When people ask me how much it costs to make a website, my answer is always “A website costs as much as a car.” This invariably triggers the response “Oh, ok… Wait, what kind of car?”
“Exactly.”

A car can be many things. A new sedan, a used 1987 stationwagon, a hummer limo, a highly tuned race car, or a smart car with a 2-year lease are all examples of cars. They may range in price from a few hundred bucks to several hundred thousand or even a monthly fee or sometimes even free.

Websites are the same way. Based on the complexity, customization, features, and level of detail, a site can span the same range of prices. Many people decide that they want or need a website without asking the basic questions that help guide the process like “what is the goal of the site”. Quite often, the actual needs are very simple and generic solutions (such as a PayPal shopping cart) are ideal – the same way that a person commuting 10 miles to work needs a reliable but modest car to get them there and not a sports car (or sometimes it’s better to take public transit). I’ve found that describing the work in these terms tends to help potential customers to create more realistic expectations and reconsider their needs by presenting the concept of a website not as a fixed product but as a toolkit of solutions to specific business needs.

I’m not promising anything, but hopefully this has been the first entry in a short series on my work philosophies. Stay tuned!