When you’re setting up a website, whether for a business or as a personal site, it’s essential to budget for a number of ongoing costs. Let’s take a look at these below.

Hosting

Most sites will have an annual hosting fee. The amount for the hosting will depend on the complexity of the site, and the types of information you host – sites that have a database or forum functionality will have higher hosting costs than simple blogs.

Domain

Once you’ve got the perfect domain name which draws people into your site, you also need to pay to retain rights to that domain. Some brands also like to hold the adjacent domains (.com.au addresses as well as .com addresses, for example), so that you can redirect customers who mistype your web address.

Maintenance & updates (if needed)

While your website might look great the first day it launches, over time the browsers and operating systems that run your users’ devices will be updated and that may affect how your site runs. Equally you may need to change your site to keep it looking and running as smoothly as possible. As a result, it is important to have some money left in the budget for maintenance and upgrades.

If your website is an important part of your business, it’ll be a huge deal if your site goes down. Having support available can help you to quickly identify and resolve any problems so that you can get back in contact with your customers as quickly as possible. Paying for website support can be a valuable investment in your business.

Marketing (such as SEO & SEM)

Having a great website is only part of the equation when it comes to your websites online viability and ensuring ease of use for your clients. Both Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) & Search Engine Marketing (SEM) have a place within your overall digital marketing strategy, for different reasons.

If you want more information on how much a website for your business could cost to run each year, please contact Discover Web Solutions today  on 1300 865 222. We can help you to explore the type of website you are looking for and generate a realistic budget for a well-performing website.