Eye-openers for the uninitiated


People understand that when they hire someone to build a custom home, they’ll need an architect, contractors, plumbers, electricians, painters — you name it.

But when it comes to websites, I’m not sure most clients understand that the same complexity applies.

Like building a house, creating a website requires many different skills and expertise. Before anything else, you need a solid strategy. Then there’s content, design, development. On top of that, you’ve got legal compliance, privacy standards, and in 2025, accessibility isn’t optional — it’s essential.

When you break it all down, it’s obvious that “making a website” isn’t as simple as slapping together a few pages.

I don’t think most clients would disagree if you laid it out for them, but many just don’t realize the sheer amount of work involved. If they’ve never been through the process — or worse, have done it poorly in the past — they simply don’t know what they don’t know.

And that’s the reason so many of them think a $500 or $1,000 budget is reasonable.

But if you break it down into digital marketing strategy, copywriting, design, development, legal compliance, accessibility testing, training, and ongoing support, it’s unrealistic to think all of that can be accomplished at bargain basement prices.

So how do we easily and effectively educate prospects? I like to do it by asking calculated questions in our very first meeting. Things like:

  • Can you share your digital marketing strategy and how your new website will help solve your current challenges?
  • Do you already have a design ready to go?
  • Is your copy finalized, and do you have all the necessary photography and graphics?
  • What are your compliance obligations for privacy and accessibility?
  • Will you or someone on your team be responsible for maintaining security, licenses, monitoring for vulnerabilities, and creating backups?

These questions are eye-openers for the uninitiated. Suddenly, people start to realize that “getting a website made” involves more than just a few keystrokes and a click of the mouse.

And when they start thinking through their answers, it becomes clear just how much goes into a professional website project… Even the cheapest of people realize that $500 budget that had is totally unrealistic.

Whether or not you itemize all these in your proposal is an interesting discussion (for another day), but making sure clients understand the scope of professional-level work is absolutely critical if we want them to value what we do.

Asking the right questions not only justify our pricing, but it helps position us as the expert who’s thought through everything (and been around the block a time or two). And once they’ve seen just how many pieces need to come together, they’ll question any other proposal that doesn’t address all the details.

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