Over the years, I have developed websites in the “traditional” way – where clients pay upfront for what they think their website needs. However, this approach often leads to delays in launching the website and a long wait before seeing any positive return on investment. Not to mention, it’s frustrating for business owners who are overwhelmed by the process, faced with numerous decisions, and out thousands of dollars before having anything to show for it. Additionally, developers are under pressure to complete projects quickly to maintain profitability.
This is where a Website Plan comes in, with no large upfront costs, just a small, flat monthly fee. It allows the business and agency to work towards the same goals, solving the problems of the traditional model. A website should never be considered “finished” and set in stone. Instead, its greatest strength is its ability to adapt and change over time quickly and easily. A Website Plan takes a more agile approach that allows the website to evolve and improve over time, using analytics, customer feedback, and real-world experience to guide its features and improvements.
Here are four significant advantages of a Website Plan over the traditional website design approach:
Immediate ROI
A traditional model requires an upfront investment of over R30,000 for a website to be designed and developed, which could take a year or more to have a positive return on investment. A Website Plan, starting at as little as $200 per month, allows you to start seeing a return on investment immediately.
Less Risk
With a traditional model, assumptions are made about what features the website will need, which could be wrong and end up being costly mistakes, resulting in change orders and more invoices. With a Website Plan, we can develop the website in phases, starting with the minimum requirements, and adding content and features as they become necessary, all at one flat monthly rate, reducing the risk.
Warranty
After a website is built, ongoing management is required, which could add another R9,000 or so per year to your website cost. With a Website Plan, all the management is included in the monthly price, ensuring your website is guaranteed to be healthy and working correctly.
Future-Proofing
The technology landscape changes so quickly that a website’s average lifespan is between 2 and 4 years. Many businesses let their websites go far beyond their expiration date because of the large investment needed to start over again. A Website Plan helps future-proof your website by giving you the ability to pivot easily and keep it up to date without any additional costs.
Faster Turnaround
Traditional website projects take anywhere from 6-12 weeks to complete, with the majority of the time spent in negotiations, planning, and prototyping. Website Plans allow you to work iteratively, typically launching the first version of your website in less than a month and continually improving it over time.
While Website Plans hold a lot of advantages over the traditional approach, it may not be suitable for highly customized websites with unique requirements or deep integrations with other systems. However, small businesses can benefit from Website Plans, including immediate ROI, mitigating risk, always being under warranty, future-proofing, and a faster turnaround time. You can learn more about what’s included in our Website Plans on our Website Plans page to see if it’s a good fit for your business. Before making any decisions, we’d be happy to schedule a time to discuss your unique needs and which approach would be the best fit for your business.
