Template Options
If the thought of designing your own Web template is enough
to bring on premonitions of a great dark failure, sit back
and relax. You're not doomed yet.
There are thousands and thousands of pre-designed Web
templates lurking on the Internet. Some are free, some will
set you back a few dollars, and others will deal a hammer
blow to your monthly wages.
Free Web templates are a rather charitable donation on the
behalf of designers with seemingly too much time on their
hands. But we're not complaining. If you can find a good
free Web template that you like the look of, consider the
following issues.
How many people might I be sharing the same design with?
Is a PSD included for full editing access?
Will I have to link back to the creator's Web site?
If you're satisfied with the answers to those three
questions, plunge ahead, slap the download button and
you've just saved yourself a potentially frustrating
ordeal.
Premium templates are like free templates with one
significant difference, you get to pay for them.
Don't give up on premiums just yet. Although premiums can
cost a fair sum, they generally appear much sleeker than
their free counterparts. Remember, these aren't freebies
and somebody has designed them with the intention of making
a profit. You can expect a better quality and full rights
to the package.
The only issue comes from "unique" purchases. When you
browse a template purchasing Web site, you'll notice one
premium price and one vastly more expensive unique price.
This means that if you pay the bloated fee, it's yours and
yours only. After purchasing, it'll be removed from the Web
site (and wherever else the vendor is selling it).
For a slightly different take on the unique template idea,
it's also possible to request custom templates - either
from organized businesses or from freelance designers at a
number of outsourcing Web sites.
The benefit of custom templates is that you can draw out
your illustrated design, hand it to a professional and get
top quality work delivered to the specifications that you
choose. Brilliant for the cause, but somewhat expensive as
you can probably imagine.
Freelancer designers know how to charge. Their time does
not come cheap. If you really want to explore the custom
template option, register at a freelancing Web site, post
the project with a maximum budget and take your pick from
the bidders.
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