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How Much Should I Budget for a Franchise Sales Website?
While it can be a challenge to pinpoint a specific dollar amount, all franchises can acknowledge how a little extra spending can go a long way.
On the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is no surprise that many websites have taken to website development to gain a new edge. The world has seen a decrease of in-person interaction unlike ever before, while brands across the world have been forced to embrace an even bigger digital presence.
Marketing strategy has had to adapt as well. Online sales were already at a peak even prior to the pandemic, but the basic principles of online retail shopping are now making their way into other industries. Restaurants everywhere have embraced online ordering. Service industries have embraced online tracking and appointment scheduling. A cutting-edge website could be the difference between an efficient company and a stagnant one, and the impact could be directly tied to how much money is invested in a sales website.
According to digital marketing company WebFX, the average cost to create a comprehensive website for a small business is $2000 to $10,000. Basic web hosting and domain costs are just a small piece of this; while a generic site alone is far less expensive, integrating some online sales essentials — an SSL certificate, appealing design, CMS and payment functionality, to name a few — will push those costs forward.
$10,000 for a website can be a staggering fee, but it is quickly put in perspective when a business realizes a good website can replace other mediums of marketing. Rather than investing in billboards, magazines or print advertising, a serious website presence can draw in revenue with extreme tracking capabilities. This modern approach is good for both consumer data collection and brand promotion.
A website can be as individualized as a brand seeks to make it. If a brand seeks to save money on their site, work will often be outsourced and monitored by third-party vendors which can create security issues and prevent a company from maximizing its digital impact. The most expensive sites are often ones produced by in-house employees, which can allow a brand to take on full responsibilities as opposed to outsourcing its digital presence.
Having a dedicated employee(s) for website design is a surefire way to multiply a sales website budget, but it’s also a momentous way for a digital presence to become established. In this sense, it’s important to view a website budget as a comprehensive marketing strategy, and far more than just a few tabs on the internet.
Some franchises are better equipped to make a serious website a reality, and other smaller brands might be forced to use inexpensive means to create a web design. This is part of why franchise expansion can do wonders for a brand presence, as a greater collection of units can allow a brand to more easily budget for a strong website. A single franchise unit may have a difficult time creating a digital footprint, whereas a nationwide company can utilize a corporate team to take on those duties full-time.
There is a huge range of money that can be invested in a brand’s digital presence, so it’s a challenge to truly pinpoint how much a digital budget should be. A comprehensive analysis of brand size, available spending and digital sales capability should make a dollar amount more clear, but at the very least, any brand can recognize how a little more spending on a franchise sales website can yield exponential growth in brand popularity.
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