Straight answers, side by side.
No sales maze. Here's how our 3 tiers actually differ, what owning versus leasing to own costs over time, and when a DIY builder is genuinely the smarter call.
Pick the question you're stuck on.
Simple vs Custom vs Smart
Three tiers, one decision: how much does your website need to do? Timelines, pricing, and the honest fit for each.
Own vs lease
Pay once and keep the code, or start low and pay monthly with hosting and support included. What each costs over 3 years.
Should you just build it yourself on Wix or Squarespace?
A DIY site builder is the right call if you have time to learn it, no competitors bidding on your keywords, and a simple 3-page site. Hire a studio when your website has to bring in work: you get original design, local search and AI-answer optimization, copy written for your trade, and code you can host anywhere. DIY costs $200 to $500 a year plus your evenings; a built site starts at $4,999 owned or $1,500 down plus $100 a month leased.
| Compare | Doing it yourself | Hollister Websites |
|---|---|---|
| Real cost | $200–$500/yr in subscriptions, plus 40–80 hours of your own time | From $4,999 owned, or $1,500 + $100/mo leased — your hours stay in the business |
| Design | A theme thousands of other businesses also bought | Built for your trade — nobody else in San Benito County has it |
| Local search | Basic title tags; local intent is on you to figure out | Local schema, town pages, service pages, and internal linking done for you |
| AI answers | Usually unstructured, so assistants skip or paraphrase you | FAQ and business schema so ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI can cite you |
| Speed | Heavy builder scripts; mobile scores often suffer | Hand-built and image-optimized for fast mobile loads |
| Copywriting | Placeholder text you rewrite yourself at midnight | Written in your voice for the customer you actually want |
| Portability | Locked to the platform — you can't export a working site | Owned builds ship the full source code; host it anywhere |
| When it breaks | A support chat queue and community forums | You email or call us and reach a person in San Benito County |
| Best for | A hobby, a side project, or a placeholder while you decide | A business whose phone needs to ring |
Doing it yourself
- Real cost
- $200–$500/yr in subscriptions, plus 40–80 hours of your own time
- Design
- A theme thousands of other businesses also bought
- Local search
- Basic title tags; local intent is on you to figure out
- AI answers
- Usually unstructured, so assistants skip or paraphrase you
- Speed
- Heavy builder scripts; mobile scores often suffer
- Copywriting
- Placeholder text you rewrite yourself at midnight
- Portability
- Locked to the platform — you can't export a working site
- When it breaks
- A support chat queue and community forums
- Best for
- A hobby, a side project, or a placeholder while you decide
Hollister Websites
- Real cost
- From $4,999 owned, or $1,500 + $100/mo leased — your hours stay in the business
- Design
- Built for your trade — nobody else in San Benito County has it
- Local search
- Local schema, town pages, service pages, and internal linking done for you
- AI answers
- FAQ and business schema so ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI can cite you
- Speed
- Hand-built and image-optimized for fast mobile loads
- Copywriting
- Written in your voice for the customer you actually want
- Portability
- Owned builds ship the full source code; host it anywhere
- When it breaks
- You email or call us and reach a person in San Benito County
- Best for
- A business whose phone needs to ring