Custom web design vs. template web design?

[miken]

Hi everyone! we are working for a new business site for our team and we are discussing on choosing a website template existed on sites that selling premium themes or hiring a web designer to do custom website with parts or layouts that they want. Just curious what is better in your mind, custom web design or template web design? why?

 

[WebmasterPhil]

The good thing about working with a web designer who can custom build your layout is that the designer can (if you insist) provide the blueprint on how the layout was design. This can be useful later on when you want to do a redesign and that web designer is not available to help you. You can then take that blueprint to another web designer, and he can begin updating the layout fairly quickly. Time is money and the more time he needs to figure things out, the more it might cost you.

Choosing a pre-existing theme might be more cost effective and faster, but it can be difficult to reverse engineer that theme when it comes time for modification. It's not impossible of course to figure out how a layout was built. It's just that a new designer would have to spend some time figuring it out, which could add more to the cost.

What you can do is find a great pre-existing theme, hire a web designer to build something fairly similar to that, then make sure he gives you the blueprint for future modification. (the blueprint is all the html, css, php, etc. codes and the step-by-step instructions for how the theme was put together).

There's also nothing wrong with going with a premade theme too. Some people use the same theme for many years and then eventually switch to a completely new theme later on.

 

[ulterios]

Custom designed websites are usually better because they are designed and built for your particular need (should be) and what you want the site to do/look like/function/etc. The only thing with custom designed websites is that they will take more money and time (usually) than to use a pre-made template/CMS/etc.

Going the template route should be faster and cheaper but it won't have as much custom features/functions/etc. without having it modified.


I think 3 of the main things you need to ask are:

How much of a role does cost play?

Do you want it to be custom and unique?

How fast do you want it?


Depending on what your answers are to those questions, they might give you an idea as to what is best for your need.

Good Luck!

 

[Localnode]

A middle ground is buying a pre-made design that is unique - i.e only being sold to you.

However, custom made designs are the way to go. It depends on your budget, too.

 

[pelinka]

If you have not enough budget you must choise template.
for example... Let's say you choise a theme.
it is free... But custom web design is expensive... and it is risky. because: When communication breaks with web designer your site is garbage. but a theme can be edited by anyone

 

[Harry P]

A middle ground is buying a pre-made design that is unique - i.e only being sold to you.

However, custom made designs are the way to go. It depends on your budget, too.

I agree with you, it dpends on the budget for custom design but I like buying pre-made templates, they can help me develop news sites faster without waiting developers finish my sites, even they can do a project from weeks to months.

If you have not enough budget you must choise template.
for example... Let's say you choise a theme.
it is free... But custom web design is expensive... and it is risky. because: When communication breaks with web designer your site is garbage. but a theme can be edited by anyone

Of course custom web design is expensive because it is unique that no website else has that.