I’m asking this question because of a SiteJet limitation at the level of customer’s simplified CMS.
I will take WordPress as an example, which is a common CMS used by many agencies.
Usually the agency makes the website for the client, then train him on how to use the back office of WordPress on tasks like:
How to make updates on WordPress and plugins
How to modify existing pages
How to add pages and add content (e.g. blog post, informational page)
So at this level, the agency would charge the client only for the website creation only (of course the client may be charged for hosting if he chooses to host through the agency).
At this level, the client is independent and can manage his content on his own. And in case the client does not want to make updates on his own, he has to pay for some service fee, so that the agency makes the updates on his behalf.
But in the case of a website made with SiteJet and because of the limitations at the level of customer’s simplified CMS, the customer would not be able to add page, and he does not have the same freedom as in the case of WordPress.
And here comes my question: since the customer will be in need of our help as agency, in adding pages and other changes that he may not be able to do it on his own (through the customer CMS), what would be the best way to handle this, as it will be time-consuming for the agency?
Should we charge for a monthly service fee for this kind of service (adding extra pages, etc.)? In this case, what would be the price of a monthly fee for this type of service?
Should we charge for each intervention? In this case, what would be the price of this type of intervention?
I’m looking for an inspiration on how to set this up and clear to our customers, in terms of pricing.
Please provide me with your help on this point and potential suggestions. Thank you in advance for your help!
We build and support all of our client sites in SiteJet. Part of our contract with the client is that they will pay a monthly “support” fee that covers their hosting that we pay to SiteJet as well as updates to their site.
We break this down two ways.
Minor changes are included in their monthly fee. A minor change is a change or edits to content already on their site or a change to an existing page. Adding or removing a team member from an About Us page is common. Sometimes updating content that is time-related once a specific date has passed. That sort of thing.
If they would like a larger change like adding a new page or a full page redesign, that triggers what we call a “Change Order”. We have a discussion to understand the scope of what they want and then we determine a price based on the scope of the work. We send over a document for them to sign approving the work and the proposed cost. Then we send an invoice for the work. Once we receive both of those, we complete the work.
This way, most small changes fall under your monthly support fee but you are still available for larger updates and changes as needed.
I recently had a client who wanted to build and maintain their site themselves, but wanted a ready platform to just build and not worry about technical setup, plugins, etc. They also wanted to be able to get our help on certain things, on a per-need basis.
You can actually provide the customer with access to the full CMS. In the CMS, Website Settings, there is a checkmark called “Full access for customer”. More details can be found here: Overview: Simplified customer CMS - Sitejet Help
This would allow you to charge the client only for the website creation and hosting, and they can modify their website as desired. Just give them full access after the development is done.