The real cost of cheap website design
We get it. Money is tight and you want a cheap website design quote. When you’re comparing web design quotes and one comes in at £500 while another is £2,000, it’s tempting to go with the bargain. Who doesn’t love saving money?
But here’s the thing – we’ve lost count of how many times clients have come back to us after going with the cheaper option, frustrated and out of pocket. Their “bargain” website isn’t bringing in any business, and they’re stuck with something that’s actually costing them customers.
What Really Happens with Budget Web Design
Last month, a local business owner called us. Nine months earlier, they’d chosen a designer who was significantly cheaper than our quote. Great news, right? Wrong. Their website had been live for six months, and they hadn’t received a single enquiry through it.
When we looked at their site, the problems were obvious:
- No SEO setup whatsoever
- Images that took forever to load (and many of them low quality and pixelated)
- Content that rambled without any clear purpose
- No way to track if anyone was even visiting
- Links that didn’t work and a contact form that was broken
Sound familiar? It should, because this happens more often than you’d think.
Here’s What You Actually Pay For
When someone quotes you £500 for a website, they’re probably just making it look decent. That’s it. When you invest properly in web design, you’re getting:
- Proper SEO from day one Your site needs to be found on Google, right? That means proper headings, meta descriptions, fast loading speeds, and mobile-friendly design. Miss any of these, and you might as well be invisible online.
- Technical stuff that actually matters Things like image optimisation, security, analytics setup, and code that search engines can actually read. Boring? Maybe. Essential for getting customers? Absolutely.
- Content that converts It’s not just about filling pages with text. Where do you put your contact details? How do you guide visitors to get in touch? What keywords should you target for your local area?
The Real Cost of Cheap Website Design
Here’s what typically happens when clients choose budget designers:
Their website goes live, and… nothing. No phone calls, no enquiries, no new customers. They wait a few months, maybe try some Facebook ads, but still nothing.
Eventually, they Google their business name and realise they don’t show up anywhere. They check their website on their phone and find it looks terrible. They ask friends if they’ve seen the site, and everyone says it was too slow to load properly.
Now they’re back to square one, except they’ve wasted 6-12 months and still need a proper website.
Fixing the Damage
When we take over websites like this, we usually find:
- Zero SEO setup (no wonder they’re not found on Google)
- Massive, unoptimised images slowing everything down
- No clear way for customers to get in touch
- No tracking, so they can’t even see if anyone visits
Getting these sites working properly often costs more than our original quote would have been. Plus, they’ve lost months of potential customers.
Real Results vs False Economy
We’re not saying this to scare you – we’re saying it because we see the pattern repeatedly. When we fix these issues properly, the results speak for themselves.
Time and again, we see businesses start getting the enquiries and visibility they expected from their website once the technical foundations are properly in place. The difference isn’t magic – it’s just doing things properly from the start.
Questions Worth Asking
Before you choose a web designer, ask them:
- Will my site be set up for search engines?
- What happens to my site speed and mobile performance?
- How will I know if it’s working?
- What’s included in ongoing support?
If they can’t give you clear answers, that should tell you something.
The Bottom Line on cheap website design
Your website isn’t a business card – it’s a sales tool. Maybe your most important one. Would you buy the cheapest tools for any other part of your business and expect professional results?
We’ve seen too many business owners learn this lesson the expensive way. Our quotes might not be the cheapest, but our clients actually get customers from their websites.
If you are tired of a website that don’t work, get in touch and let’s build something that actually brings in customers. G
