The verdict in three sentences
For an aluminium window and door manufacturer in Toronto selling through 140 installer dealers, a useful redesign costs CAD 28,000 to 55,000 (about EUR 18,500 to 36,500) and takes 14 weeks. The website must stop being a brochure and become a quote request engine, with qualified leads routed automatically to the right installer through the dealer locator. The most underestimated item is syncing the 3,200 products with the ERP: without it, the catalogue will be wrong within six months.
The four building blocks that justify the redesign
A homeowner looking for a sliding patio door in Mississauga does not want to call the factory. They want to see product lines, estimate a configuration, then be connected with a nearby installer. Dealers want to download spec sheets, test reports and marketing assets without going through the territory sales rep.
| Building block | Function | 2026 budget | Expected gain |
|---|---|---|---|
| ERP-synced catalogue (3,200 products) | Daily import of lines, colours, U-factor and ENERGY STAR data | CAD 7,000 to 12,500 | No re-keying, always up-to-date product pages |
| Simplified configurator | Line, size, glazing, colour, no public price | CAD 8,000 to 16,000 | Quote requests twice as complete |
| Installer locator | Map, service radius, certifications | CAD 4,000 to 7,000 | Automatic routing to the right dealer |
| Dealer portal | Technical documents, marketing kits, dealer pricing, lead tracking | CAD 5,500 to 11,000 | 6 to 10 hours a week saved in sales admin |
| Design, content and technical SEO | Mock-ups, product line pages, migration and 301 redirects | CAD 3,500 to 8,500 | Organic traffic preserved at launch |
| Total redesign | CAD 28,000 to 55,000 | Delivered in 14 weeks |
The top of the range covers a configurator with visual rendering and a dealer portal connected to the CRM. The bottom of the range assumes a clean ERP export (CSV or API) and a configurator limited to 4 or 5 steps.
Timeline and risks of a 14-week project
The hard part of an industrial website is less the design than the data: inconsistent product codes, duplicate colours, missing certification documents. Auditing the ERP export in week 1 avoids three weeks of delay at the end.
| Phase | Weeks | Deliverable | Main risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Discovery and ERP audit | 1 to 2 | Data model, mapping of 3,200 products | Incomplete or poorly structured export |
| UX and mock-ups | 3 to 5 | Homeowner journey, dealer journey | Slow sign-off from management |
| Catalogue and configurator build | 6 to 10 | ERP connector, configuration rules | Undocumented technical rules |
| Locator and dealer portal | 9 to 12 | Map, accounts for 140 installers | Dealer file not geocoded |
| Testing, migration, redirects | 13 to 14 | Launch, 301 redirect plan | Ranking loss on product line pages |
| Post-launch follow-up | 15 to 26 | Leads dashboard per installer | Leads not handled by the network |
A regulatory point: published performance values (U-factor, air and water ratings under NAFS) must match certified test results and ENERGY STAR listings. The site pulls them directly from the ERP to avoid inconsistencies.
Mini case study
Marc, marketing director of an aluminium window manufacturer near Toronto, sees that the current site generates 180 quote requests a month, only 60% of which are passed to an installer because information is missing. He invests CAD 42,000. With the configurator and locator, the target is 30% more requests passed on, about 140 instead of 108, so 32 more a month. With a 25% network close rate and a manufacturer margin of CAD 1,650 per job, the monthly gain reaches 32 × 0.25 × 1,650 = CAD 13,200. The redesign pays back in just over 3 months.
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FAQ
Should the configurator show public prices?
Rarely. Prices vary with installation and region, and showing them creates conflicts with your 140 dealers. An indicative range per line is enough, with the installer's quote remaining the final price.
Our ERP has no API, is that a blocker?
No. A scheduled nightly CSV or XML export is enough for 3,200 products. Allow CAD 2,500 to 4,000 to make the export format reliable on the ERP side.
How do we avoid losing our search rankings?
A page-by-page 301 redirect plan prepared in week 2 keeps the traffic dip under 10% for 4 to 6 weeks. Without it, losses of 30 to 50% are common.
Will installers really use the dealer portal?
Yes if access is simple and content is useful. Launch with the most requested documents (spec sheets, test reports, marketing kits) and aim for 70% active accounts after 3 months.
What is the annual cost after launch?
Count CAD 400 to 950 a month for maintenance and hosting, plus CAD 4,500 to 9,000 a year to update the configurator for each new product line.
Let's scope your project. Send us a catalogue export and your dealer list: we price the redesign on a CAD 28,000 to 55,000 basis, delivered in 14 weeks. 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.
