From the desk of: Sam C. Chan

Web Development Services

June 1, 2004

This is a brief list of some of our web development capabilities and methodologies.

The so-called "custom" web sites fall into 3 categories (typical costs listed):

  1. Rubber Stamp sites ($50~$150): Not custom at all! Purely canned template & generic design. Only custom text poured. No discussions. Just submit the text.
  2. Semi-Custom designs ($300~$800): Special considerations for layout, color scheme and general designer's touch, according to the purpose of the site. Minimal client input, most decisions made at designer's discretion.
  3. True Custom designs ($1,000~$3,500): Detailed discussions on each relevant aspect. Client-participated interviewing, strategizing and decision making sessions. Formal Review-Approval-Adjustment cycles.

Needs Analysis:

  • Complete Identity Design
    (logo & style, domain & email strategies, alias)
  • Theme & Layout Design
  • Graphic Production
  • Site Coding
  • Security Considerations
  • Anti-SPAM strategies
  • Hosting
  • Monitoring
  • Update & Maintenance
  • Search Engine submit & optimization
  • Cross-Browser platform support
    (IE 6 & 7, Firefox 1.5 & 2.0)
  • Font Embedding

Web Requirements:

  • Goals & Objectives
  • Budget Constrains
  • Priorities
  • Sample sites of likes/dislikes, and reasons why
  • Contemporary or Traditional/Conservative
  • Functionalities/Aesthetics
  • Navigational Structure
  • Size of Site (no. of pages)
  • No. of Products/Services

Graphic Production:

  • Background Images/Texture
  • Image Maps (click zones)
  • Buttons (w/ optional roll-over effects)
  • Slide Shows
  • Flash/Shockwave clips
  • Image Optimization
  • Illustrations
  • Banners (animated/static)
  • Logo Designs
  • Photography
  • Photo Manipulation (technical & artistic)
  • Photo Scanning
  • Image Slicing (security, efficiency, reliability)
  • Virtual Objects
  • Custom Maps
 Special Web Features:
  • Forms
  • Custom CGI
  • Visitor Upload (Drop box)
  • PDF
  • Chat room
  • Searchable Databases
  • Guest Book
  • Custom Counters (hidden)
  • Message of The Day
  • Smooth Scrolling Marquee
  • Custom Calculators
  • Translation
  • Custom Cursor
  • Shopping Cart
  • News Feed
  • Site Search Engine
  • SMS Gateway

Multimedia/Animation:

  • Sound/Video clip
  • Streaming
  • Custom ASX
  • Photo Gallery/Album
  • Slideshow
  • Animated GIF
  • Flash elements
  • Rollover
  • Bravo ZoomPIX

Copy Writing/Copy Editing:

  • Mission Statement
  • Slogans
  • About Us
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Tables & Charts
  • Press Releases
  • What's New

Technical Writing:

  • Fee Schedules/Charts
  • Tutorials
  • Checklists

Typical Costs for 3~8 Pages Semi-Custom Sites

Basic Standardized Site base fee: $90

Design template, theme, CSS, nav elements & structure, page layout framework, etc.
Per page (average size): $45 Reasonable amount of text. Basic layout.
Each Form: $20~$150 Feedback, request, application, etc.
Each JavaScript Program: $20~$75 Client-side custom programs.
Each Custom CGI Program: $35~$500 Host-side custom programs
Each Standard Graphics: $10~$25 Basic crop/resize/exposure. Basic layout.
Each Custom Graphics: $40~$200

Custom creation/design, layered objects, retouch, artistic rendering, illustrations, etc.
Special Audio/Visual Elements: Varies Sound/video clip, animation, flash/shockwave.
Each PDF Page: $5 Simple conversion/generation, no edit/adjustment.

Assuming standardized designs (with custom color schemes) with minimal communications other than initial turnover of required materials. Client supplies all graphics and copy writing materials in ready-to-pour format. We make most of the design decisions based on professional opinions.

Any consultation on strategy development, clarification of concepts, training (to perform your own updates, etc.), tutorial; and work on logo designs, graphic designs & optimization, spell check, typo or formatting correction of supplied materials, re-uploading, are billable at applicable standard hourly rates.

For more complex/advanced sites, this "canned" approach and cost model won't work. The discussion would have to be broken down into the details of goals & objectives, priorities, methodology, tasks, subtasks, and ultimately translated to hours & $$$.

Specifically, the per-page cost will be lower due to economy of scale, but there will be a lot of non-page-specific expenses incurred at all stages. For example, adding 12 simple pages may cost only $50 total. Yet, adding just one particular graphic element to an existing page might cost $75 because it requires a redesign in layout and other aspects.

In short, the costs will reflect the actual efforts required.

See also:

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