Cost to set up a site (NOT selling)

[naiku]

Ok first thing's first, I am not trying to sell anything or promote anything, but if this post is against T&C's then moderators please feel free to delete.

Ok now onto my question, lately I have had a few people asking me to set up websites for them (small businesses/individuals) and so I am interested in taking some of these on. I have set up a couple basic sites in the past, and it is something I have an interest in to learn and gain more experience. Right, that's the background sorted so my main question is what sort of figure should I be looking at to charge people for a site? Most of them will be pretty basic (very little or no java/flash) while I learn. So can people (if comfortable doing so) let me know what I should typically charge for:

1) Complete website
2) Updates/Maintenance

Thanks.

 

[cLFlaVA]

i asked this question a while ago on here. the answer is actually pretty clear-cut.

how much do you THINK you should get? I recommend charging hourly, rather than a flat fee for an entire site. once you nail a few sites down, it gets a little easier to determine how long it will take you, so you'll be able to quote people more accurately.

how much do you end up making, per hour, for your full-time job, if you have one. if not, how much do you THINK you deserve? personally, i wouldn't charge any less than $25 per hour, and a simple, five-page site with no database back-end could take you probably 40-80 hours, depending on how complex your designs are, and how quick you can turn a screenshot into an actual site.

always keep track of the time you work. keep your clients up-to-date with progress and hours spent.

always get a partial payment up front, then either collect the balance in one or two additional payments.

ALWAYS write a contract which you both will sign. maybe offer 10 hours of complimentary update hours in there, but then charge your regular rate per hour for udpates.

hope this helps,

cory



*cLFlaVA
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[URL unfurl="true"]http://www.coryarthus.com/[/url]

 

[BillyRayPreachersSon]

What you should charge depends on many factors:

- The skills needed for the website (PHP, JSP, etc would normally come in more than plain old HTML),

- How much money you're looking to make (sounds obvious, but it is a factor),

and most importantly, in my book:

- How competent you are

If you're no good at coding, I'd resent being charged top whack for your skills. If you're the best coder in the world, it's a different story.

If you're just beginning your foray into building sites for people, then you're going to be near the bottom of that scale, and so should not be charging shedloads when you may not be able to give a product that matches what you would be charging.

Dan

[tt]Dan's Page [blue]@[/blue] Code Couch

http://www.codecouch.com/dan/

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[glenmac]

On the note of keeping the time spent on a project here's what I use and find it invaluable.

http://www.topshareware.com/companies/2089-1/back-to-front-solutions-limited.htm

Glen

http://lantzvillecomputers.com