Building it yourself
Website builders such as Wix and Squarespace let you design a site with templates and drag-and-drop tools. Published guides put the cost at about £10 to £25 a month, and suggest 20 to 40 hours of your own time to learn the tool, write the text and get photos in place.
- Good for: people who enjoy it, have spare evenings, and want full control
- Watch for: the monthly fee runs for as long as you keep the site, so it adds up over years
- Watch for: getting the basics right (page titles, mobile layout, speed) takes some know-how
- Watch for: moving your site elsewhere later can be hard, because exporting from a builder is often limited. Check before you start
Hiring a freelancer
A freelance designer typically charges from a few hundred pounds to £1,500 or more for a trades site, and updates later are often charged by the hour. You get more custom work and a person to talk to.
- Good for: people who want something more individual and are happy to pay for it
- Watch for: quality varies, so ask to see recent work, and agree the price, the scope and who owns the files in writing
- Watch for: waiting times, and the cost of every later change
A ready-made, one-off trades package
Some firms sell a standard layout tailored to a trade for a fixed price. It is quicker and cheaper than custom work, and less flexible. Ask what is included, what changes cost, and who owns the domain and the files.
How to choose
| If you... | Consider |
|---|---|
| Enjoy tinkering and have the evenings | A builder, and be realistic about the hours |
| Want a unique look and have the budget | A freelancer, with the scope and ownership in writing |
| Want it done quickly, cheaply and simply | A one-off trades package with a preview before you pay |
| Need online booking or a shop | A builder or a developer, not a basic brochure site |
Where the 20 to 40 hours go
Building a site yourself takes longer than it looks, mostly because of the work around the tool, not the tool itself.
- Learning the builder and choosing a template: a few hours
- Writing the text for each page: a few hours if you are quick, much longer if you are not
- Sorting, resizing and uploading photos: an hour or two
- Setting up the contact form, WhatsApp button and domain: a couple of hours
- Checking it on a phone and fixing what is awkward: another couple of hours
- Doing it again when you change something
What can go wrong when you do it yourself
- The site looks fine on your computer and badly on a phone
- Photos are too big, so the site loads slowly
- The contact form does not actually reach you
- Page titles are left as the template default, so search results show nothing useful
- You never finish, and the site stays half-built
Briefing a freelancer well
A clear brief gets you a better site and a fairer quote. Send these things:
- Your trade, town and the areas you cover
- The services you want listed, up to about eight
- A short note about you and your business
- At least ten photos of your own work
- A sample of sites you like, and what you like about them
- Whether you already own a domain, and whether you use email on it
- Your budget, and when you want it live
A simple scorecard
Score each route out of five on what matters to you, then add up the totals. There is no right answer, but writing it down stops you choosing by impulse.
| What matters | DIY builder | Freelancer | One-off trades package |
|---|---|---|---|
| Low cost upfront | Good | Poor | Good |
| Low cost over three years | Fair | Fair | Good |
| Takes little of your time | Poor | Good | Good |
| Custom, individual look | Fair | Good | Fair |
| Easy to move later | Check first | Check first | Check first |
Questions to ask whoever you choose
- What exactly is included: pages, photos, words, domain, hosting?
- What does it cost to change something after launch?
- Do I own the domain and the website files?
- Can I see the site before I pay?
- What happens if I stop paying or want to leave?
Our view
We sell the third option, so we are not neutral. But the questions above are the ones to ask anyone, including us.
Common questions
Can I move my site from Wix to somewhere else?
Export options on website builders are often limited. Check what you can take with you before you start, because rebuilding can cost as much as the original.
Is a freelancer always better than a package?
Not always. A freelancer can give you a more individual site, but a good package can do the job faster and cheaper for a simple trade site.
What should I ask for in writing?
What is included, the price including VAT if it applies, who owns the domain and files, what changes cost, and how you can leave.
Can I start with a package and upgrade later?
Usually, yes. Check that you own the domain and can take your files with you.
Five pages with a call button, WhatsApp button and enquiry form. We build a free preview first, and you only pay if you want it live.
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