By: John Tomblin, Senior Solutions Architect
PhoenixBizz, a division of Sofvue, LLC
Printed with permission of Sofvue, LLC and the author
As any small business owner will tell you, sadly, you can sometimes feel alone on many fronts. Even with the support of friends and family, there are still lots of decision points where you can feel completely alone and out of your environment. I’m speaking from firsthand experience having owned a restaurant, a publishing company, a real estate brokerage and appraisal firm, and now over the past nineteen years as the founder of PhoenixBizz, a division of Data Titan. That said, and assuming you are wanting to start selling online, there are numerous paths you can take. In fact, there are several ways to do it yourself for free or a low cost. And if you’re already taking advantage of services like Facebook groups or Instagram feeds, assembling a fabulous new website could be just what’s needed next!
Let’s look at some of the variables associated with the process:
Cost of Building an Online Store or e-Commerce Website
Let’s get the obvious first question out of the way right up front — what does it cost? The simple answer is a few hundred dollars for a templated
✅ The platform type you choose
✅ Your geographic location. For instance, website design in Phoenix will cost less than in New York.
✅ The size of your business. (A small business will likely pay less than a large corporation)
✅ The complexity of your website. (Is it simple, or does it have a lot of pages and features?)
Also, there are numerous options to build your website: website builders, WordPress, and hiring a designer.
Website builders are the most cost-effective option. However, you don’t get much control over your website’s design, and the chances of having a similar look to thousands of other sites are very high.
Hiring a designer is the most expensive yet the best choice if you want a unique website and gain complete control over the build and customization of the site.
Simple small business web design in Phoenix will typically cost between $1,500 and $5,000. However, it can go up to $15,000 if you need advanced features like real-time order tracking, mobile wallet integrations, etc.
However, it is worth mentioning that there are additional costs associated with website development, irrespective of what development method you choose. Most of these are recurring expenses (meaning you must pay monthly or annually).
| Website Feature | Average Cost |
| Domain | $12 – $60 |
| Hosting | $9 – $600 |
| SSL Certificate | $0 – $200 |
| Add-ons or eCommerce functionality | $0 – $500 |
| Apps and integrations | $0 – $100 |
| SEO and marketing | $0 – $100 |
Best Website Platforms
There are numerous platforms that you can choose for website development (or you can build it from scratch, depending on your business requirements).
1. WordPress
WordPress is a free, open-source platform that’s easy to use and install. It’s also highly customizable, secure, and SEO friendly.
WordPress also supports SEO-friendly URLs, which means that search engine bots can easily crawl across links within pages without having any problems accessing them, which improves your site rankings on Google over time!
However, it is best suited if you need a content management system (CMS).
2. WooCommerce
WooCommerce is an eCommerce plugin that allows you to sell physical products, digital downloads, and services. It’s the most popular eCommerce platform in the world, with over 3 million active stores using it and contributing to its massive open-source community.
It can be used with WordPress, free to download and use. If you already have a website built on WordPress, adding WooCommerce will only cost you $0 per month (but other costs are involved).
3. Squarespace
Squarespace is a platform that allows users with no coding experience to create custom websites without having to learn how to code or pay someone else to build them.
Another major benefit of Squarespace over other platforms is that it provides all the tools necessary for your site—from hosting, email management, and analytics—in one easy-to-use interface, so there’s no need to go elsewhere for those services.
4. Shopify or Magento
If you’re looking for a robust eCommerce solution, there are two main options: Shopify and Magento.
Shopify is a hosted eCommerce solution, which means the software is hosted on a server somewhere else, and your company doesn’t have to worry about maintaining or updating the software.
Magento is self-hosted— installed on your own server where you or your IT team can maintain it.
Both options offer great features that help businesses sell their products online more efficiently. However, suppose you’re just starting as a small business with limited resources. In that case, we recommend you go with Shopify because it’s less expensive than Magento (and we all know how important finances are!)
Cost of Creating Website Content
Once your website is designed and developed, you need content. The content will tell users (and Google) what your site is all about and how it can meet their needs.
For content, you will need writers (both copywriters and content writers). If you’re designing your site independently, you will need to hire writers. However, if you work with an agency (for website designing in Phoenix), they can also help you with content requirements.
Hiring a web designer would cost you around $10,000, including everything (designing, development, hosting, domain, SSL, add-ons, and content).
It is worth mentioning that you mustn’t try to save money by hiring a designer on the cheap. Because if you’re not happy with the site, you will end up paying a few more thousand bucks!
Things to Keep in Mind Before You Start
To ensure success, you must keep a few things in mind before development. Here are they:
1. Know Your Target Audience
Knowing your target audience is an important part of the process. Look at your competitors and find out what they’re doing to attract visitors, what content they publish that’s most popular, and how you can make your website more appealing.
Knowing who your customers are is also crucial to developing a successful website. Consider the answers to these questions:
What kind of person uses this service?
Are there different types of people who might use it?
How old are these users?
What gender do they fall into?
Where do these people live?
How much experience do they have with technology (and yours specifically)?
Which devices do they most often view websites on (for example, mobile vs. desktop)?
2. User Experience is Important
It may sound obvious, but it’s crucial. If you build something that someone else wants, then they will pay for it and be happy with what they received from buying from you instead of from another company or individual making similar products.
3. Have a Clear Vision
As a website owner, you should ask yourself these questions before starting your project:
What do I want to achieve?
What will my website be used for?
Who is my target audience?
How much time and money am I willing to invest in this project?
Are there any limitations on hosting options or content management systems that I need to keep in mind during development? (For example, if your company uses custom software for tracking pipeline opportunities, then it’s important that your CMS can integrate with this software.)
4. Keep SEO in Mind
SEO is important for getting visitors to your site. It helps you improve your website’s ranking on Google and other search engines.
SEO is about keywords, backlinks, and content. It’s also about making your site easily accessible to search engines, making it easy for people to navigate, and having a fast loading time.
Wrapping Up
Building a website for a small business isn’t expensive, considering the value it brings over time. However, ensure you take advantage of an experienced developer or an agency like PhoenixBizz to get the best possible solution for your business.
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