The verdict in three sentences
For a Bellevue firm focused on tech employment, equity compensation, startups and family law, a redesign costs a 2026 ballpark of USD 15,000 to 80,000 with a local agency, versus USD 4,900 (Growth) or 8,900 (Premium) with Kolonell. The most underestimated line item is the migration of attorney profiles and articles on stock options or non-compete clauses, which often carry most of the traffic. A 3 to 4 week schedule holds if content is ready and if review against Washington's attorney advertising rules is planned from day one.
Refresh or redesign: a quick diagnostic
A simple refresh is enough when the URL structure is sound and only visuals and speed are the problem. A redesign is the better call in these cases:
- your practices have changed, for instance an equity compensation or startup financing group added since launch;
- attorney profiles no longer match the headcount in Downtown Bellevue, Redmond or Kirkland;
- the contact form collects sensitive information it does not need, such as health details in a leave or disability matter;
- nobody in-house can publish an article without a developer;
- the site fails basic accessibility tests, by keyboard or screen reader.
What does a redesign cost over 3 years?
The build price is not the whole story. The table adds a market assumption for hosting and maintenance over 36 months. These maintenance amounts are market assumptions, not Kolonell prices.
| Option | Build (2026 ballpark) | Maintenance over 36 months (market assumption) | 3-year total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freelance developer | USD 6,000 to 15,000 | USD 150 to 300 per month, or 5,400 to 10,800 | USD 11,400 to 25,800 |
| Eastside studio | USD 15,000 to 35,000 | USD 300 to 600 per month, or 10,800 to 21,600 | USD 25,800 to 56,600 |
| Seattle full-service agency | USD 35,000 to 80,000 | USD 500 to 1,200 per month, or 18,000 to 43,200 | USD 53,000 to 123,200 |
| Kolonell Starter | USD 2,900 | 3 months included, then on quote | USD 2,900 plus maintenance on quote |
| Kolonell Growth | USD 4,900 | 3 months included, then on quote | USD 4,900 plus maintenance on quote |
| Kolonell Premium | USD 8,900 | 3 months included, then on quote | USD 8,900 plus maintenance on quote |
The Kolonell price includes a project manager reachable in Pacific time, native English or French copywriting, delivery in 3 to 4 weeks and 3 months of support. Each tier is detailed on the international offer page.
The schedule, week by week
| Week | Deliverable | Decision expected from the firm |
|---|---|---|
| Week 0 (prep) | Bios, practice pages, disclaimers written or supplied | Final practice list |
| Week 1 | URL inventory, sitemap, homepage mockup | Sitemap approval |
| Week 2 | Profile, practice and insights templates | First feedback round |
| Week 3 | Content migration, 301 map, forms | Second feedback round |
| Week 4 | QA, accessibility, professional conduct review, launch | Go-ahead from the responsible attorney |
| Months 1 to 3 | Support, 404 and Search Console monitoring | Monthly check-in |
A regional agency usually quotes 10 to 20 weeks for the same scope, partly because it often handles brand strategy too.
Risk matrix
Likelihood and impact are scored 1 to 5; the score is their product.
| Risk | Likelihood | Impact | Score | Mitigation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attorney profiles and practice pages deindexed | 4 | 5 | 20 | Full URL export, page-to-page 301 map, new sitemap in Search Console |
| Equity compensation article archive lost | 3 | 4 | 12 | Migrate with date and author, merge short posts with redirects |
| Overly intrusive form | 3 | 4 | 12 | No lawyer-client relationship notice, minimal fields, party names for the conflict check |
| Copy breaching advertising rules | 3 | 4 | 12 | No best or specialist without basis, no invented results, attorney review |
| Accessibility complaint | 3 | 4 | 12 | WCAG 2.1 or 2.2 AA target, keyboard and screen reader testing |
| Booking tool breaks | 2 | 3 | 6 | Staging test before cutover |
| Downtime during DNS change | 2 | 3 | 6 | Quiet window, lowered TTL the day before, rollback ready |
On the legal side, stay general: Washington's Rules of Professional Conduct govern communications about a lawyer's services, ADA Title III underpins many website suits, and the state's My Health My Data Act only comes into play if your form collects health data. This is not legal advice.
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On quote, questions to ask, and the case for a local agency
On quote: client portal and secure document exchange, booking connected to practice management software, a stock option calculator, SEO work beyond the migration.
Questions to ask: who delivers the 301 map, and in what format? Do you own the domain, hosting and code? How many feedback rounds? How is accessibility tested and documented?
An Eastside agency remains the better choice if your firm wants in-person workshops with several partners, a full rebrand, or a partner already embedded in the local tech scene for events and video content.
Mini case study
Illustrative example: Priya Raman, marketing director at a 14-attorney firm in Downtown Bellevue. The site has 260 URLs: 64 profile and practice pages, 180 articles, 16 miscellaneous pages.
- Seattle agency quote: USD 52,000.
- Kolonell Premium: USD 8,900, plus an independent local photographer (third-party cost) at USD 1,800, for USD 10,700.
- Build difference: 52,000 minus 10,700, or USD 41,300.
- Internal time: 14 bios at 45 minutes of review each, or 10.5 hours.
- 301 map: 260 rows, including 40 older articles merged.
The stock option calculator the partners want is scoped separately, on quote.
FAQ
How long does a Bellevue law firm redesign take? With Kolonell, 3 to 4 weeks after the content prep week. Local agencies generally quote 10 to 20 weeks.
Which tier fits a 14-attorney firm? Growth at USD 4,900 suits a mid-sized site; Premium at USD 8,900 targets richer sites and is the multilingual tier, languages set in the quote. The choice depends mostly on the number of templates and pages to migrate.
Does the My Health My Data Act affect our form? Only if you collect health data, for example in a medical leave matter. Keeping the form to 5 or 6 fields avoids most questions.
How do we avoid a traffic drop after launch? Redirect 100% of old indexed URLs to their equivalent and monitor Search Console for 8 weeks. A temporary dip of a few weeks is still common.
What does maintenance cost after the 3 included months? It is on quote at Kolonell. In the table, maintenance amounts apply only to the other options and remain market assumptions.
Let's scope your project. Send your URL count, practice areas and target date, and we will price the redesign at Growth (USD 4,900) or Premium (USD 8,900). See the international offer or request a free quote: detailed reply within 48 hours.
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.
