Today, if you want your business to succeed and grow, you need to have a well-designed website. It’s simply a must in the digital world we’re living in, being the center of your business’ online presence. And to have a successful, converting website, you need effective web design.

Web design is a term that refers to the design of a website that creates the overall look and feel when someone is using the website, Interaction Design Foundation explains. It includes planning and building a website’s elements, from layout and structure to fonts, colors, graphics, and images.

The multiple elements of web design work together to produce the ultimate website’s experience, including user experience design, graphic design, SEO (search engine optimization), interface design, and content creation. These components decide how a website feels, looks, and works on different devices, 99 Designs explains.

A professional website design will make your website attractive and easy to use. In other words, it will grab visitors’ attention, allow them to find what they need easily, and finally, do the desired action which can be making a purchase, subscribing to an email list, or visiting a specific page.

According to WebFX, web design is important for the following reasons:

• Setting the first impression of your business
• Helping your SEO strategy
• Setting the impression for customer service
• Building trust with your audience
• Keeping in competition with your competitors

Of course, the web design of each website depends on the business’ goals, industry, and other factors that web designers take into consideration.

Poor web design, on the other hand, can damage your credibility, make you look outdated, and make you lose your potential customers.

Why You Need to Hire a Professional Web Designer or Website Design Agency

Web design and web development are two different aspects of creating a website, neither more important than the other. Basically, the web design agency takes care of the site’s aesthetic appearance and makes sure various elements work together to create a proper online space for your business.

Website development agency, on the other hand, makes sure the design, including forms, buttons, videos, links, and navigation bars, functions properly as a single website.

Finding a good web designer or web design agency/company is the first and most important step in creating a good web design that converts. Even though it may be challenging and time-consuming, picking the right person or agency will help you avoid throwing money down the drain.

You have to make sure the web designer you choose understands your business and its goals so that they can offer the best solution for you.

Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to find the best web designer or website design company for you, as suggested by WebGeeks:

1. Begin with an online search– do a little research on Google to find a list of good web design agencies or freelancers.
2. Check their websites or freelance profiles– this will help you get idea of how they work.
3. Check reviews– this will help you see what their customers say about their work, the quality of their web design services, their commitment, and professionalism.
4. Check out their portfolios– go through their portfolios to narrow the list further. This will help you see if they keep up with the latest trends in web design, if all their projects seem similar or there’s a variety, if their websites are mobile-friendly, responsive, and user-friendly, etc.
5. Check if they (website design agencies) also provide creative content for your website– if a website design company has a team of skilled writers who offer compelling pieces of content for your website, it will make things easier for you.
6. Check out their agency values and culture– you need to see if these align with your own as you can work best with people you trust.
7. Contact a few web design agencies or web designers– this will allow you to explain the goals and needs of your website and see what they have to offer as a solution.

According to FreshBooks, the average cost to design a website is $75 per hour, even though this number can vary significantly. Setting up, designing, building, and creating content for a typical website can cost between $5,000 and $10,000. Usually, custom websites cost more.

Freelancers often charge more because of the lack of health insurance and other advantages employees receive.

At Local Presence SEO, we provide website design and development services. For years, we have helped companies in the Carolinas and beyond create a successful online presence. Click here to learn more about our services and competitive pricing. 

How Much Should a Website Cost?

Building a website costs around $200, with $50 extra each month for maintenance, Website Builder Expert explains. This cost increases if you hire a developer or designer, and becomes $6,000, with $1,000 extra each year.

Hiring a web designer to build a website may be the most expensive option, with prices ranging from $500 to over $5,000 per site, but it’s also the best one if you pick the right web designer. It will take the technical burden of your chest and allow you to focus on your business.

Once you give thumbs up for the design mockup, the web designer can start building your website which can take from a few days up to a few months, BlueAdz explains.

The average time for designing a website for a business is 165 hours, and for an ecommerce website is 350 hours, according to Onix-Systems. Still, the web design duration depends on the complexity of the website.

Can You Design Your Own Website?

Yes, you can, by using a website builder or WordPress. However, this is not recommended if you’re new to online business, Business Queensland recommends. That’s because the whole process is rather complex and difficult, so instead of wasting your time on learning how to design your own website, you should focus on what really matters – running your business.

What Is the Easiest Website Builder?

Even though it’s possible, designing a website without hosting is not recommended for beginners as setting up a server for hosting is very hard, Mash Media explains. You’ll spend days or weeks learning everything about WAMP (Windows, Apache, MySQL, and PHP) – the programs and applications you need for this process.

How Many Types of Website Design Are There?

There are three types of website design, and Expert explains each of them:

1.Fixed design– websites with a set width that doesn’t change when the browser is resized, regardless of the device used. This makes content harder to read or view on smaller devices like smartphones, and the quality of the images reduced when the browser on a screen is zoomed in.

2.Fluidor liquid design– websites with adjustable width of most page components which is set proportional to the user’s screen resolution. This makes websites more usable across various devices with different screen dimensions, Hubspot explains.

3.Responsive design– websites which automatically switch to accommodate for scripting abilities, image size, and resolution as the user switches between devices with different screen resolutions. This makes websites easy to navigate and read no matter the type of device used. This helps the user avoid resizing or scrolling through the page to see or read the content.

How to Choose Web Design for Your Website

Your web designer should be able to create the right design for your website after discussing your business goals. You should tell them how you want your audience to perceive your online presence, and based on this information they should design the perfect website for your business.

You can look for inspiration by searching and navigating through some of the top most visited websites, which according to Similar Web are Google, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, or any other website with an interesting design that makes the site easy to use.

In order to choose the right web design for your needs, your website design company should know all the types of web pages out there. According to 99 Design, there are 8 types of webpages: homepages, magazine websites, e-commerce websites, blogs, portfolio websites, landing pages, social media websites, and directory and contact pages.

How Much Does a Small Business Website Cost?

According to WebFX, the average cost to make a website for a small business ranges between $2,000 and $10,000. For this price, you get a domain name, website hosting plan, building and designing your website.

Cost factors include domain name, website hosting, SSL certificate, web design, number of pages, functionality, and CMS (type of software).

Best Website Design Companies for Small Business

Digital Agency Network has listed the best website design companies for startups and small businesses:

• Blue Fountain Media
• Awesome
• Startup Development House
• Beyond
• Straight North
• Mayple
• Tangent
• Frank Digital
• eDesign Interactive
• RNO1