Depending on what you want a website to do,



how you want it to look and how complicated it

will be, the price can range from free, to

hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Let's start off with the free stuff. There are

several ways to get a free website.

* Take it yourself.

* Sign up with a web hosting company that

offers software that lets you create your

own site.

* Use one of those "free hosting" sites. I

talked about the problems with these sites

in my article, "How To Select A Good

Website Hosting Company."

* Have a friend who knows how to make

websites do one for you.

* Find a college student who has to create a

website for a school project make your site.

* And the old standby, barter. I've been

offered many items in exchange for a

website, like a handmade quilt, a painting

and a river raft trip down the Grand

Canyon. Just to let you know, I turned them

all down. It's just too hard trying to figure

out how many quilts or paintings equal a

month's rent or a car payment.

Depending on your needs, these options for a

free site may work for you, but remember the

saying, "You get what you pay for." This is

especially true in website design. Each of

these options has advantages and

disadvantages. Only you can decide if they will

be appropriate for you.

If you realize you will need to pay some money

for a site, but want to keep it to a minimum, you

have several options.

* You can learn HTML, and hand code a site,

or buy website design software, like Adobe

GoLive or Dreamweaver. For GoLive, which

is what I use, a student can buy a copy at

the bookstore or places like

http://www.GradWare.com for about $80. The

rest of us will pay about $400. You may

also want to do some of the website design

with Adobe Photoshop.

* You can pay a student to make it for you.

Hopefully, by paying them you'll minimize

the chances of them leaving town in the

middle of creating your site. I get several

clients a year because of this happening.

* If you're lucky enough to have an employee

who knows how to make websites, then

have them do it "on the clock."

* Templates are another option. You buy a

template, then add your copy for each page

and you have a website. Templates can be

free, or cost up to $100. They average

between $25 and $60. Be sure to read the

usage agreement before you pay for a

template. You will need to know some

HTML to use templates though.

The final step, of course, is to hire me, or

someone else like me, who of course won't be

as good. Hiring a website designer may cost

more, but if you do, there are a lot of

headaches you won't have to deal with.

Website designers, me included, offer a range

of options. I offer:

* Templates - The cheapest way to go

because you do most of the work. I charge

$50 for these.

* Business Card Sites - These are one-page

websites that usually list a business' name,

address, contact information and a

paragraph explaining what they do. I charge

$100 for these.

* Predesigned Sites - Mine go up to seven

pages and are like templates, but I do most

of the work. You pick a template, give me

your copy and graphics and I put it all

together. I charge $300 for a three-page

site and $25 for each additional page, up to

seven pages.

* Custom Sites - These are the most expensive

because the website designer will design

and assemble everything. My fees are $60

an hour.

The fees website designers charge varies,

based on skill, geographic location and several

other factors. Most website designers will

charge between $30 and $100 an hour.

When trying to figure out the total cost of a site

there are other expenses you need to think

about, too.

* Internet Service Provider (ISP) - This is how

you connect to the Internet. This will usually

cost about $10 a month for dialup, $35 a

month for cable/DSL and $50 a month for

satellite/dish.

* Domain Name Registration - You have to call

your website something, like

CreativeCauldron.com. This will range

between $5-$20 a year.

* Web Hosting - You need to put your

website on a server so people can access

your site. A web hosting company is where

you do this. The cost is based on many

factors, including the size of your site and

the features you need. The prices usually

start at about $7 a month and go up from

there. Most people, myself included, only

need this basic level, or one level up.

* Software - As I mentioned above, you may

need to purchase website design software.

Some people want a database site. This lets

you up automatically collect data on forms

visitors fill out, and it can make updating your

site easier by filling in forms that only you can

assess. Then this new data is automatically

added to your site. If you need a database on

your site, be warned that they are expensive to

create. It's not uncommon for a database

designer to charge $200 an hour. It can easily

double, or triple, the cost of a website.

So, let's put this all together. Here are some

rough prices for a basic custom website,

created with HTML, no database and with very

little graphic design work being done. That

means that there isn't any animation or flash,

no photographs or artwork purchased and

nothing real fancy on the site.

* 3-Page - $450

* 3-Page With One Year of Hosting and

Domain Registration - $700

* 5-Page - $700

* 5-Page With One Year of Hosting and

Domain Registration - $960

For an individual, this may be more than you

wanted to spend. The free or less expensive

options would probably be a better way to go.

For a business, this is a good investment. It's a

one-time expense that will promote your

products and services for many years.

So, pry open your wallets, pull out your cash

and plastic, and give me a call today. No really,

call me know. I'm waaaaitinnnngggg.........