How Long Does it Take to Build a Website?
Building a new website is one of the most important investments you can make for your business or organization. As fun as it can be to design and create something new, it can also be one of the most exhaustive projects you’ll ever take on. It’s a long, multifaceted process that requires collaboration between various members of your own team as well as your web design agency. It’s a big decision and an even bigger undertaking that will require a little patience and a lot of big-picture thinking. So the question is, how long does it take to build a website?
That’s a great question and one that definitely needs to be asked of your agency. And as much as we wish we could give you an exact number here, the truth is that it depends.
Is that a cop-out answer? To some degree, perhaps. But so many variables go into building a site from the ground up that it would be impossible to present a blanket answer to the question.
Don’t Go the Simple Route Just for the Sake of Time
It’s possible, technically, that if you managed a simple DIY website with just a couple of pages and you wanted to continue with something similar and you were familiar with the content management system, you could probably knock out a website in just a couple of hours. However, to compare, going that route is essentially like selling your current home, then paying more for an identical one down the street because it has a slightly newer coat of paint. That’s probably not the kind of website you had in mind, though.
Follow Your Dreams – But Prepare for More Time
Because your website is such an important investment, it’s usually best to start with a blank slate, not just switch a few things around and call it “new.”Sure, that route is neither quicker nor easier, but it’ll be worth it in the long run. Starting from scratch presents you with the opportunity to design the website of your dreams.
Assuming you’re wanting to build a somewhat involved site from scratch with all new content, photos, layouts, etc., then the timeline will be extended…significantly.
Typical Website Build Timeline: What to Expect
On average, it takes our team about 120 working days to take a website from the idea stage to launch. Of course, we know there will be back-and-forth email chains, scheduling issues, obstacles, hiccups, and aspects that will have to be “run by the team” or “sent up the ladder;” It’s just a natural part of doing business. For these reasons, we give our clients a rough estimate of about four to five months before a new site launches.
What’s Involved in the Website Build Process?
For our website design projects, we adhere to a ten-step process: Gathering, research, strategic planning, content planning, wireframing, design, development, quality assurance, launch, and post-launch. We work closely with our client throughout the early stages in an effort to learn the market and industry and to develop quantifiable goals for the site. We’ll have collaborative meetings with our clients throughout the process as well as major timeline checkpoints which require client review and approval. Our goal throughout the early stages is to get everything laid out exactly the way it should be before we turn it over to our development team to bring the new website to life (it’s a lot easier and quicker to make revisions before the development stage than it is to make them after).
What Can Delay the Completion of a New Website?
Unfortunately, there are lots of things that can alter the estimated timeline given by an agency. From a development standpoint, the complexity of the design, limitations of third-party systems, or overall functional requirements of the site can certainly add some time to the project. From a content or design standpoint, it can expectedly come down to the sheer number of menu items and pages on the site. But some of the more common delays stem from having too many “irons in the fire” or “cooks in the kitchen” in the early stages. Remember, your website is going to be representative of your entire organization–and everyone within that organization is going to want to chip in their two cents. For these reasons, we recommend keeping your internal planning team as lean as possible. You may run into some objections, but it’ll save you time and headaches in the long run.
Create a New Website for Your Business that You’ll Be Proud to Share
Creating a new website can feel like an intimidating project to take on. We obviously don’t want to dissuade you from committing to a website build (as that would be rather unwise of us). If you asked ten different agencies how long their builds take, you’re likely going to get ten different answers. However, we believe in being transparent so you know exactly what to expect and reaffirm that although it does take time, it will all be worth it in the end. If you’re ready to create a new website that will grab the attention of both new and existing customers, contact our experts at Timmermann Group today.