We started with a corporate website template — when should we hire an agency for a custom design?

The biggest issue with templates is the excessive DOM depth generated by page builder plugins. When writing clean HTML and CSS for a custom build, page size drops from 4 megabytes down to around 800 kilobytes. During the switch, don't forget to export your old URL list via Search Console and map it to the new architecture.

We switched from a template to a custom build last year with a similar volume. We paid the agency 110,000 TL. There was a slight fluctuation in rankings for the first three weeks, but by the end of the second month, quote form submissions jumped by 28 percent. Going from a speed score of 34 to 89 reflected directly on conversions.

Some of what agencies call "custom coding" is actually just built on top of another blank starter theme. If you're going for a custom build from scratch, clarify what the admin panel will be whether full code ownership gets transferred to you, and the annual maintenance fee in writing upfront so you don't get burned later.

Look at these three points to make your decision clear: 1) Does the template prevent you from adding new page layouts? 2) Are you unable to fix mobile technical errors with the current theme? 3) Do large corporate clients find your site looking too basic? If you answer yes to two of these, it's time to upgrade.

templates only take you so far tbh, we pushed it for two years as well but then it just fell apart and imo if u have the budget don't wait at all first impressions make a massive difference in B2B.

What if we just hired an expert strictly for speed optimization on the current template—wouldnt we get almost the same return as going custom? Wouldnt that be way cheaper?

Before jumping straight to an agency pull Google Analytics to see which pages actually drive lead forms. You can cut agency costs in half by having only those pages and the product catalog custom-designed while keeping sections like the blog standard.

Do the agency quotes include corporate photography, product catalog data entry, and multi-language translation integration? They usually leave these out and inflate the bill later on, have you checked the fine print?

I went through the same thing.

I've been down this road, let me tell you... Most time waste accumulates in tasks waiting for approval.

People defend habits not processes. Resistance comes from there.

I went through the same thing two years ago. Hasty decisions become decisions you have to fix six months later.

Proven by experience.

There's also a measurement aspect to this. Code without setup documentation isn't yours, even if you have it.

That's all, sorry if I went on too long.

Let me share my experience. Every "we'll look at it later" in a meeting means unbilled work.

It's rare to find an explanation this clear. Any unwritten clause becomes a point of disagreement later, as both sides remember it differently.

This is my opinion, I'm not claiming it's absolute truth.

We need to take it step by step. When making a decision, first look at what data you have on hand.

Correct me if I'm wrong.

There is something to watch out for. The real issue isn't the number, but what it's based on.

Any unwritten clause becomes a point of disagreement later, as both sides remember it differently. Good luck with that.

We experienced almost the exact same thing last year. Weekly written progress reports are much more useful than asking for dates.

The harder it is to reverse a decision, the slower you should make it. Of course, it varies if your situation is different.

Same here.