You’d think that a premium website price tag would guarantee a premium business experience. But unfortunately expensive websites don’t always mean better outcomes.

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m a firm believer in “buy cheap, buy twice” so I’m not advising to skimp out either! But your website isn’t automatically built well, high-converting, or made with a high-quality design just because you spent a lot of money on it.

The female founders I work with aren’t short of cash. They’re not afraid to invest high thousands so long as they’re getting a top-notch, high-quality experience that feels most aligned for them.

Trouble is, a lot of these clients automatically assume that expensive = luxury. Even high 7-figures earner Denise DT admitted that she has the mindset of assuming that the most expensive option will be the best. So it’s very easy for self-led, female founders to accidentally pay premium prices for websites that aren’t actually premium and do nothing but become a giant pain in the butt!

So whilst a higher price tag usually points towards the experience and expertise you’re looking for, let’s look at the other end of the scale that nobody’s talking about. You already know the importance of investing to get a premium website but a premium price tag doesn’t automatically make your website premium. 

“She paid HOW MUCH for THIS website??? 😱”

Recently, I was asked to advise on a website project and what I reviewed genuinely shocked me. I mean…after 22+ years of creating websites, and 8 years running my company, I’ve kinda seen it all. But my excessively empathetic self STILL can’t help but get angry and upset on behalf of the client who paid mid five figures for a website that:

Wasn’t updatable
No option to login to update text or images. 

Quickly became outdated
Due to the aforementioned lack of login meant the website was stuck featuring old logos and services.

Provided poor user experience 
The old content meant visitors would waste time eyeing up and deciding on an option, only to sent to another website with a 404 “page not found” message when clicking to buy.

Created extra work
So after being hit with that 404 page, visitors would have to restart their browsing journey (if they hadn’t already clicked off in confusion) on a separate “secondary” website which had the correct and most current up-to-date info (Feeling confused yet? Me too!)

And instead of this info being automatically pulled into the initial website, the client would have to manually add it again. 2 websites, 2 systems, 2 times the amount of the content updates – more work for everybody woohoo!

BUT as mentioned, once the content was set, there was no way to update it so these 2 websites were constantly conflicting each other. URGH! Put the kettle on, I need a coffee! 🤦🏻‍♀️

Included unnecessary pages
Which had CLEARLY only been included as part of a TEMPLATE (Don’t even get me started on the fact that this client paid mid five figures for a TEMPLATE!! 😤) But the pages did NOTHING. The interactions on them lead the website visitor round in circles, wasted their time, and clearly wasn’t meant to be part of the actual sales journey or website. 

Added extra costs
Oh and the real kick in the teeth? Not only had this client dropped a substantial amount of cash for the site itself, they were paying £££’s in subscription fees to keep this Frankenstein’d waste-of-time, sorry excuse for a website “running”. Can you feel my upset yet? 🙃 That’s even before paying extra for any 2 second tweaks that needed to be “developer requested”

The website wasn’t making the client any sales (shocker) and was actively costing them sales, money, and trust. That is NOT an asset to the business!

Your website should be contributing to your brand, and bank account so if you’re having to work around it (rather than it work for you) then that’s not a premium site, no matter how much you spent on it.

Anyone can build a website nowdays

You, dear reader, have most likely already had a good go at building your own website. And whilst it’s great that DIY site builders have made running a website (and therefore a business) more assessable to anyone with an internet connection, the other side of the coin means anyone can offer website services, making it harder than ever to distinguish which “expert” to choose.

Also, when you’ve got a fairly complex website to build (I’m talking membership sites, client login areas, booking functionality, software integrations etc) there’s so much more technical intel needed than the average SquareSpace build that the pool of experts to choose from becomes a bit more sparse. And when you’re stuck in the midst of researching a the particular “API” you’ll need for your latest project, with tutorials that might as well be in French, it becomes even harder to understand what you need, who you need, and what to spend.

👆That plus when you’ve got 15,000 other things on your to-do list, the 100K “I know a guy” starts to become appealing. I mean at this point you’re happy to drop 100K on anyone who can promise to just make the project go away!

Many websites are built around developer convenience, limited knowledge, or agency workflow rather than the real day-to-day experience of the founder who has to live with it.

It’s not that those listed above are bad people (okay maybe some of them are…look I can’t make any promises okay?) It’s just so many website’s are built and designed around them and what they know, not what’s best for you. 

Yes I’m a WordPress specialist (because unlike DIY website builders, WordPress gives you the most optimised, flexible, and future-proofed solution) but if a client comes to me who wants to stay with SquareSpace, Shopify, or Wix for ease and comfort then who am I to say boo to a goose? 

I’m not here to convince anyone (✅ professional opinion yes ❌ persuasion, absolutely not 🤢) and thankfully I have a wonderful pool of non-WordPress web design friends who I’ll happily recommend.

My point is your website is MORE than just a pretty design, technical build, or 50K price tag. Your website is a part of your business and when set up correctly, it becomes a highly valuable asset that saves you time, amplifies your audience, and elevates your brand and bank account. 

Which is why when creating a website, it’s important to look at THE WHOLE SYSTEM and design the entire experience from how the admin area works for the business owner managing it, how it feels for the client interacting with it, how search tools can find it, to how it can replicate and bolster your company’s sales system.

There’s a common assumption that price is a reliable signal of website quality but honestly…it’s yes AND. 

If the person you’re working with can explain everything in plain English, effortlessly translate tech talk, provide custom design examples (if that’s what you’re paying for), show off quality work, discuss your business + goals in depth, explain processes up front, provides training for updates, and charges well for it? Green flags all round.

So whilst there’s nothing wrong with dropping 100K on a website, or relying on a “friend” or VA, it’s important to consider the type of project you have on your hands and what aspects are important to you (easy to update, custom design, set up to your goals, optimised for search etc) to determine the expert to hire who can gauge realistic costs.

Gold standard websites 

I’m not about building a site so complex to validate a 50K price tag. Or designing something impressive for launch day. My goal is to craft websites that continues working for the business long after the project is finished. For me this means prioritising:

…and basically works effortlessly for how the business actually operates 👌

That client from earlier? I am genuinely excited to rebuild their website because it’s gonna knock their socks off! It’ll look amazing, make life easier and will be miles less complicated / expensive to maintain which will feel like a breath of fresh air compared to that absolute mess of a s(h)ite they had before (still salty and smh 😒) 

Because a website should never feel like a system you have to fight or work around, a technical obligation you have to take out a second mortgage for, or a hostage situation that leaves your website worse off than before.

ESPECIALLY when dropping mid five figures! You deserve better.