For most small businesses, price is one of the biggest determining factors when it comes to what type of web development business owners choose to invest in. Because the costs of developing a custom-coded website can vary so widely, from a few thousand dollars to tens of thousands, businesses often shy away from custom developers and opt instead for templated websites built on website platforms like iBuilt or WordPress. Websites built from templates may average lower costs than custom-built websites, but what they gain in price they often lack in capabilities and flexibility.
Custom websites offer more unique designs.
Template websites force developers to work within a predetermined layout and design features. Aside from the ability to change the background color and perhaps the text, template websites offer little room for developers to customize the website’s look, content placement, and navigation. Custom built-from-code websites, on the other hand, offer an unlimited range of design capabilities and can be adapted to any style.
Think of the difference between inserting your company logo and contact information into a business card template and having a business card designed just for that company. Like business cards, websites are a key visual representation of a company’s brand, and website templates tend to look like this: templates. While there are many different website templates available, many of them tend to offer the same design features and functionality, and savvy web users can easily identify a website template. Custom websites allow businesses to avoid that “cookie cutter” look with a unique, one-of-a-kind design.
Custom coded websites offer stronger capabilities.
While template websites are limited to the navigation, structure and widget applications set in the template, the features of custom developed websites are limited only by the imagination and skill of the developer. The reality is that most businesses don’t just need a website; they need a website with custom applications capable of managing, analyzing and displaying data and/or content. For large-scale business owners, template websites will never offer the functionality needed to run the kind of custom applications that will help their websites – and businesses – run more efficiently. Website templates are only as flexible as the simple widgets that come with them.
Custom websites can offer more value for the same cost as template designs.
While custom websites can, in general, have a higher average cost than a template website design, not all custom websites cost more than template websites. Many WordPress designers who work with pre-purchased web templates charge as much, if not more, than competitively priced freelance web developers. The truth is that website developers, whether they are custom programmers or template designers, vary quite a bit in how they price their services. If price is an important factor for your website, it’s best to shop around to see which developer offers the best price and quality. You may be surprised to find that custom web developers offer as much, if not more, than their template design counterparts, often at the same or lower price.