Wacky notion coming from a website design company, right?
Here at Lovage, we only take on select Start-Up Business Website Design customers, which we will get into a little further down this page.
Often, during sales meetings, we encourage startups NOT to move forward with their full website development plan.
Here is why and what we recommend for StartUp Business Website Design.
STARTUP BUSINESS WEBSITE DESIGN
You've Launched A Business. You Need a Website.
This is true. You DO need a website for your startup business.
But you DON'T need to spend a bunch of time and money on a super professional design built out with multiples pages and piles of fleshed-out content.
Why?
Because... Whatever you think your new business is, that will change in 6 months
And in a year, it will be very different. A few years down the line, lots of things will have changed and adjusted, even more!
The truth is - you don't know your new business yet or what its core clientele is. You are just guessing.
As you start selling, your offerings will adjust based on requests, demand, and delivery bottlenecks which cause you pain and anguish (you should eliminate or outsource these from your offerings, as soon as you can!).
As you hone your customer experience and more tightly define who that ideal customer is - your brand culture, style, and personality will emerge with more clarity. It is at THIS time you will want to start to invest in quality website design.
SO WHAT KIND OF WEBSITE DOES A STARTUP BUSINESS NEED?
A simple one. We recommend starting with a single-page, only.
Create a foundation. You don't even need an expensive, fancy logo at the outset. Because, again, everything is going to change.
Keep the communication space very focused on only your core offering or product.
And, in that same vein, when you launch a business - don't go crazy with so many offerings you can't do any of them at top level or every product isn't the very best it can be.
Start small and grow from there, based on demand, feedback, and what you end up being best at. Same idea with your business website design and website development.
No customer is going to be fooled that you are actually an established, large business without evidence of years in business so don't try to present that way.
You Should Include The Following On Your New Business's Website:
What Is Your Product or Service?
Who Do You Provide It For?
How Do You Provide It?
Why Are You The Expert / Is Your Offering A Good Choice?
How Can Customers / Clients Engage With You?
HOW MUCH DOES A WEBSITE FOR A START-UP COST?
Free to Whatever Your Are Willing To Pay!
LOWEST INVESTMENT
YOU CAN MAKE A WEBSITE, YOURSELF
If you have basic design or online tech skills, you can create a VERY simple splash page using a template on Squarespace, Wix, or Shopify (if E-commerce) yourself. Just start there, where the highest cost is your time, until you prove viability and profitability for your business over some months or years, THEN hire a professional website designer.
SMALL INVESTMENT
HIRE ANOTHER START-UP - A BEGINNER WEBSITE DESIGNER
If you don't have those basic skills or don't want to launch a website yourself - start small. Hire a freelancer who is also just getting their feet wet or just a few years into their website design business. You can get a website up for $500 but expect to spend at least $2500 for a professional eye, attention to detail, complete tech, and developed skills in the business-focus aspect.
PROFESSIONAL INVESTMENT
HIRE AN ESTABLISHED WEBSITE DESIGN COMPANY
Money is no object, eh? Go crazy, if you want to, but just remember... you get what you pay for. It is better to spend a few thousand dollars on a simple design with simple content than that same amount on an unprofessional presentation of a multi-page website with big ambitions.
>>>Read this article for more on "How Much Should A Website Cost in 2021?"<<<
LOVAGE INC. START-UP BUSINESS WEBSITE DESIGN
We promised we would tell you what type of StartUp may be a Website Design match for our Website Design Agency!
The start-ups we take on are offered a single-page website (with potential for a dynamic page or two) via our 30-Day Custom Website Design Process for a higher 4-figures investment. The same font-end business development work we do with full-site customers is included as well as professional copy honing, custom website design, and thoughtful marketing focus.
Start-up Business customers we may work with include:
SPIN-OFF of an existent business
NEW DIVISION of an existent business
VERY EXPERIENCED "DAY JOB" leader starting a business based on very established, experienced specificity with an available, thorough business plan and/or pitch deck to work from
If your startup business does not fit into the above categories, our budget starting point and website development process is probably not going to be a match!
So, Where Do You Go From Here For Your Startup Business Website?
As with all creative services - do your research, ask questions, read reviews. Figure out the aspects of website design and development which are most important and relevant to you and interview several options. Keep in mind that some people or agencies will tell you what you want to hear as far as what they can produce within your budget. Remember... You Get What You Pay For! If an offering at a particular rate sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Good luck!
Check out more details and another take on website cost on our page Web Design VS Web Development.
Want to talk to Lovage about designing a custom website for you? We thought you'd never ask! Book A Website Chat HERE.
Is Lovage not a budget match but you would like our professional advice? We got you - We offer an hour-long screenshare strategy session during which we can help you break down your needs, help you formulate a strategy, and review your business goals via your website presence and how best to invest to meet those, at the startup stage. Buy a Live Strategy Session HERE.