The Cost of Your Design
Sometimes you can’t help but judge a book, a movie, or a website by its cover. And now, more often than not, that cover needs to have an impact. There are a few ways to go about getting high-impact designs, and it all depends on the unique needs of your company.
I'm in constant awe of those who can design websites because a lot of the time, designers are free to come up with whatever they think is best. More often than not, the client is very excited with the outcome. From what I can tell, designing websites takes a keen eye, a creative mind, and a strong knowledge base of the software available to pull it all together. The design process is one of the most important aspects of having a website and it can be considered the most costly, depending on the level of graphic design your company needs.
These different levels of graphic designers can be confusing when it comes time to budget your web project. We recognize that understanding graphic design pricing must be very frustrating for potential clients. There is a wide range of prices freelancers will quote, seemingly without consistency from person to person. A logo might cost $20 with one firm, but thousands more if you go with another place. The same can be said about website designers and photographers. Some change a flat fee, others an hourly rate.
As with other professions, graphic designers have different levels of education available to them. There are graphic design diplomas or degrees, and then there are the hobbyists who are self-taught. Designers can also go on to become accredited, or affiliated with a professional organization — these are usually the ones that cost a little extra.
Using an accredited graphic artist typically results in a corporate, polished, modern, and professional outcome, but can cost more than going with someone who has fewer years of experience, is not accredited, or is perhaps making websites for fun (like an uncle, or a friend of a friend who “knows how to design websites”). The top-tier graphic artists produce designs that can last years, whereas someone with less experience may design the site to look good on opening night, but not necessarily next year.
In addition, a pricier graphic designer will always be using the most up-to-date software and operating system on their computers. He or she will not shy away from adding costly fonts and pay-per-use artwork from shutterstock.com or istock.com into the project. Their work will be unique in every sense and fully customized for your needs. A lower level designer will also get the job done, but might only be tapping into freebie clipart and backgrounds, resulting in a website that looks good and still delivers great results and compelling content for the site visitor, but it might not feel like a one-of-a-kind.
To determine what is right for you, first decide what your company needs, and then what you can afford. Is your top priority having a lot of impact, or do you simply need something to publicize your company's information? If you're unsure, ask yourself what you need your website to do for you and what you hope to get out of it. Is it to increase the amount of sales you make? If so, a high-impact graphic designer might be the best investment.
Because of these differences in price, Point One Media offers different levels of graphic design. We work with a few different designers, which gives our clients a wide range of options. All of our designers have been making websites for 5+ years and have produced very satisfactory results for a wide range of industries. We would be happy to provide different quotes for whatever type of graphic design you need.
Check out some of our recent work in our Portfolio section.
