How much does a website cost? I hear this question often as I visit with prospective clients. It seems to be a fair question, but impossible to answer without more information.

You might as well ask me how much surgery costs. Well, do you need a mole removed, or do you need a heart transplant? Do you want me to quote you just the surgeon’s fee or do you want to know the whole package price which might include: the surgeon’s fee, the anesthesiologist’s fee, the facility/hospital fee, lab work, post op care, durable medical equipment, prescriptions, and even physical therapy.

Just like a person, a website should be viewed as a living and changing organism.

• It needs to be fed. (updating content)
• It needs to be clothed. (design)
• It needs to be understood. (good navigation)
• It needs activity and exercise. (it needs to DO something—programming)
• It needs to visit the doctor once in a while. (maintenance)
• It needs a place to live. (hosting)
• It needs friends. (other sites to link to it—vertical marketing)
• It needs to be found and known. (search engine optimization)

So the next time an Element Fusion Internet Consultant asks you for more information when you ask him how much a website costs, please be patient—he really needs to know in order to give you an accurate quote!