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Building an eCommerce website? HOLD UP!
There are a lot of costs that you need to consider first.
An eCommerce website is a multifaceted platform. That’s why it is impossible to determine the eCommerce website price without considering various aspects that go with it. For instance, design, functionalities, marketing, maintenance, every facet has a pricing of its own.
It has become an absolute necessity to have an online store for any retail business in 2022.
Source: Statista
Our eCommerce development experts have come up with this guide to estimate an eCommerce website price and answer questions like:
- How much does an eCommerce website cost?
- What are the different eCommerce website design costs?
- Which method of eCommerce development should I choose?
- What are the must-have functionalities in an eCommerce website?
- What are the additional eCommerce website prices if I want to add advanced features?
- Do I need to plan for a marketing budget?
Building an eCommerce Website- What type and size?
If you look around the internet, you’ll find that there are countless types and sizes of eCommerce businesses. There are businesses that sell only a handful of products and there are businesses that sell a huge collection of products and services. Different business owners employ different strategies and methods of building an eCommerce website according to the scale of their business.
But how much does it cost to build a professional eCommerce website?
Before getting into cost estimation, you need to figure out where your business stands in this industry.
- Do you run a start-up with a limited budget?
- Do you run an enterprise with no financial limitations?
- Do you run a mid-range company that is looking to scale up?
The eCommerce website cost cannot be estimated in one go, it encompasses many aspects like different development platforms, add-ons, tools, additional features, etc. that you may need to achieve success in your eCommerce business.
Analyze your business and get a clear idea about your financial situation before making any concrete decisions.
eCommerce Website Cost Breakdown
Check out this insightful table to get an approximate estimation of eCommerce website costs:
| eCommerce Website Pricing Factors | Small Business | Mid-range Business | Enterprise Organization | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Website design | < $1,000 | $1,000-$5,000 | $10,000-$80,000 |
| 2 | Functionalities | < $2,000 | $5,000-$12,000 | $20,000-$100,000 |
| 3 | 3rd part integrations | $500 | $5,000 | $15,000 |
| 4 | Data imports | $0 | $5,000 | $10,000 |
| 5 | Fulfillment | $0 | $30-$400 | $5,000 |
| 6 | Content management system | $2,500 | $10,000 | $25,000 |
| 7 | Hosting | $500/year | $6,000/year | $10,000/year |
| 8 | Maintenance | $3,000/year | $12,000/year | $30,000/year |
| 9 | SEO | $10,000/year | $30,000/year | $60,000/year |
| 10 | Marketing | $0-$500 | $500-$1,250 | $3,600-$12,000 |
Among many other facets, functionality is an aspect where you have some freedom to reduce costs by choosing to use SaaS-based eCommerce development platforms like Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Wix, Magento and many more.
These ready-made platforms help you save a lot of time, effort and money, but each platform has its limitations. On the flip side, custom development avails maximum freedom and flexibility, allowing you to create a bespoke eCommerce website that reflects your brand’s personality and resonates with your audience perfectly.
Let’s dive deeper and understand the different costs of building an eCommerce website…
eCommerce Website Design Costs
Estimation: $1,000-$80,000*
“We see our customers as invited guests to a party, and we are the hosts. It’s our job every day to make every important aspect of the customer experience a little bit better.”
— Jeff Bezos
The average attention span of humans is 8 seconds, which is less than a goldfish. Also, there are 12million-24million eCommerce websites across the globe, that’s why online shoppers keep bouncing from one site to another.
The UI/UX design of your eCommerce website is one of the most important selling points of your brand.
What’s the first thing you do when someone suggests a brand?
Check the website, right?
In this competitive digital era, the look and feel of your online store are responsible for the first impression of your brand.
When considering eCommerce website design costs, there are 4 types-
– Simple websites
This type of website looks exactly the way it sounds, simple and straightforward.
- Moderately stylized websites
- It costs a little more, but you get the freedom to add more graphical elements.
- High-end websites
- Represent your brand with a more distinct and professional look.
- World-class websites
- Stand out from the competition by adding interactive graphic elements, high-resolution multimedia content, and a plethora of intuitive features.
If you want to deliver flawless online retail experiences, world-class or high-end websites are the way to go. But simple and moderately stylized websites are also enough to get the job done adequately.
If you’re running on a shoestring budget, leveraging the SaaS eCommerce development platforms is also a great choice. Platforms like WooCommerce and Shopify feature many beautiful themes for free, but they limit your brand’s potential substantially.
Let’s move on and understand the eCommerce website costs in terms of functionalities.
eCommerce Website Functionality Costs
Estimation: $2,000-$100,000*
Every eCommerce website, no matter how small or big must have the necessary features. The must-have features that you need to consider for your eCommerce website cost estimation include the following:
Most of these features are available in every online store, but the need for plugins and add-ons rises when you want to integrate advanced features like
- Multiple languages,
- AI-powered personalized product suggestions,
- Virtual product try-on or 3D demos with Augmented Reality,
- Abandoned shopping cart recovery,
- Wishlist management,
- Reporting tools
and so on.
You may go for custom development or choose from any of the SaaS platforms, advanced functionalities always require a bigger budget.
If you’re lost in the options of SaaS eCommerce platforms, check out these articles:
- WordPress VS Shopify
- Magento VS Shopify
Most importantly, an eCommerce website should facilitate a fast and seamless online retail experience. Adding too many features makes your website slower and it confuses your users instead of solving their problems, subsequently bouncing off potential customers.
A decluttered UI is the key to success in eCommerce.
eCommerce Website Costs: Marketing & SEO
Marketing estimation: $500-$1,200*
SEO estimation: $10,000/year-$60,000/year*
You got your eCommerce website designed and developed, but customers are still not flooding in, why?
“You can’t wait for customers to come to you. You have to figure out where they are, go there and bring them back to your store”
– Paul Graham, Y COMBINATOR
Customers do not automatically gravitate towards a website even if it features advanced functionalities and a world-class design. You need to drive traffic and create a conversion funnel for the target audience. This can be achieved through marketing and SEO activities.
The eCommerce website costs for Marketing and SEO depend on the scale of your online retail business.
As an owner of a start-up or small business, copywriting and SEO can be taken care of without spending a single dime. With some research, you can develop the content strategy for a simple eCommerce website.
As an owner of a mid-range or enterprise-grade business, marketing is a decisive factor for success. Copywriting and SEO aren’t enough, you need to focus on PPC campaigns, social media promotions, blog writing, email marketing, and other digital marketing strategies.
eCommerce Website Costs: Maintenance & Support
Estimation: $3,000/year-$30,000/year*
The sustainability of your eCommerce website can only be achieved through maintenance and support. This is an unavoidable ongoing cost that you plan for the long run, as long as the website exists.
Even after extensive testing, you may find some flaws and bugs after your website goes live. This can be fixed by implementing regular maintenance. This aspect of eCommerce website costs depends on the scale of your website and the method of development.
You don’t need technical support from your end if you’ve created the website through a SaaS-based eCommerce platform. The service provider makes sure your website is updated and bug-free.
If you’ve chosen the path of custom development, regular updates and maintenance are pivotal to keeping your website running at its optimum potential. Enterprise-grade businesses need a customer-support department for valuable feedback, a team of developers to constantly fix and improve the website, and a quality assurance team to oversee the whole operation.
Also, regular updates and a bug-free experience keep your online store competitive in the long run.
eCommerce Website Costs: Fulfilment Service
Estimation: $0-$5,000*
Even the blend of an appealing design, advanced features, regular maintenance, and planned marketing is not enough to succeed in the eCommerce industry. One of the most important facets of online retail is providing flawless services according to the promises made by your brand.
For instance, fulfillment service encompasses elements like on-time product deliveries, standardized product quality, offering seamless customer service, and so on. Delivering on your side of the bargain helps increase customer retention and brand loyalty.
Although this has nothing to do with the elements of your website, we have included a fulfillment service because no eCommerce business can survive without it. That’s why it is important to consider the costs of fulfillment.
Also, your eCommerce website should be completely synchronized with your fulfillment services- updating inventory status, generating invoices, sending out notifications to customers and delivery partners, tracking delivery details, etc.
How can Communication Crafts help in eCommerce Development?
Building an eCommerce website can be a daunting and complicated process.
Don’t fret! Our eCommerce development experts are at your beck and call.
Since 2005, Communication Crafts has been a reliable digital transformation partner for many brands across the globe. Trusted with ISO 27001:2013 certification, we help unlock your brand’s true potential and groom your company for the future.
The complete eCommerce package:
- Custom eCommerce Development
- Mobile Commerce Development
- Theme Development & Integration
- UX Research and Design
- eCommerce API Integration
- eCommerce Maintenance & Support
- Migration Updates
- Payment Gateway Integration
- eCommerce Consulting
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