Modern businesses have a hard time succeeding with a piece of digital real estate─ a website. Not only will a website give your business credibility but it is also a source of free marketing and a great way to engage with your consumers.
But new business owners may shy away from creating a website. This is often due to the perception that it would take too long, need too much skill or cost too much. This is not always true.
You can find a web design package that will suit your business’s unique circumstances. So how long does it take to build a website? Keep reading for more information on the web design process and how long making a website takes.
Typical Web Design Process
There are generally two choices when creating a website. You can buy a template online or create your own custom website. Template websites are quicker and don’t need any web design knowledge but customs provide flexibility.
The time it takes to design and build a customized website will depend on the requirements and specifications of the business owner. For an accurate answer to how long does it take to build a website, it is important to understand a typical website’s design process.
First, you would search for a web designer using referrals or trusted sites. After choosing a designer, you would have an initial meeting to explain why you need a converting website and what your vision for it is.
Some functionalities will take longer to design than others. For example, a website that gives information about a business’s location and services will take less time than a website that has a product catalog, shopping cart, and payment options.
After the initial meeting or brief, the design team should come up with a plan and mock-ups or wireframes of their proposed website design. You would then review the proposed site and make suggestions or changes. Once you approve the final site plan and wireframes, the design team would then start working on the website.
You should make comments and changes as they proceed to reduce the number of corrections needed at the end. Once the website is complete you get a chance to make the final changes before the designers complete their work and publish the site.
How Long Will Each Step Take?
Now that we have a clearer idea of the web design process we can come up with an approximate answer to the question of how long does it take to build a website? If you approach a professional designer to design your website they will ask you a series of questions before deciding whether to take the project. Your requirements are also what they will use to gauge how much your website will cost.
They will likely ask you things like:
- why you want to create a website
- what information you want on the website
- what your favorite websites are and why
- what is your project budget
They will also give you suggestions and ideas on how to create a site that is perfect for you. There will be a lot of back and forth communication between you and your designer so that your vision is clear. This is why the process may take up to 2 weeks.
The next stage of creating the website plan and web page wireframes will take anywhere from 1 week to 3 weeks. The more complex your website is the longer it takes. During this stage, you should ask for a mock-up for each of the pages that your final website will have.
The mock-ups can have filler content and images but you need to see how the final page will look to approve the design. Most web developers encourage business owners to make as many changes and suggestions as they can during this stage. This is because it makes the web design process much easier.
Creating the Website
The third stage is the most time-consuming stage as web designers often face unexpected challenges while creating your dream website. To be on the safe side, most designers overestimate the time it will take them to build the website. So, they may tell you it will be ready in two months and then they surprise you by finishing it in a month. But generally, a professional web designer will complete a website for a small business within a month.
Once the website is complete, the web designer will allow you some time to do a final review. This is your last chance to make final changes to your website so test all the links and read through all the copy and images to ensure that there aren’t any mistakes.
There are always final changes to be made. But if you engage the web designers during the earlier stages, the final changes will be minimal. The process will take about 1 to 2 weeks but don’t rush It or you may miss finding embarrassing errors.
When we add up all the times, you can see that a professionally designed custom website could take about 2 to 3 months to create. This may seem like a long time but it is important to get your website right as it is part of your brand and the first impression many clients will have of you.
If you need to create a simple website quickly or you don’t have the budget to hire a designer, consider using a website builder. They are relatively cheap and you don’t need any design skills to create a stylish website. You can also ask the designer to put up a “coming soon” page that still allows you to collect data and emails from visitors.
How Long Does It Take To Build a Website?
So, how long does it take to create a website? Unfortunately, there isn’t a straight answer as it depends on the type of business you operate, your website objectives and your budget. Creating a website can take anywhere from a few hours to several weeks.
The more complicated your web design requirements the more time it will take. The process may seem like a big task but the ROI of having a top-quality, high converting site is undeniably worth it. If you’re looking to get a premium site built for your brand, don’t hesitate to get a quote today.