Web Design Costs $$$

If you have been getting a quality website designed at no cost, count yourself very blessed, enjoy it and ride it out as long as you can. Professional web design ranges anywhere between $500 to $10K! You will get what you pay for. Don’t expect something on the level of FoxNews.com for $500 but, that being said, it won’t cost you $10K to get a simple missionary website. In addition to having your website built, you also have to pay monthly or annual fees for your domain name (your web address) and hosting (the server where your data lives). If you want to do it yourself in order to save money, I’ve written two blogs–one on Building a Website Yourself and another on Creating a Facebook Page. However, you will find that these free options enable ads and don’t allow for simple, custom web addresses.

Typically, when you hire a professional “designer” to do the work, you will either pay them by the hour or by the project. Either way the more prepared you are, the more you can negotiate the cost because you are saving them from having to find, organize, and manage content. The idea is to have everything ready before you even talk to them. What you want to avoid is looking like you don’t have content; this could potentially scare a designer from wanting to work with you and, in order to make your project worth their time, they could increase the price, which is valid, especially if they are allocating more of their time for the project. So, be prepared with the list below and a general sitemap. Keep in mind that the more complex you make it, the more expensive it will be.

We have negotiated pricing with, and have referrals to, some BBFI-affiliated website designers. Please understand that this is still done privately outside of the Mission Office. All payments, support, and management of your websites are your responsibility. Below are two options:

Nick Mills | nick@hyperlinkcreative.org | Owner of Hyperlink Creative | Story Brand Certified

• $799 for website package (package details provided via email upon request)
• $199 annually for hosting and domain names
• One hour of training is included in build price

Bryan Whitaker | bryan@cart32.com | Vice-President of Cart32

• $475 for website package (package details provided via email upon request)
• $199 annually for hosting and domain names
• One hour of training is included in build price

What You Need Before You Get Started

• A high-resolution picture
• A logo (if you have one)
• Your video uploaded to YouTube (Gmail users automatically have a YouTube account)
• One document that contains the text for your site (make sure it’s proofread)
• The link to your donate/profile page on bbfimissions.com
• Pictures you have taken of your country
• Stock photos of your country (get free pictures with no copyright restrictions from unsplash.com)
• Links to any social media accounts
• Your Email (the one you check often)

Building Your Sitemap

I recommend keeping it simple. Start with a one-page site that includes the following sections:

• Home
  • Mission Statement (big and bold with a good background picture)
  • Ministry Video
  • Ministry Goals (with pictures)
  • Our Blog (a blog of your latest prayer letter with PDF version available for download in every post)
  • About Our Family (a picture of your family and any information you want to share about them)
  • Contact Us (this should include information on how to book you for a missions conference)
  • Follow Us on Social Media

In conclusion, having a web presence is virtually a necessity in the 21st century and with the three options that have been presented, you get to choose one that best fits you and your needs.