You might be wondering if you’re paying too much for monthly services. You might be questioning what those monthly fees are for. In all honesty, you might be paying for services you’re not getting.
Web design companies have been known to use scare tactics to sell ineffective, overpriced services. They prey on the small business owner who is unfamiliar with website lingo, especially when it comes to SEO.
Case in Point: Paying for the Unknown
A small business owner contacted me about having their current website redesigned in 2024. They felt it was time for a site redesign, plus they desperately need to reduce the monthly website costs their current web designer is charging them.
When I asked them what they’re currently paying, I about fell off my chair!
This small business has to pay their current web designer $250 a month for “premium” hosting. They were told it’s because they have one website and five (5) email addresses on a web server.
That comes out to $3000 a year for their website and email hosting!
This small business also signed an annual SEO contract that costs $250 a month. When I asked them what $250 in SEO services gives them, they were embarrassed. They could not provide me with an answer. This small business does not get a report from their current web designer showing services or results. All they receive is a monthly invoice.
That comes out to $3000 a year for a mysterious service on their website.
When I told them I am able to save them $6000 a year in just monthly fees alone, there was much rejoicing! I have a new client for 2023, and they will save tons of money going forward.
So, this conversation made me wonder:
How many small business owners are paying too much for hosting and SEO?
Monthly Hosting vs. Annual Hosting Fees
The web industry standard is to pay once a year for website and email hosting.
- An annual fee averages $360 a year for website hosting which also provides multiple email accounts.
Are you paying more than that? Are you being charged an additional monthly fee on top of your annual fee?
You might be paying more than you should.
Abuzz Creative Hosting Fees
Abuzz Creative charges $200 a year which includes:
- Website hosting with more than enough traffic allowance and hard drive space.
- Email hosting with plenty of hard drive space for each email.
- A secure certificate so your site is HTTPS.
- Up to 50 email addresses are included.
I do not charge a monthly fee.
Please note: There are exceptions! Virtual private network hosting is available for sites that require more visitor traffic and massive hosting space for dynamic files and email storage. This fee is much higher.
SEO Monthly: What services are you getting?
When do you know your SEO contract is worth it?
- A trusted SEO agency will bounce ideas off you and will ask you questions each month.
- They write blog posts and social content.
- You see results each month.
- They provide a monthly report showing confirming those results.
If they’re doing all these things, then by all means – keep paying for SEO!
If your SEO agency is doing none of these things, what are they doing…?
Stop paying for services that might be hurting your website instead of helping!
The Solution? Content Management!
The content on your website is the single most important factor for showing up in the search results. Today’s SEO is about creating fresh, valuable content like blog posts, articles, press releases, social media posts, and videos.
Google rewards websites that follow the rules and provide customers with great content. This is something you can do yourself (I can show you how!).
New Happy Client
As for the company that we’re helping save thousands in 2023, we will build them a new website that is optimized from the beginning for a one-time fee. We will show them how to manage their content and socials to stay competitive on the search engines. They can hire us for on-demand services at an affordable hourly rate.
We feel great knowing we can help this business save so much money each year.
How many other small business owners can we help?
How much does a website cost per month?
Before you hire a web designer, you need to find out if there will be additional fees to budget for. Some web designers charge a project fee to design your website, then they charge additional monthly fees going forward. You need to find out what those monthly fees cover (support, software updates, rent to access your own website?). Request a monthly report if you are paying a monthly fee so you know what services were provided. If you built your website with an online site builder like Wix or Shopify, recurring costs will range from a $29 dollars per month up to $59 per month. (Abuzz Creative does not charge a monthly fee; we only charge our hourly rate for future updates.)
