I Tore Up Project Pricing

For most of last year I quoted websites the way every other agency does. Five to fifteen thousand dollars upfront. The client signs, pays half, I build, they pay the rest, the project ends. Then they find out hosting is separate, maintenance is hourly, edits cost extra, and the SEO they were told was included is actually a $300/month add-on.

A few months ago I tore that model up.

What I built instead

Three subscription plans starting at $149/month. Custom website, managed hosting, security, monthly edits, on-page SEO, support. One number, one invoice, every month. No surprise bills. No project end date. The site you have in year two is sharper than the one you had at launch because the work compounds.

I built the plans page to lay out everything that’s included. The short version: it’s the same quality of work I was charging $8K upfront for. Spread over time. And every plan now includes the things I used to bolt on as separate line items.

Why most small businesses can’t afford project pricing

A roofing company that does $40K a month in revenue has the cash flow to build a website. They might not have $8K sitting around for a one-time bill. Of the small businesses I’ve talked to in Chattanooga and North Georgia, half want a real website and bounce off the project price. They go install a Wix template instead, and a year later they’re paying for a site that doesn’t bring in any business.

The subscription number works inside an operating budget. The roofer treats it like an insurance line item. It comes out monthly. It’s tax-deductible. It produces leads. It just works.

What I won’t do

A few things I made sure stayed out of the contract because they’re how subscription website services get a bad reputation:

• No locking you into proprietary infrastructure. Your site files are yours.
• No 36-month auto-renewing contracts. After the initial 12 months it rolls to month-to-month with 30 days notice.
• Your domain is in your name from day one. Always.
• If you cancel I export your full site files within 14 days. No hostage situation.

If you’re a small business owner who has been quoted $8,000 to $15,000 for a website and quietly walked away because the number didn’t work, we should talk. The math has changed.