As a business owner you want to get the most value that you can for your money. That’s understandable.
Some people wonder though if they are “paying too much.”
Essentially they ask “My web designer charges me a lot, are they scamming me?
Easy answer: No. They’re not.
Web design can be expensive. It’s a service like any service. The provider’s time is valuable. Personally my time is too valuable for me to sell it to you at any price, So if charging too much was a scam I am the biggest scammer in the world. (And maybe I am…)
But my point is this: Web design, web development, SEO, etc etc. are services. And, like with any service, if the provider did the work, they are worth whatever they charged you.
If one mechanic charges you $25 for an oil change and another charges $45 – as long as they do the oil change and do it right – I don’t call that a scam.
(Personally, since I can change my own oil, I think $25 is a lot of money when I feel like doing it myself. And I think even $45 is a deal when I can’t be bothered…)
Just because you might find it cheaper somewhere else doesn’t mean anything other than one is cheaper. It doesn’t mean one is more honest. It doesn’t mean one is better. Maybe the expensive provider has more overhead, does better work, adds more value, or just feels $45 is how much they should make. And maybe the $25 guys are cutting corners, providing a more basic service, or some other factor. But maybe not.
The same can be the case with web services.
So my point is this:
Did they do the work for you? Then they did the work. And whatever they charged, they charged. (You agreed, and, once the work was done, they deserved the wages.)
Period. End of story.
…
On the other hand, there are some practices of less than helpful providers that are used to lock you in (lock-in tactics).
And even providers with good intentions might set things up in a less than stellar way.
So, it’s important to know what things you should control related to your website.
This is regardless of how little or much any provider charges you!