Whether you’re using it for your business, to show off your great work, or just for the experience, building a website can be a lot of fun. Unfortunately, web design can get quite expensive quite quickly.
However, you can build a great website without breaking the bank.
Here’s a guide on the cheapest way to make a website without sacrificing quality.
Plan Ahead
Imagine a construction firm building a skyscraper without a set of blueprints to go off of. Sounds disastrous, doesn’t it?
Effectively, that’s what you’re doing if you’re not planning your website. Before you begin the design process or use DesignQuote to find a reputable designer, think about the utility of the website.
Namely, what will you use it for?
If you’re using it for a portfolio or as a personal blog, you won’t need to build anything too fancy. In fact, you may not even need to build more than a few pages.
But if you’re building a website for your business or as a personal networking tool, you’ll probably need something a bit more intricate than a single-page site.
Research Design Trends
It’s pretty amazing when you look at how far web design has come in a short amount of time. Look at the promotional website for the movie Space Jam, for instance. Seriously, just look at that relic.
Sure, it may be a fun movie, but the website is anything but. And for some reason, it’s still live — complete with a design and UI straight out of 1996.
It’s a fun novelty, but imagine using that website to impress investors. Not going to happen.
Read up on the latest web design trends to see what’s hot right now. For instance, most websites are going for a simplistic aesthetic. Even if a website features pages of text, a simple design looks sleek and professional.
You don’t necessarily have to follow the current trends, but they’re popular for a reason.
Find the Perfect Platform
Now that you’re more familiar with what’s hot in the industry, it’s time to finally get building with the right platform.
In a bit of a Catch-22, today’s web designer has more web platform choices than ever — most of which you can use for free. Of course, this means that picking the right one can be quite tough.
If you’re crafting your first site, we recommend something simple like WordPress. You’ll have plenty of templates to choose from while still having tons of options for customization.
If you’re looking for a step up, Squarespace is a solid choice. Sure, you’ll have to spend money, but it comes with more design options as well as 24/7 customer support.
Final Thoughts On The Cheapest Way To Make A Website
You now know the cheapest way to make a website that you can still be proud of.
Now that you know how to build a site, don’t forget about advertising. Be sure to check out our article on cost-effective ways to generate traffic to your new site!