The verdict in three sentences
For a Berlin-based industrial group with 600 staff and 3 subsidiaries, a serious corporate redesign costs between €60,000 and €150,000 and takes 12 to 20 weeks from kickoff to launch. The RFP drives 80 % of the quality of the bids you receive: page scope, languages, headless CMS, EU hosting, accessibility under the Barrierefreiheitsstärkungsgesetz (BFSG) and an explicit scoring grid. A vague document attracts quotes that vary by a factor of 4 and cannot be compared.
What the RFP must contain
A head of communications writing the document alone often forgets the technical sections IT will later impose. Here are the essential sections and their budget impact.
| Section | Expected content | Budget impact | Common mistake |
|---|---|---|---|
| Context and goals | Group brand, subsidiaries, audiences (clients, candidates, investors) | None directly | Unmeasurable goals |
| Sitemap | 25 to 60 pages, templates, subsidiary pages | €1,200 to €2,500 per template | Confusing pages with templates |
| Languages | DE, EN, plus FR or PL depending on markets | +15 to 25 % per language | Forgetting translation cost |
| Headless CMS | Sanity, Strapi or Contentful, editor roles per subsidiary | €10,000 to €25,000 | No approval workflow defined |
| Hosting | EU, CDN, 99.9 % uptime, backups | €3,000 to €9,000 per year | Non-EU hosting not disclosed |
| Accessibility | BFSG and WCAG 2.1 AA, audit included | €5,000 to €12,000 | Requiring AA with no audit budget |
| Security | CSP headers, internal SSO, penetration test | €4,000 to €10,000 | No pen test planned |
| Reversibility | Source code, exportable content, documentation | Included if required | Agency lock-in |
Budget and timeline by scope
The three scenarios below cover most industrial group tenders in Berlin and Brandenburg in 2026.
| Scenario | Pages | Languages | Budget | Duration | Typical agency team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lean corporate | 25 to 30 | 2 | €60,000 to €80,000 | 12 weeks | Project lead, designer, 2 developers |
| Group and subsidiaries | 35 to 45 | 3 | €85,000 to €115,000 | 14 to 16 weeks | + CMS integrator, copywriter |
| Group, subsidiaries and careers | 50 to 60 | 3 | €115,000 to €150,000 | 18 to 20 weeks | + accessibility specialist, SEO |
| Investor portal option | 5 to 8 | 2 | +€12,000 to €22,000 | +3 weeks | Senior developer |
| Technical product catalogue option | 100 to 500 sheets | 3 | +€18,000 to €35,000 | +4 weeks | PIM data integrator |
| Annual maintenance | all | all | €10,000 to €22,000 per year | ongoing | Support team |
A typical plan breaks down as: 2 weeks of scoping, 3 to 4 weeks of design, 5 to 8 weeks of development, 2 weeks of testing and audit, 1 week of launch. Acceptance testing by the three subsidiaries is often the bottleneck: book review slots as soon as the contract is signed.
The 40 / 30 / 30 scoring grid
A weighting of 40 % technical, 30 % price, 30 % references prevents choosing the lowest bidder by default. Break the technical score into sub-criteria: understanding of the brief (10 points), architecture and CMS (10), accessibility and security (10), methodology and plan (10). Ask bidders for one key page mock-up or a 2 hour workshop rather than unpaid full designs. Limit the tender to 4 or 5 agencies to keep the exchanges meaningful.
Mini case study
Jonas, head of communications at a precision engineering group in Berlin, received five bids in 2025 ranging from €38,000 to €160,000 for a 4 page brief. In 2026 he rewrites it: 42 pages, 3 languages, headless CMS, BFSG and WCAG AA, 40/30/30 grid. The new bids narrow to €92,000 to €118,000. He picks an agency at €104,000 with a technical score of 36/40. By avoiding the €25,000 change order an incomplete low bid would have triggered, and cutting bid comparison time from 6 working days to 2, he secures both budget and the 16 week schedule.
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FAQ
What budget should an industrial group plan for a corporate website in 2026?
Between €60,000 and €150,000 depending on pages (25 to 60), languages and options. Add €10,000 to €22,000 per year for maintenance and hosting.
How long does the project take?
Plan 12 to 20 weeks, excluding RFP writing. The tender itself adds 4 to 6 weeks between release and award.
Why require a headless CMS?
It lets several subsidiaries edit with separate rights and an approval workflow. It also improves performance, with load times often under 2 seconds.
Does the BFSG apply to our corporate site?
Since June 2025 it applies mainly to B2C digital services, but large groups increasingly require WCAG 2.1 AA across all sites. Budget €5,000 to €12,000 for an independent audit.
How many agencies should we invite?
Four to five agencies are enough. Beyond that, response quality drops and analysis time exceeds 5 days.
Let's scope your project. We help you define scope, languages and CMS for your corporate website, with an indicative budget of €60,000 to €150,000 and a 12 to 20 week timeline. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
