What a written quote must specify
Quotes are only comparable when they answer the same question. Before you ask anyone for a price, write one short brief and send it to every provider you are considering: what the work has to achieve, what you need delivered, where and when, what you already have, and a budget range if you are willing to share one. Then ask each provider for a written quote that states the eight things below.
| Compare | What to ask | Why it changes the price |
|---|---|---|
| Outcome | What result should this work produce for my business? | A provider quoting for a result plans more than one quoting for a file. |
| Deliverables | Exactly what will I receive, in what formats, and how many? | More items, versions and formats mean more time. |
| Exclusions | What is not included, and what would each extra cost? | The gaps between two quotes often sit here. |
| Revisions | How many rounds of changes are included, and what counts as a round? | Unlimited revisions are rarely unlimited; defined rounds are easier to compare. |
| Timeline | When will you start, when will I review, and when is it finished? | Rush work and long projects both cost more; vague dates hide risk. |
| Ownership | What do I own and control when the project ends? | Accounts, files, footage and licences decide whether you can leave or reuse the work. |
| Ongoing costs | What will I pay each month or year afterwards? | A low build fee with a high care plan can cost more over two years. |
| Acceptance criteria | How will we both know the work is done and acceptable? | Without a definition of done, disputes replace sign-off. |
The free Before You Hire Kit includes a ready-to-send version of that brief. The rest of this guide explains what to do with the answers.
What drives the scope
Outcome
Describe the job in terms of what should be different afterwards: more enquiries from a specific kind of customer, a launch that needs images and a short film, a site that staff can update themselves. A provider who quotes against that outcome will propose scope you may not have thought of, and will leave out work that does not serve it.
Ask for the deliverables as a list you could tick off on delivery day. For a website that means the pages, the content and who writes it, the forms and integrations, and the launch tasks such as domain setup, redirects and analytics. For photography or film it means the number of edited images, the length and number of finished films, the formats and aspect ratios, captions, and whether raw files or stills are included.
- Revisions. Agree how many rounds of changes are included and what a round is. Two rounds of consolidated feedback is a common pattern; a change of direction after work has started is usually new scope.
- Timeline. Agree when the provider starts, when you must supply content or be on site, when you review and when the work is final. A quote that commits to no dates is not cheaper, it is less certain.
- Assumptions. "Client supplies content" or "one location, half day" can be reasonable, but they must match your project.
One-time and recurring costs
| Category | Website projects | Photography and film |
|---|---|---|
| One-time: planning and production | Discovery, design, build, content, launch tasks | Planning, time on location, crew and equipment |
| One-time: finishing | Testing, training, documentation | Editing, colour, sound, versions and formats |
| Recurring | Hosting, care or maintenance plan, licences, domain renewal | Storage of originals, licence renewals for music or stock, usage extensions |
| Conditional | Changes outside the plan, extra pages, extra integrations | Extra shoot time, extra cuts, travel, revisions beyond the included rounds |
Ownership sits underneath both columns. For a website, confirm who owns the domain registration, the hosting account, the content and the files, and whether the site can be moved to another host. For media, confirm the usage rights: where you may use the work, for how long, whether the provider can show it, and whether you can buy the raw files later. Then list every recurring cost and ask how to cancel each one. Two quotes with similar build fees can differ by thousands of dollars over two years once the recurring lines are added.
What is commonly excluded
Across the provider pages and quote guides we reviewed, the items most often left out of a headline price are the same ones that cause disputes later. None of this is specific to any provider on this site; it is the pattern to check for.
- Websites: copywriting, stock imagery, photography, logo work, extra pages beyond the agreed list, third-party tools and their subscriptions, hosting after the first period, and changes requested after approval.
- Photography and film: travel beyond a stated radius, extra hours on location, raw files, additional cuts or aspect ratios, captions, music licensing, and usage beyond the agreed channels or period.
Source note. Based on the quote and brief guidance reviewed for this article and the providers' own published service pages. No provider was quoted or tested. Checked October 16, 2026.
A worked example (hypothetical)
| Line | Provider A | Provider B | Provider C |
|---|---|---|---|
| Headline price | Lowest | Middle | Highest |
| Pages and content | 5 pages; you write all text | 5 pages; provider edits your text | 5 pages; provider writes text with you |
| Photography | Not included | Not included | Half-day session included |
| Domain, hosting, redirects | You set up | Provider sets up; hosting billed separately | Provider sets up; first year included |
| Revisions | Not stated | Two rounds | Two rounds |
| Ownership | Not stated | Domain in your name; files on request | Everything in your name; files supplied at launch |
| Ongoing | None stated | Care plan, monthly, cancel any time | Care plan, monthly, 12-month minimum |
| Timeline | Not stated | 6 weeks from content | 8 weeks from kickoff |
Provider A has the lowest headline price and the most unknowns. If you can write your own text, handle your own domain and do not need photos, it may be the right choice; if not, each gap becomes an extra or a delay. Provider B and Provider C quote more of the job. The useful comparison is not A against C, it is "A plus everything A leaves out" against C, and whether C's 12-month care minimum suits you. Only then does price decide.
Questions for a written quote
Ask every provider the single most useful question first: "What is not included in this quote?" Then add the category-specific questions below.
Website projects
Who will own the domain registration, hosting account and website files? Who writes and edits the text, and who supplies images? Will old page addresses be redirected so existing links keep working? What is in the care plan, what does it cost, and what is the notice period? Can I see sites you built for businesses like mine, and can I contact those clients? What will you show me at handover so I can make basic changes myself?
Photography and film
How many edited images or finished films will I receive, in what formats and aspect ratios? What usage rights are included, for how long, and may you show the work in your portfolio? Are raw files or additional stills available, and at what cost? How many revision rounds are included, and what counts as a round? How are weather, rescheduling and location access handled, including for aerial work? What is the travel basis for my location?
How to compare the offers
Before you accept a quote, write down what "done" means for this project and ask the provider to confirm it. For a website: the agreed pages exist and load on a phone, forms deliver to the right inbox, old addresses redirect, you have the logins, and you have been shown how to make a basic change. For media: the agreed files are delivered in the agreed formats, the usage terms are in writing, and the revision rounds have been used or waived. Tie the final payment to that list rather than to a date.
A lower price is not a warning sign in itself. Some providers are leaner, some assume you will do more of the work, and some are quoting a smaller job. The problem is comparing a smaller job against a larger one as if they were the same. Once every quote covers the same scope, a lower price is simply a lower price, and you can choose on fit, evidence and terms.
Write the answers into one table, one column per provider, using the eight rows above.
Add the extras needed to make each quote cover the same scope.
Weigh relevant evidence, clarity of terms and how you want to work together, then price.
Confirm your choice in writing with the scope, exclusions, dates, payment milestones, ownership terms and acceptance list attached.
Next step
The profiles on this site state each provider's published services, base and coverage and their relationship to this publication, so you can judge them on the same basis. If you are choosing a web designer, How to choose a web designer serving Cochrane covers selection; if you are planning photography or film, How to prepare a brief for a business photography or video project gets you to a comparable quote.
Atom2Adam
Film, photography and aerial services
- Based in
- Calgary, Alberta
- Serves
- Cochrane and the foothills; Calgary and surrounding communities; and further on commission
Local Cochrane Web Design
Website design, redesign and local search services
- Based in
- Cochrane, Alberta
- Serves
- Cochrane; Rocky View County