Written by Jason Montoya on 30 August 2017. Posted in Questions.

How Do Freelance Web Developers Make Websites?

I’m a full-time freelancer and I build semi-custom (Template-Based) Joomla websites. When I build a website I’ll follow the high-level process below:

In my initial conversations with the customer, we’ll explore their purpose (Why are we building a new website?), vision (What does it accomplish when it’s done?) and guidelines for the website. We’ll also work out the site map for the pages we want to be incorporated, and their flow from one page to the next. Once we’ve nailed down these elements, we’ll begin the construction process.
I’ll search the templates at Yootheme and select three I believe work best for my client. I’ll let them pick the one they prefer. If they don’t care for any I’ve presented, I’ll have them browse the entire library and find one themselves.
I’ll install Joomla, my base components, and the template.
I’ll start by updating the template to match their branding guidelines. I’ll then begin laying out the website content to best accomplish their objectives. It’s fairly intuitive, like working with clay. If I get stuck, I’ll visit other inspiring websites for ideas. Note: The Yootheme templates are built on the UIKit and they’ve got great tools to easily layout the website.
I prefer to work in iterations and bring the client along during the process. For example, I’ll setup the home page and have them review it while I work on the next section. I don’t want any surprises so I prefer to invite input along the way. We’ll do this until we’ve built out the website.
Once we’ve got approval to launch, we’ll run through a pre-launch quality assurance process and then we’ll launch the site. After launching, I’ll run through another short QA to ensure everything is working as expected.
Once the site is properly launched and working, there is a transition into handing it over or maintaining it. I’ll discuss this with the client and present my service offering options.
In regards to my billing, I’ll charge by the hour in batches of 10 hours.Websites usually take 3–6 batches so at $85/hour this is $2,550–$5.100 per website. Sites with much more function and content take longer. I don’t do custom coding and only provide out of the box and/or easily extendable functionality.