Website Design Archives | Peige 360 Digital Solutions

The Expertise Gap: Why High-Performing Professionals are Switching to Managed Websites

Peige 360 — Mon, 12 Jan 2026 14:24:23 +0000

The Expertise Gap: Why High-Performing Professionals are Switching to Managed Websites

Home » Website Design

For most service-based businesses, a website isn’t a “one and done” project—it’s a living part of their brand. Yet, the traditional model treats it like a piece of furniture: you buy it once, and it stays exactly the same until it breaks or looks outdated.

This is why Peige360 introduced Website-as-a-Service (WaaS).

It’s a shift from owning a static project to subscribing to a dynamic presence. For the busy professional, this isn’t just about “paying monthly”; it’s about removing the mental and technical load of the internet from their to-do list forever.

Why the Monthly Model is the Strategic Choice

1. Capital Agility In a growing business, cash flow is a weapon. Instead of sinking a large capital amount into a website upfront, WaaS allows you to preserve that capital for marketing, talent, or operations. You get a high-end, professional site from Day 1 for a predictable monthly fee.

2. Zero Technical Debt Websites require constant care—security patches, plugin updates, and server maintenance. In a WaaS model, this is no longer your problem. We proactively manage the “under the hood” tech so you never see an error message or a “Not Secure” warning.

3. Content Evolution The biggest killer of a professional brand is a “stale” website. Our monthly plans include content updates. When you land a major client, win an award, or pivot your services, your website reflects that change immediately. No waiting for a developer’s quote; just send an email, and it’s done.

4. All-Inclusive Infrastructure A Peige360 subscription isn’t just a design; it’s an ecosystem. We include your .co.za domain registration, high-speed hosting, and professional email accounts. It’s one point of contact for your entire digital existence.

Naven did an excellent job designing our CIK Commodity website. From the layout to the overall user experience, everything looks clean, modern, and professional. He was responsive, easy to work with, and understood exactly what we wanted,then delivered it with a great eye for detail. The site works smoothly on mobile and desktop, loads fast, and the final finish is really polished. Highly recommended if you want a professional website done properly.

CIK Commodity

The 3-Minute Website Audit

Is your current site a tool or a chore? Score yourself 1 point for every “Yes.”

The Freshness Test: Is your site updated with your latest work or wins?
The Peace of Mind Test: Do you feel 100% confident that your site is secure and backed up right now?
The Mobile Test: Does your site function perfectly on a smartphone without you having to “pinch and zoom”?
The Maintenance Test: If you needed to change a paragraph on your site today, could you do it without a headache?
The Professional Standard: Does your site look like it belongs to the version of you that exists in 2026?

If you scored less than 5/5, your website is dragging you backward. It’s time to move to a managed service that keeps you at the top of your game.

The Final Word

If you scored a 3 or lower, you don’t need a “new project.” You need a new system.

The Peige360 Monthly Plan is designed to take the technical and creative burden off your plate entirely. We ensure your site stays in that 5/5 bracket every single month, so you can stop worrying about your URL and start focusing on your ROI.

Explore our Monthly Plans here

Safari Compatibility for WordPress Websites: Fixing Browser-Specific Issues

Peige 360 — Thu, 14 Aug 2025 15:06:42 +0000

Safari compatibility for WordPress
websites: Fixing browser-specific issues

Home » Website Design

Safari is a popular browser for macOS and iOS users, known for speed and privacy. But when it comes to WordPress websites, Safari can be a tricky customer. While your website may look perfect in Chrome or Firefox, Safari’s unique rendering engine can cause unexpected layout shifts, broken elements, or inconsistent functionality.

If your WordPress website isn’t performing well in Safari, it can frustrate visitors and hurt your brand’s credibility, especially if part of your audience is browsing on iPhones, iPads, or MacBooks. Let’s look at common Safari issues, why they happen, and how to fix them.

Common safari issues on WordPress websites

Layout inconsistencies – Elements appear misaligned or overlapping compared to other browsers.
Page loading problems – Pages may load slowly or fail to display fully.
Automatic logouts – Users are unexpectedly logged out of their accounts.
Broken interactive features – Sliders, forms, and animations behave differently or not at all.
Responsive display errors – The mobile version looks correct on Chrome but breaks on Safari.

Why Safari-specific issues happen

Safari uses its own rendering engine (WebKit), which handles CSS and JavaScript slightly differently from browsers like Chrome (Blink) or Firefox (Gecko). This means:

CSS and JavaScript differences – Certain properties or methods aren’t interpreted the same way.
Caching conflicts – Safari can be aggressive with cached data, causing outdated styles or scripts to load.
Privacy and security settings – Features like Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP) can affect cookies, logins, and plugin functionality.
Plugin or theme incompatibility – Some WordPress plugins and themes aren’t tested thoroughly on Safari.
Media format limitations – Certain video or image formats (e.g., WebP in older Safari versions) may not display correctly.

Brilliant service, exceeded my expectations. Very patient and always available to go through different ideas.

Nera Naidu

Step-by-step Fixes for safari compatibility issues

Test in multiple Safari versions
Use real Apple devices or online testing tools like BrowserStack to compare your website across Safari versions.
Clear cache and cookies
Safari may load outdated files. Clearing browser cache often fixes display issues after updates.
Validate HTML and CSS
Use tools like the W3C Markup Validator and W3C CSS Validator to ensure your code meets web standards.
Fix CSS and JavaScript conflicts
- Replace unsupported CSS properties with browser-safe alternatives.
- Check for JavaScript errors in Safari’s Web Inspector console and adjust accordingly.
Optimise media formats
Ensure fallback formats for images and videos are available (e.g., provide JPG/PNG alongside WebP).
Adjust cookie and session settings
For login issues, review your WordPress cookie policies and adjust plugin settings to align with Safari’s privacy rules.
Update everything
Keep WordPress core, themes, and plugins up to date — updates often include compatibility fixes.
Disable and re-enable plugins
If a feature breaks only in Safari, test by disabling plugins one at a time to find the culprit.
Responsive testing
Check breakpoints and media queries specifically on Safari mobile to ensure your layout adapts correctly.

Prevention Tips

Cross-browser testing before launch – Test your website on Safari, Chrome, Firefox, and Edge.
Follow coding standards – Use valid, clean HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to avoid rendering issues.
Avoid browser-specific code unless necessary – When you must use it, comment and document it clearly.
Provide fallbacks – Always have alternative styles, formats, or scripts for unsupported features.
Keep performance in mind – Minify code, compress images, and limit heavy scripts to ensure smooth loading.

Conclusion

Safari compatibility problems in WordPress aren’t unusual, but they are fixable. By understanding how Safari processes your website differently and applying targeted fixes, you can ensure a consistent experience for all users, regardless of their browser.

At Peige 360, we specialise in building and optimising WordPress websites that work flawlessly across all major browsers, including Safari. If your visitors are complaining about glitches or inconsistencies, we can help troubleshoot, fix, and future-proof your website.

Let’s make your WordPress website browser-proof. Contact us today to get started.

Crafting a Winning Website: 15 Essential Website Design Practices for 2024

Peige 360 — Thu, 04 Jan 2024 14:13:31 +0000

Crafting a Winning Website: 15 Essential Website Design Practices for 2024

Home » Website Design

Navigating the ever-changing digital landscape in 2024 requires a website that seamlessly blends aesthetics, functionality, and user experience. Responsive website design takes centre stage, adapting effortlessly to all device screen sizes while maintaining speed and Search Engine Optimisation(SEO) for top Search Engine Results Page (SERP) rankings.

This year emphasises minimalistic layouts, prioritising website content clarity and easy navigation. vibrant colours and bold typography create engaging experiences, while accessibility, following WCAG(Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) guidelines, ensures usability for all users.

Website performance and website speed take primary focus in 2024. Optimisation for faster load times and sustainable web design practices, like image optimisation and cleaner websites.

The 15 best practices in website design for 2024 tackle common pain points:

Learn more about our website design services

1. Embrace Minimalism

As with most things, we are embracing a clutter free world, which we see coming through in many avenues, such as new buildings and even interior design. The same is now applying to website design whereby a clutter-free approach now improves website loading times and user focus.

2. Optimise for Mobile

It is a necessity for over 65% of users who are currently using mobile devices as their preference , to ensure your website is mobile friendly and provides a consistent experience.

3. Interactive Elements

Enhance engagement without overwhelming users. This simply means, using a clear plan for a website user journey that can ensure a user engages with your website, which could ultimately lead to a sale. Learn more about how to create cta’s

4. Consistent Branding

Over the years, we’ve heard about the importance of consistent branding from many branding experts, how does this work with website design? It helps to build trust and recognition through cohesive website design that features through all your social channels in line with your brand.

5. Accessibility

When designing a website, it’s vital to prioritise inclusivity. Incorporating accessibility features into your website design from the start ensures a seamless integration that enhances the overall user experience, making it more cohesive and user-friendly for everyone.

6. Speed Optimisation

A Must for an Exceptional User Experience In the world of web design, prioritising speed is indispensable for creating a positive and exceptional user experience. Fast-loading website pages contribute significantly to user satisfaction, ensuring a seamless and enjoyable interaction with your website.

7. User-Centric Navigation

Navigating a website becomes a breeze when the design is user-centric. Intuitive layouts transform the overall user journey, making the website’s user experience smoother and more enjoyable.

8. High-Quality Content

When it comes to website content, quality reigns supreme. Diverse and relevant formats are the key to capturing audience attention and keeping them engaged.

Learn more about Peige 360’s website content tips

9. Bold Typography

When employing bold typography into your website design, the goal is to make a lasting visual impact without sacrificing readability. Balancing creativity with legibility ensures your website content is both attention-grabbing and easily digestible.

10. Data-Driven Website Design

By incorporating user data into design choices is the essence of data-driven design. By leveraging insights from user behaviour, you can create a website that resonates effectively with your audience, making informed and impactful design decisions.

11. SEO Integration

Integrating SEO(Search Engine Optimisation) into your website is about more than just visibility and rankings. It’s a strategy that enhances the overall user experience while ensuring your content reaches the right audience.

12. Color Psychology

Harness the power of colour to influence emotions and actions by understanding that colour psychology is about more than just influencing emotions and actions.it’s about using colour strategically throughout your website to create specific feelings and prompt desired responses from your audience.

13. Social Proof

Utilising social proof isn’t merely about building website credibility; it’s about establishing trust with your audience. Testimonials and reviews serve as powerful tools in creating a trustworthy and reliable brand image.

14. Continuous Testing

Ongoing website testing isn’t just about evolution, it’s a commitment to refining your website design based on valuable insights from user feedback and analytics. This iterative process ensures your website continually meets user expectations and stays ahead of the curve.

15. User Data Protection

Ensuring user data protection is more than a security measure; it’s a commitment to fostering trust. Prioritising website security safeguards user information, reinforcing a sense of reliability and credibility.

By adhering to these practices, your website can thrive in 2024, offering a user-friendly, engaging, and secure online presence. Let’s ensure your website is ready for a successful year! Get in touch with us for more tips, or assistance with building a winning website for you.

Website content tips for small businesses

Peige 360 — Fri, 11 Aug 2023 11:50:03 +0000

Website content tips for small businesses

Home » Website Design

Learn the secret to writing great website copy

The power of well-crafted website content cannot be underestimated.

Your online presence can’t just be visually appealing — it must be genuinely useful and actively function as an always-on sales channel.

Your website’s content strategy is crucial for standing out from the crowd and converting social media and website visitors into paying customers.

In this article we explore some of the best techniques for writing compelling website copy to improve your website design and User Experiance.

Bookmark this and come back to it whenever you need a reminder.

Learn more about our affordable web design packages

Utilizing Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Techniques

In addition to creating compelling website content, it’s essential to optimise your website for search engines. By conducting keyword research and incorporating relevant keywords throughout your content, you can improve your website’s ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs).

This, in turn, will increase your website’s visibility and attract more potential customers to your website. Make sure you’re using keywords sensibly and in a way that is similar to natural speech so that you don’t get your website penalised and hidden from SERPs. It can happen, and it has happened to websites that don’t follow the rules of SEO.

Incorporating Visual Elements:

A visually appealing website design layout for all those carefully crafted keyword-optimised sentences can create affinity with your website users. Go for high-quality images, infographics, videos and charts that complement your written website content and website User Experiance.

Use visuals to break up lengthy paragraphs, illustrate complex concepts and capture the attention of your audience while ensuring that your website is also easy to navigate. We promise, it all adds up.

Understanding Your Target Audience:

To create website content that resonates with your target audience, it is important to understand their needs, preferences, and pain points. Conduct market research, analyse customer data, and create buyer personas to gain a deep understanding of your ideal customers. Tailor your content to address their specific challenges and provide valuable solutions. By understanding your target audience, you can create website content that speaks directly to them and establishes a connection, ultimately increasing the likelihood of conversion.

Incorporating Calls to Action (CTAs):

Writing persuasive website content is crucial, but it is equally important to guide your readers towards the desired action. Incorporate clear and compelling calls to action throughout your website, encouraging visitors to take the next step, whether it’s making a purchase, subscribing to a newsletter, or filling out a contact form. Make your CTAs stand out by using contrasting colors, bold fonts, and concise messaging. Additionally, ensure that your CTAs are strategically placed where they are easily visible and accessible.

Here are 5 general website button CTAs commonly found on homepages:

Get Started: This is a broad CTA that can be used for various purposes, such as signing up for a newsletter, starting a free trial, or beginning a purchase process.
Learn More: This CTA is often used to direct users to a specific website page with more information about a product, service, or company.
Contact Us: This CTA encourages visitors to reach out for inquiries, sales, or support normally via the websites contact page using a form.
Sign Up: This CTA is typically used to collect email addresses or other user information for marketing purposes.
Shop Now: This CTA is specifically used for e-commerce websites to direct users to the product catalog.

Remember: The best CTA for your websites homepage depends on your specific goals and target audience. Experiment with different CTAs to see what works best for your business.

Building Trust and Credibility:

Building trust and credibility is essential for converting your website’s visitors into customers. Demonstrate your expertise through well-researched and authoritative content, backed up by credible sources. Incorporate testimonials, case studies, and client success stories to showcase the value your products or services provide. Make your contact information easily accessible, provide secure payment options, and prominently display trust signals such as security badges or industry affiliations. By establishing trust and credibility, you can instill confidence in your audience and increase the likelihood of conversion.

In conclusion, writing compelling and informative content is essential for attracting new sales and generating leads. By following these best practices, you can optimise your website, engage your target audience, and drive conversions. Remember to continuously monitor and analyze the performance of your content, making adjustments and improvements as necessary. With a strong content strategy in place, your website can become a powerful tool for boosting sales and growing your business in the digital landscape.

Need help to transform your website? Contact our content experts today for a free consultation.

Have a look at this website that we built completly with SEO optimised content and layout.

How to optimise the most important parts of your website

Peige 360 — Fri, 11 Aug 2023 11:37:38 +0000

How to optimise the most important
parts of your website

Home » Website Design

Want a website that can boost sales and take your business to new heights?

A well-optimised website is the key.

Managing your company website is similar to buying a car: missing a service will cost you in many ways but if you take the time to maintain it, it’ll run smoother for longer.

Search engines and social media platforms are constantly evolving. Each platform change influences the way that websites are assessed for performance and relevance to the various user groups. It means that simply having a website is not enough for modern-day business success.

To truly get the best out of your online platform and tap into new sales opportunities, you need to stay useful and relevant for your target audience. That’s exactly why we wrote this article — to help you get the most out of your existing website.

Design and User Experience

A visually appealing and user-friendly interface will attract visitors and keep them engaged. Remember that first-time visitors to your website will have different needs to returning visitors, so make it easy to navigate and try not to make too many changes in a short space of time.

Everything from colours, fonts, button sizes, padding, clickable surface area and layout can affect the user experience of your website. If you can match the look and feel to the visual experience of your social media profiles people will easily identify that they’re in the right place when they click through.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

If you want more people to find your website in search engine results pages (SERPs), your website needs to meet the criteria that search engines use to assess the quality and relevance of results they deliver to their users.

A well-executed SEO strategy involves a range of activities, like:

Assigning keywords to pages
Making sure all your metadata fields are populated, including H1 tags
Using search engine compliance monitoring tools, like Google Search Console, to find SEO errors and misalignments, then fix them.

The key to succeeding at this is to understand your target audience, and how your ideal customer uses search engines to discover, learn about and purchase the kind of products and/or services you have to offer.

By striving to appear on the first page of search results, you will increase your chances of attracting relevant visitors who are actively searching for products or services like yours.

Content Marketing

Creating high-quality and engaging content is a powerful way to establish your brand’s authority and attract customers. By providing valuable information, answering frequently asked questions or sharing industry insights, you can position yourself as an expert in your field.

This helps you build trust and credibility with your audience.

Website content includes website pages, blog posts, embedded images and videos, infographics, interactive forms and quizzes.

Learn more about creating content tips

Social Media Integration

Your customers use social media in a very specific way.

Sometimes it’s to discover new things, like ideas and potential solutions to challenges they’re facing, in the moment. Other times, social media is a tool for learning new skills or meeting new people. It can even be used to make life more convenient, such as is the case with eCommerce integrations that let Facebook users shop your website catalogue without even leaving Facebook’s interface.

There is also the kind of social media integration that lets website visitors share your blogs through their preferred social media channels — another handy function that can help more people discover your products and services.

It’s the little things that help your website expand your company’s reach and potentially attract new customers. Augmentative social media engagement and promotion of your website allows you to foster a sense of community and build a loyal customer base.

Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO)

Before the CRO work begins…

Before you can optimise your website for conversions, you have to set up your website analytics system and decide what a conversion action actually is, in the context of your business. You might remember another article we wrote about this, or you can also speak to us to check that your conversion tracking is working as it should.

Examples of conversions would be:

Making a purchase
Signing up for a newsletter
Filling out a contact form

What to do once conversion tracking is set up:

Optimising your website for conversions involves analysing visitor behaviour, before making strategic changes to encourage more conversions.

Analyse your click-through rates, bounce rates and, if you have an eCommerce website, the ratio of abandoned to completed carts. Plan and roll out experiments to continually improve the ratio of the right people taking the right actions once they land on your website.

If you’re stuck for optimisation ideas, you can consider small changes, such as adjusting the colour of a call-to-action button or simplifying your online store’s checkout process.

The smallest changes can have the most significant impact to your website.

Learn more about our website design services

Conclusion:

By structuring your website’s content and layout towards your specific audience, leveraging effective SEO strategies and integrating social media platforms, you can maximise your website’s performance and attract new customers.

Remember, your website is not just a static online presence. It’s a powerful tool that, when optimised effectively, can take your business to new heights.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed or just don’t have the time to take care of your website regularly, reach out to us to learn about our website maintenance and SEO packages.

How to create calls-to-action for your website

Peige 360 — Wed, 12 Jul 2023 19:53:10 +0000

How to create calls-to-action
for your website

Home » Website Design

Are you struggling to generate new sales on your website? One powerful tool that can make a significant difference is the call-to-action (CTA).

A well-crafted CTA guides your website visitors towards taking the desired action, ultimately leading to more conversions and increased revenue — if your website is structured appropriately.

In this article, we explore the recipe for compelling CTAs that generate valuable conversions. By incorporating these tips and techniques, you’ll be able to optimise your website for sales.

Let’s dive in!

Learn more about our website design services

Who is your audience?

One important theme related to creating impactful CTAs is understanding the audience and tailoring the message accordingly.

Different target audiences have different needs and motivations, so it’s crucial to do thorough market research and gather insights about your target customers. By understanding their pain points, desires and preferences, you can craft CTAs that resonate with them on a deeper level and compel them to take action.

How to Stand out from the crowd

Another theme related to CTAs is the power of visual website design. Using eye-catching colors, bold fonts and engaging buttons can draw attention to your CTA and make it more visually appealing. A well-designed and aesthetically pleasing CTA can increase your click-through rate and encourage users to explore further.

Location location location

Furthermore, the placement and visibility of your CTAs on your website can greatly affect their performance. It’s essential to strategically place CTAs in areas that are easily noticeable and accessible, such as above the fold or at the end of a persuasive blog post

Experimenting with different placements and measuring the results can help you optimise the positioning of your CTAs and maximize your conversion rates.

Get personal

It really makes all the difference. Generic CTAs won’t resonate with your audience as much as personalised and highly targeted ones. Tailoring the messaging and offer based on factors like demographics, browsing behavior or past purchases can significantly enhance the effectiveness of your CTAs.

Learn more about how to create content

Time is money!

Urgency and scarcity can be powerful. Human beings are naturally inclined to act when they perceive a limited time or availability. Incorporating words like “limited time offer”, “last chance” or “exclusive deal” can create a sense of urgency and compel website visitors to take immediate action.

By strategically leveraging these psychological triggers, you can increase the conversion rate of your CTAs and generate more sales.

The more you work at it, the more profitable your website will become over time, and if you need help, you can always reach out to us.

What is a landing page and why is it important?

Peige 360 — Tue, 17 Jan 2023 18:13:31 +0000

What is a landing page and why is it important?

Home » Website Design

Landing pages are specialised website pages designed to convert website visitors into leads or customers. They serve as a crucial tool in digital marketing by:

Differentiating between casual browsers and potential buyers.
Offering diverse functions and formats to suit various marketing goals.
Capturing visitor information for future marketing and sales efforts.
Nurturing leads through targeted messaging and offers.

While optimising existing homepages is a common practice, dedicated landing pages are more effective at driving conversions. This is because they provide a focused environment tailored to a specific marketing campaign or offer.

What exactly is a landing page?

A landing page is a single website page that should ideally serve a single purpose (get people to subscribe, enquire about a product or service, open a support ticket etc.).

It’s where people ‘land’ once they click an ad or a link of yours, say, from your social media posts.

While people can land on any page of your website, making that a landing page, they can lose their focus and get torn away by your navigation options, forgetting why they even came to the website or developing a conflict around what they want to enquire about.

Because of this, the best landing pages in the world don’t have the option to navigate around the entire website, but rather offer a microsite experience if they really have to include navigation.

How effective are landing pages?

View an example here

The famous answer: it depends.

Here’s what it depends on:

Your page length
The quality of your copy, images and videos on your landing page
How you collect data from people
How and where you send that data
The strength of your A/B testing

You have to keep working at your landing page design, website copy and experience to make sure that it’s going to be the best way for people to meet their needs through your offering.

What should you aim for as a landing page conversion rate?

Yet again, it depends.

It’s different for each industry, for B2B vs B2C, and for each specific type of conversion that you’re looking at.

Conversion Rate Optimisation has become a field of work in its own right because of this exact reason.

When should you build a landing page for your business?

You know the deal: it depends.

Landing pages work for all stages of the customer journey and experience, and our advice is to try and plan in advance so that when you’re ready to go live it doesn’t take you ages to actually go live.

The baseline trigger for building a landing page is when you have a specific goal, like pre-orders or early sign-ups, outside of eCommerce conversions.

The golden rule: one landing page = one job.

Landing page use cases

There are instances where a landing page is the most effective choice:

Information product sales
Course sign-ups
Lead generation
Event RSVPs or registrations
Newsletter subscriptions
Volunteering for community outreach work
Fundraising projects
Promoting eBooks and other resources

A well-crafted landing page with a good call-to-action can also help boost your website rankings in search results, even though your paid ad landing pages should not be visible to search engines.

Your Google Ads landing pages, if well-constructed, help your ad rank improve and your cost-per-click go down.

What makes a good landing page?

As a business owner, you want to make sure you’re getting the most value for your marketing dollars. While the optimum structure varies, and you’d likely need the help of a campaign expert (which our fractional team consists of), here are the basics of a great landing page:

Include a summarised introduction linking product features to benefits
Remove the navigation bar to the rest of the website (or replace it with a microsite navigation option that aligns with the goal of the landing page itself)
Make it clear what to do, where, when and how
Add in videos if it makes sense to do so: client testimonials, media coverage — this can drive conversions for you
Use negative space intelligently
Make it mobile-first and responsive for all screen sizes

Not sure if your landing pages have been designed and built for optimum results? Get in touch with our team to arrange an audit.

The role of a web designer

Perana Viosa — Mon, 08 Aug 2022 17:47:16 +0000

The role of a website designer

Home » Website Design

Websites are so much more complex, today, than they were even just a few years ago.

Technology is evolving so rapidly that it’s hard to balance between learning, testing, implementation and optimisation if you’re a small business, let alone as a solopreneur.

There are website providers that range from literally a few dollars to an amount that could probably feed a small country for quite some time, but price doesn’t always reflect the provider’s quality or reliability.

That’s why we’ve made this article available to you. Read it, bookmark it and refer to it when you need to plan for upgrades and updates to any website in the future.

Website design costs

The design of your website is not only about painting a visually pretty picture. Human beings have behavioural tendencies, which is why User Experience (UX) has grown into a niche of website design on its own.

Here are just a handful of factors we consider in the process of website design:

Brand identity and branding guidelines, including:
- Colours
- Shapes
- Gradients
- Font families
- Contrast
- Language
- Brand personality
Information structure
Information compliance requirements
Content volume
Conversion actions and paths — what do people do after landing on your website, that can be determined as a valuable action for your business? Eg.
- Submitting enquiry forms with lead data
- Completing purchases online
- Subscribing to your mailing list
Human psychology and anomalies
Your products and services
- How people already behave when trying to find such solutions
- How people want to buy what you’re selling
- How people use what they buy from you
Your sales processes and what information needs to flow from your website interactions to your sales team.

Learn how to create effective content for your website

You’re not just buying a website design that looks pretty: you’re buying a website design that is visually appealing and carefully crafted to align with what is proven to make your business money.

How to budget for website design

Websites like Wix have built some of the world’s largest entrepreneurial communities because they’ve commoditised website design, but of course it’s only to a certain extent. Even the greatest no-code platforms are releasing developer functionality and more advanced tools because they know how much more is now expected in terms of website performance.

You can use a free design theme if you go the DIY route or get a website designer to build you a wireframe preview, for anywhere from R1 000 to upward of R40 000. Naturally, if you’re a solopreneur, you likely want to avoid breaking the bank; if you are procuring a website for a larger company with more complex data regulations and information management processes, the design will require a higher level of expertise and possibly more resources and research, making it more expensive.

It’s important to remember that this is only for the design — development costs cover an entirely different scope of work.

Website development costs

We’re not sugar coating anything today. It’s flat out foolish to develop something without design thinking. There are some providers, like us at Peige 360, that deploy design thinking automatically as a part of every website, so what you see already considers many factors like that mentioned in the previous section.

When it comes to development, you need to understand your industry and digital information needs very clearly to assess a quote.

Context is everything when budgeting to build a website

Please don’t compare your friend’s business to yours, and don’t ask a professional to undercut their rates by an amount you would find disrespectful yourself.

Your website is unique to your business. While there are factors like scale, industry and compliance regulations that inform what you’re building and how long it will take, you can’t look elsewhere for a decision that needs to be made in context.

If you’re in financial services, prepare to pay more for quality assurance, compliance components, security technology and ensure you have a budget for maintenance (we’ll cover this in the next section). If you’re in hospitality, get ready to fork out for a pre-production shoot that’s unique to your business otherwise accept that there are limitations that come with using stock photos.

Website maintenance costs

This is among the most important things about building a website and we see so many entrepreneurs and business leaders ignoring it.

Your website, much like your car, is built to a specification at a point in time. Like the mechanical parts in your car, your website relies on a range of technology products that work together to create the website as an experience for your website users.

If you don’t service your car at the appropriate intervals, you can waive your consumer rights, lose the safety of your insurance policies and potentially further damage it. The same thing happens to your website! If you don’t service it by updating its technology, checking that integrations function as they should, and that everything loads correctly in the right place, you practically invite security risks.

This is probably the most crippling thing for an eCommerce website, so please don’t get started with your website project until you’re sure you can budget sufficiently for taking care of it.

Guide to website pricing

Here are some categories to help you determine the budget you need. These are only guidelines and do not account for your unique website technology needs, or for the right level of maintenance post-launch, to keep your website at peak performance.

Scale	Industry/Nature of offering	Cost Estimate (Contextualised design & development)	Average monthly maintenance costs
Solopreneur	Freelancer Influencer Consultant Strategist Coach Author Motivational speaker Tutors	R3 500 - R7 500	R500 - R1 500
Micro-sized and small businesses	Private medical practice Law firm Accounting firm Engineering/Architecture firm eCommerce (DTC) Agency/Consulting firm Boutiques Independent retailers Creches/Daycare centres Trades and vocations Locksmiths Film & media startups	R8 000 - R25 000	R2 000 - R5 000
Medium sized businesses	Commercial agencies Compliance and governance consulting firms Independent education entities and training facilities Real estate agencies Franchises with five or more sites Insurance and medical aid providers Independent retailers Media companies	R30 000 - R50 000	R6 500 - R15 000
Enterprise and multinational corporations	Development entities Construction & infrastructural management Government departments Listed companies	R60 000+	R20 000+

Disclaimer: it’s important to note that the information in this table has been put together based on the experience of our extended team. While verifiable, it is not designed as an absolute quote for your individual project and we strongly recommend speaking to one of our consultants to obtain an accurate cost estimate for your planning purposes.

Five Ways to Choose the Right Website Designer

Peige 360 — Tue, 12 Jul 2022 11:23:53 +0000

Five Ways to Choose the Right Website Designer

Home » Website Design

As custodian of your company’s core digital footprint, your website designer should be more of a partner than an order-taker (especially if you’re not experienced in web design and development yourself). When it comes to a website project, you want to know that the Website Designer you choose is going to take you closer to your ultimate vision. To be sure that you’re working with the right person, there are some key considerations to go through.

This is both from the viewpoint of the website designer and your business. Bear in mind that it’s common for clients and service providers to experience some degree of communication misalignment, meaning that when briefs are provided it’s often not clear enough what the expectation is. It’s important to ask the right questions when you work with service providers, especially creatives like Website Designers.

Communication is key. Without it, the result will cost a lot of time and money and, most likely, end up not being the result that you were looking for in the first place. Here are five points to raise with your next potential website designer:

Learn more about our website design services

Ask to see your website designer’s portfolio

When you are looking for a website designer, it’s important to view their portfolio. The purpose of a portfolio is to showcase the designer’s style and range of expertise. When asking to see the client portfolio of work, know that you can ask about when it was last updated and if there are any other specific projects not included in the showcase.

Some of these examples could be relevant to the type of website design work that you are looking for. The website designer or developer may not always have further examples of their work, but listen carefully to whether they stop at having nothing further to share or if they offer further ideas and insight which could be applied. When you look through their website design portfolio, ask them to guide you through the development and progression of each assignment.

This will allow you into the mind and rationale of the website designer/developer so you can assess if their approach is aligned with the way your business should function.

Click to view our Portfolio.

Ask the Web Designer to Describe Your Brand

Your branding is a vital part of your business. It’s how customers identify you and identify with you. It’s like leaving breadcrumbs and clues to your company’s personality, all over the channels where you appear.

Make sure that the website designer understands your brand and who you are. Ask them whether they recognise the representation that you want to promote. It’s important that you (the client) and the website designer are on the same page in this regard.

A good description of your brand, by the website designer, will include:

Including your values
Picking up on your aspiration and vision
Translating those things into visual elements and a website layout successfully

Ask Them about How They Collaborate

When it comes to the design process, it’s important to make sure that you and your website designer work as a team. As the client, you can ask the website designer how they feel about collaborating (with your team) and how they are able to handle feedback.

Working with someone shouldn’t create more challenges than you had at the start of your working relationship. Ask about:

How their quoting, invoicing and payment systems and timelines work
How many revisions come with their standard fee
What communication channels they use.

Ask About Their Strengths and Preferences

This lets you know which kinds of website design projects and tasks to hand over to the new website designer. Seek to understand the priorities and motivations of who you’ll work with so you can run a business that plays and wins by activating people’s strengths and preferences.

Website Positioning: Get What You Pay For

Every website designer and/or developer offers a different value proposition, and thus a different avenue through which to position your business (or your clients’ businesses if you’re running an agency). You shouldn’t be paying top dollar for a shoddy workflow and poor quality deliverables. Make sure that you ask your provider where they position themselves and their work on the dual spectrum of quality and price.

You do this so that you can hold appropriate levels of expectation. You shouldn’t expect high-end websites from someone who has no experience. You should be more patient with someone who works on a specific project for the very first time.

Be decisive

When asking these questions, you will be able to gain the insight that you need, into the workflow and motivations of the web designer. Provide them with the necessary information they need, too. Don’t be afraid of proposing a pilot website project, a test of sorts, to see how well you both work together before moving any further.

Learn more about the 15 Essential Website Design Practices for 2024.

Peige 360 offers website design, development and digital marketing services for small businesses in need. Enquire now by completing our contact form if you’d like to book a free consultation with one of our friendly champions.

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