web page design costs?

[+ glutes]

What does a simple, but well designed, webpage cost/

I have worked w/ a web designer who came recommended, but I am leery of the costs...

Thanks in advance!

[N13]

Can't give a cost estimate without knowing what is involved. But be sure that whoever you have do the site does one that you are able to make updates and corrections yourself. There is nothing worse that being at the whim of a 'webmaster'!

 

Suggest you look into Dreamweaver as your web design program.

 

 

Sorry I can't be more help.

 

N13

[+ deej]

What does a simple, but well designed, house cost?

 

Bungalow or McMansion? Stucco, brick, wood frame, stone? Basement or slab? Does the lot have services? What kind of roof? Want landscaping with that? There are a million other variables that will affect the cost.

 

What platform will run your site? Will it need database access? Email? Other services? Video? Need a Flash programmer? Will canned graphics do, or do you need custom? Do you have content, or do you need authors/editors? Labor can run from minimum wage to well more than $100/hour.

 

Not an easy question to answer without a LOT of details.

[nate_sf]

I think Deej's response sums it up well. You need to list what you need on your site... is it a simple informational site without a lot of bells and whistles, or does it get into commerce, databases, flash, etc.?

 

My suggestion would be to make this list and hand it to your potential web designer, or perhaps a couple to get a comparison. Then have them prepare a budget with number of hours they need to do the basic site, and maybe another category of hours for extras you may not need right away. If the basic hourly rate is acceptable to you, and the number of hours being proposed for the task seem reasonable, then that is your cost.

 

The issue with being able to update a site is significant too. I agree with N13, if you think you could handle design yourself you should look into Dreamweaver. I'm learning it myself with a tutorial book and it is not particularly difficult as far as graphic programs go. Otherwise you might be faced with a web designer who is not available down the road, or has a delay in updates. I designed my website in PageMill, which was a predecessor of Dreamweaver. It's not fancy by any means but does the basic stuff, and I can update it easily myself. Or failing that, make sure you have the information and control of the webhosting account so if for some reason down the road you need to have someone else work on it, you'll be able to access the files.