How Pricing Works
No Flat Rate, By DesignWe don't publish a single price because no two businesses need the same build. A single-site booking system for a small shop and a three-branch inventory rollout for a distributor aren't the same job, and pricing them the same way would either overcharge one or underquote the other. Here's what moves the number, and how we get from "no idea what this costs" to a fixed quote you can hold us to.
📊 What makes up the cost of a business system
Whichever platform you end up on, the price of a business system is built from the same five components. We show each one in your quote, so you can see what you are paying for.
Modules
Some vendors charge for each module separately, such as finance, inventory, or distribution, so the price grows with every function you switch on.
User licences
Access is often priced per user, either per named person or per person logged in at the same time. Headcount drives the bill.
Annual support and updates
Licensed software usually carries a yearly fee for support and updates, often calculated as a percentage of the licence value. It repeats every year.
Deployment
The system can run on your own servers, or be hosted in the cloud and managed for you. Each has set-up and running costs.
Implementation
The one-off work of configuring the system to your processes and moving your data across.
One-off and recurring costs
One-off costs
Paid once to get the system in place: set-up and configuration, data migration, training, and any custom build or design work.
Recurring costs
Paid on a schedule for as long as you use the system: support and updates, hosting, per-user or subscription fees where the platform charges them, and any retainer. Over several years these can outweigh the one-off cost, so they matter as much as the first number.
How projects are priced
Fixed price
Most projects are priced against a clearly defined scope, so you know the total before work starts.
Discovery, then fixed
Larger or open-ended work may run on time and materials for the discovery phase, then move to a fixed price for delivery.
Monthly retainer
Ongoing design, development, and SEO support is a fixed monthly fee, billed in advance.
What Shapes the Number
Scale
How many locations, staff, and daily transactions the system needs to handle.
Scope
One module or several (CRM alone vs. CRM + inventory + payroll), and how custom the workflow is.
What Exists Already
A clean build from scratch is different from migrating years of records out of spreadsheets or a legacy system.
Timeline
A tighter deadline usually costs more than a flexible one.
How We Get to a Number
1
Discovery Call
Free, 30 minutes. No cost or commitment to find out where you stand.
2
Scoping
We map your workflow and list out exactly what needs building.
3
Fixed Quote
You get a number in writing, tied to a clear scope, before anything is agreed.
4
Payment
50% deposit to start, 50% on completion, so cost is never a surprise mid-project.
What can change the price after it is agreed
Scope changes
Adding modules, branches, or workflows after the scope is agreed changes the quote. The change and its cost are agreed before the work is done.
Extra revisions
Each phase includes two rounds of revisions. Additional rounds are charged at our day rate, agreed in advance.
A tighter deadline
A compressed timeline usually costs more than a flexible one.
Included in every project
30 days of post-launch support at no extra cost.