visiting a website with free stock photos, videos, and graphics. The sites allow you to personalize the images and other visuals. You will save money needed to hire an expert to do the photo and video work for you. It is a time-saving option and you do not need to spend money registering rights for the visuals.
Go for predesigned templates
Instead of building templates from scratch, get pre-designed ones. They are professionally designed and will cost you much less. Plus, you have the advantage of comparing the prices across several providers.
Use design samples on CMS sites
Some CMS sites offer you a platform for building websites for free or at a small cost. These platforms are open source meaning you will get support from a large community. They offer all the scaling and flexibility capabilities that you need. You can customize the themes and templates they offer.
Go for DIY builders
You can get a variety of easy-to-use DIY website builders. These are builders that need no coding experience. They allow you to save a lot of costs and are convenient to use. The builders can be customized in many different ways. It is important to consider getting a guide for finding affordable web design. This will help ensure the design has good looks.
Working with a budget-friendly developer
Many website development services are costly. This should not prevent you from building a website for your small business. Look out for the developer options out there while considering your budget.
Outsource offshore
Developers in different countries charge differently. You could be surprised to find some of them charge many times lower than the cheapest in your country. Find out the options you have across different countries. You could get a good deal at a significantly lower cost.
Use no-code website builders and your IT employee
No-code website builders are an excellent option for small businesses. They allow you to build a website with no experience in any programming language. With these services, your IT staff could be enough to help you build a website.
Hire a freelancer
Instead of hiring a website-building agency, hire a freelancer. Many of them work from home and do not need to incur overhead costs. Due to this, they can offer you a reasonable cost. You can connect to the popular freelancing platforms and hire an expert. Many of the platforms use a bidding strategy which can help you compare costs.
Cost-friendly options for creating content for your new website
Content for your new website is important but it can impact your budget a lot. You need strategies to cut content costs but also ensure you get the best. Here are different options you can use.
Invite guest posts
Consider allowing content creators to publish their content on your website as guests. You don’t have to accept any type of content that comes. Only allow content that is relevant to your business. Scrutinize it to make sure it is SEO-friendly.
Hire freelancers
Visit freelancing platforms and hire freelancers. You can get high-quality content at a very affordable cost. Shop around from several platforms to compare price and quality. Sometimes you could get an individual with reasonable costs.
Create content yourself
If you have some experience creating content, create it for your website. Search for quality keywords to use and suggested topics to cover. Before publishing, get the opinion of a friend concerning the quality of your content.
Final thoughts
Your small business needs an attractive website to increase efficiency. Building one could be costly beyond what your business can afford. Several options can help you build a website on a budget. List all the must-haves for your website and the cost for each. Choose open-source CMS platforms with easy-to-use website builders. Consider hosting on a shared server and choose a long-term subscription. Work with a budget-friendly developer and content creator.
