The verdict in three sentences
A private clinic in Sandton lives on a demanding patient base: executives from the business district, families from Bryanston and Morningside, and patients travelling from elsewhere in the region for surgery or a check-up. If your project depends on a video shoot, in-person workshops or a supplier with a B-BBEE certificate for your procurement policy, choose a Johannesburg agency. If you need a fast, well-structured English/French bilingual site that also serves French-speaking patients, a fixed-price remote studio such as Kolonell (2 900 to 8 900 USD, 3 to 4 weeks) is often the best value-to-risk ratio.
Which patients does your Sandton website have to convince?
The ecosystem is dense: large private hospitals of the Netcare, Mediclinic and Life Healthcare groups a few kilometres away, consultant rooms in medical centres, day-surgery units, fertility and sports medicine clinics. Three audiences overlap:
- local patients on a medical scheme, who want to know whether you are contracted with their plan and what the shortfall will be;
- referred patients, who look for the specialist's CV, hospital affiliations and the care pathway;
- foreign patients, notably French and Portuguese speakers, who need information on quotes, documents to send, accommodation and follow-up once home.
The site therefore needs solid consultant profiles, procedure pages with no promise of results, an international patients page and a form that routes each request to the right secretary.
How do you compare a Johannesburg agency, a freelancer and a remote studio?
2026 ballpark, built from public price pages of Gauteng agencies, minimum budgets shown on Clutch.co and hourly rates published by freelancers on Upwork and Malt. These are not quotes.
| Decision point | Johannesburg agency | Freelancer | Kolonell |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shared working hours | Full (GMT+2) | Full | Team based in Dakar (GMT): about 6 shared hours |
| Workshops and reviews | In person in Sandton possible | Mostly video | Video only |
| Patient languages | English, sometimes isiZulu or Sesotho | Varies | Native English and French copywriting; other languages quoted |
| Creation budget | 5 000 to 22 000 USD (90 000 to 400 000 ZAR) | 1 100 to 4 400 USD (20 000 to 80 000 ZAR) | 2 900 / 4 900 / 8 900 USD |
| B-BBEE certificate for your procurement | Often available | Rare | Not available |
| Filming theatres and practitioners | Possible, in-house or subcontracted | Rare | Not offered |
| Ownership clause (domain, code, accounts) | To negotiate | To negotiate | To be written into the contract, in the clinic's name |
What does each Kolonell tier contain for a Sandton clinic?
The scope below is indicative; the quote lists the exact pages. Anything outside the included list (booking with payment, practice software integration, ongoing SEO) is quoted on request.
| Item | Starter 2 900 USD | Growth 4 900 USD | Premium 8 900 USD |
|---|---|---|---|
| Structure | Compact site with a few key pages | One page per specialty and per consultant | Rich structure, detailed patient journeys |
| Languages | English or French | English or French | Full English/French bilingual |
| Forms | Simple appointment request | Qualified forms per specialty | Qualified forms, including international patients |
| Copywriting | Native English or French | Native English or French | Native English and French |
| Project manager in your hours | Included | Included | Included |
| Delivery | 3 to 4 weeks | 3 to 4 weeks | 3 to 4 weeks |
| Support after launch | 3 months | 3 months | 3 months |
Payment is by bank transfer: 50 % at kickoff, 50 % at delivery. Full details are on the international website offer.
In which cases is a Johannesburg agency still the better option?
Kolonell does not travel and does no photo or video work. The local agency wins if:
- your group requires a B-BBEE rated supplier under its procurement policy;
- you want a presentation video filmed in your theatres;
- the executive committee wants monthly workshops in person;
- you need deep integration with your practice software or an existing patient portal;
- you plan to hand ongoing campaigns and local SEO to a team that knows the northern Johannesburg market.
What should you ask before signing, whoever the provider?
Need a professional website?
Kolonell builds websites that attract clients, optimized for the Sénégalese market. Free quote in 2 minutes.
- Will the domain and hosting accounts be in the clinic's name?
- Where are appointment requests stored, and for how long?
- Which tracking tools will run on contact pages, and with what consent?
- Who checks procedure copy against HPCSA rules?
- What does maintenance cost after the support period?
- How is accessibility tested?
POPIA treats health information as special personal information: minimal collection, a clear purpose, appropriate security and care with transfers outside South Africa, under the oversight of the Information Regulator. The HPCSA ethical rules govern practitioner advertising: no misleading communication, no canvassing or touting. Accessibility target: WCAG 2.2 AA. This is not legal advice.
Mini case study
Illustrative example. Thabo M. runs a day-surgery clinic in Sandton with six consultants. About 15 % of his enquiries come from French-speaking patients in the region, currently handled through long email threads. A Johannesburg agency quotes 16 000 USD for a bilingual site with video. He chooses Kolonell Premium at 8 900 USD and sets aside 1 500 USD for a local videographer, so 10 400 USD: a 5 600 USD gap. If the international patients page and the qualified form save 20 minutes on each of 30 monthly enquiries, his team gets back 10 hours a month.
FAQ
Does the time difference with Dakar get in the way of project follow-up?
Sandton is on GMT+2 and the team on GMT, a 2-hour gap. A 10 am meeting in Sandton is 8 am in Dakar, and about 6 shared hours remain every working day.
Why an English/French bilingual site in Sandton?
Part of the region's international patients speak French. The Premium tier at 8 900 USD includes native copywriting in both languages; Portuguese would be quoted.
Can Kolonell provide a B-BBEE certificate?
No. If your procurement policy requires one, a certified South African agency is the right choice, even at 1.5 to 2 times the price.
Is online appointment booking included?
Request forms are included in all three tiers. A booking module with payment or an integration with your software is quoted on request.
What happens after the 3 months of support?
Maintenance is quoted according to the volume of updates. Local SEO is also priced through a free quote.
Let's scope your project. Consultant profiles, procedures, an international patients page and qualified forms, as Starter, Growth or Premium in USD, delivered in 3 to 4 weeks. Request your free quote or see the international offer.
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.