Six items to decide before requesting a quote
The six items below should be roughly settled before you ask any studio for a quote. Roughly is enough — about 80% precision. The more is decided, the more concrete the quotes you receive, and the easier the comparison.
Goal priority (inquiries / hiring / trust / sales)
Trying to satisfy all four leaves the site mediocre at all four. Choose one as the primary goal — that one decision changes the structure and where money should be spent.
Audience (who should the site speak to)
Two or three short phrases is enough. "B2B procurement officers approving partners under JPY 5M" or "Local home owners 40-60 looking for renovations" — that level.
Existing assets (logo, photos, copy, brochures)
What can be reused, what needs to be created. The quote varies dramatically between "start from zero" and "materials mostly ready".
Budget and timeline
Budget as a range (upper and lower), timeline split between "hard deadline" and "hoped-for date". "Within X yen, within 2 months" is enough.
Post-launch update plan
Who updates what, when. "In-house" or "outsource" changes the CMS requirements, the code structure, and the post-launch contract.
How you will compare quotes
Compare scope, communication cadence, revision rounds, post-launch care, exit terms — not only price. The cheapest is rarely the best in web work.
Warning signs in a studio
Most post-commission trouble is foreshadowed in the quoting stage. From quotes we have reviewed for clients, here are the patterns we recommend dropping.
- Quote scope written as "website production - lump sum" with no page count, design rounds, or revision rounds — additional fees pile up later
- "Cheapest available" or "will undercut others" front and center — production cost is mostly labor; abnormally low quotes mean someone is being squeezed
- Quoting without significant hearing — sites built without business understanding look polished and feel hollow
- Communication primarily by single emails, no meeting notes or progress tracking — deadlines and assumptions slip
- Post-launch support period and bug-fix terms unclear or in a separate contract — guaranteed friction at launch
How to run a multi-quote comparison
Two to three studios is the practical number. More than that and the comparison effort overwhelms the decision. The clients we see do this best follow the same flow.
- Prepare a one- to two-page RFP — the six items above filled in is enough
- Send the same RFP to every studio — otherwise comparison is impossible
- Score on hearing depth, proposal quality, and communication fit — not only price
- Before final decision, run a free consultation with each — written quotes hide the working chemistry
After commissioning
Three things to set up before production starts that most clients skip.
- Single point of contact on your side — multiple voices on the client side make the studio guess
- Decision-maker and point of contact aligned in advance — agree on the OK threshold before the work starts
- Five reference URLs of sites you like — taste is faster transmitted by URL than by description