There are two very different ways of working with a web designer or developer. In the first, you pay for a project once, receive a turnkey website and then manage it yourself (or with someone else). In the second, you pay a fixed monthly fee and get ongoing support in return: updates, improvements, assistance.
Both models have their advocates and legitimate use cases. Yet many SMEs pick one or the other by default, without looking at what fits their situation, their budget and the way they work.
This article sets out both models, explains who each one is for and details what the INFUSE monthly plan includes. It also explains why this model often suits a Swiss SME that wants an active, well-performing website over time.
Understanding the two working models
The one-off project model
Here the relationship is simple and limited in time: you define a scope of work, the provider delivers it, you pay, and that is the end of it. The website is handed over and you become solely responsible for it.
This is the dominant model in the web industry: most agencies and freelancers offer it. It resembles a building contract. The architect designs the house, the contractor builds it, and once the keys are handed over, you own and manage the property.
What you pay: a fixed amount (or a day rate × estimated number of days) for a defined deliverable.
What you get: a website delivered to the agreed specifications, often with a 30 to 60 day warranty period for bugs.
What you manage afterwards: technical maintenance (updates, backups), hosting, future improvements (every change is a new order, often billed at an hourly rate) and the long-term consistency of the project.
The monthly plan (or web subscription) model
Here you pay a fixed, recurring monthly amount for a set of ongoing services: keeping the site live in production, technical updates, bug fixes, small improvements included, and often priority in the provider's schedule for emergencies.
This model is less widespread but growing, particularly in Switzerland, where SMEs want a predictable budget and a steady relationship with their provider.
What you pay: a fixed monthly amount, whatever happens that month.
What you get: a provider who knows your website in detail, keeps it in good shape and can react quickly when something changes, whether that is an opportunity (a new offer to add) or a problem (a bug to fix).
What you manage afterwards: almost nothing on the technical side. You focus on your business.
Advantages and limits of the one-off project
What the one-off project does well
A clear cost: you know exactly what you are going to pay. There is no long-term commitment: once the project is delivered, the financial relationship ends.
Complete freedom: you are the only decision-maker. You can choose another provider tomorrow for future work, with no penalty or contractual constraint.
No fixed charge: if business slows down or you go through a difficult period, there is no monthly invoice to pay.
Working with several providers: if you work with several parties (a communications agency for the brand, a developer for the website, an SEO consultant), the project model fits easily. Each one receives a specific brief and a deliverable.
What the one-off project does badly
Maintenance is neglected: this is the number one problem. Once the site is delivered, nobody is in charge of security updates. You end up with unpatched vulnerabilities, declining performance and sometimes entire sites compromised.
Every change becomes a process: want to add a service page, change your pricing or publish a client testimonial? You have to contact the provider again, wait for a quote, wait for a slot in their schedule, then wait for the work. It often takes several weeks.
The provider forgets your project: after 6 months, the person who built your website is working on other projects. If you contact them for a change, they have to get back into code they no longer work with. That catch-up time is billed, sometimes without being stated.
The cost of emergencies: if your website goes down on a Friday evening (a manual update gone wrong, an expired SSL certificate, a host migrating its servers), you have no support contract. You are on your own, or you call your provider and pay an emergency rate.
Advantages and limits of the monthly plan
What the monthly plan does well
Day-to-day peace of mind: your website is monitored, maintained and in good shape. You do not need to deal with technical updates, SSL certificates, performance or backups.
Quick response: in a well-designed monthly plan, you have an SLA (Service Level Agreement), written or not. An emergency is handled in hours, not weeks. A provider for whom you are a monthly client naturally gives you priority.
A website that keeps up with your business: new offer, new positioning, a page to add? These small changes are covered by the plan, with no negotiation and no quote. Your website shows your current business, not the one you had 2 years ago.
Consistency over time: a monthly provider knows your brand guidelines, your tone and how your content is organised. Every change fits in cleanly. With an occasional provider who rediscovers your website each time, consistency slowly slips.
A predictable budget: for an SME that tracks its cash flow, a fixed monthly line is far easier to manage than a series of irregular invoices.
What the monthly plan does badly
The tie to your provider: you are linked to them for as long as you pay the plan. If the relationship deteriorates, switching requires a transition (handing over the code, transferring documentation, time for the new provider to get up to speed).
A fixed cost even in quiet months: if your website needs nothing in August (low season, no planned changes), you still pay. Some plans offer credits or hours that roll over, others do not.
Not made for large one-off projects: for a complete redesign or a major new module, the monthly plan is not enough. You need an amendment or a separate project.
Who is each model for?
There is no universal answer. The choice depends on your company profile, your internal resources and how much technical risk you can tolerate.
A one-off project suits you if...
A monthly plan suits you if...
What the Swiss market offers: an overview of prices
To put the plans available in Switzerland into context, here are the formats you come across most often:
Offers from large Geneva agencies
Mid-sized agencies often offer monthly maintenance contracts. They frequently cover only WordPress technical maintenance (updates, backups). Content and design changes are then billed on top, at an hourly rate.
As a result, you pay for monitoring infrastructure you do not control, and every concrete request adds a line to the invoice.
Offers from generalist freelancers
An independent web freelancer often offers a lighter plan, with a few set hours per month. It is economical, but coverage is limited: little or no commitment on emergencies, dependence on one person's availability, and often a generalist technology (WordPress by default).
The INFUSE offer: monthly support for a custom-coded website
INFUSE offers a monthly plan designed for bespoke websites built in Next.js. It is not WordPress maintenance but support for a custom-built website, organised differently.
The INFUSE monthly plan: what it covers
The main difference between WordPress maintenance and an INFUSE plan lies in the risks covered. A custom-built Next.js website does not have the same weak points as a WordPress site: no plugins to update every week, no WordPress database to optimise, no page-builder vulnerabilities to patch.
In practice, the plan covers:
Monitoring and availability: automatic uptime monitoring (alert in under 5 minutes if the site goes down). Monthly checks of SSL certificates, broken links and 4xx/5xx errors in the logs.
Technical updates: Next.js and React release minor updates regularly. Each one is tested in a staging environment before being deployed to production. npm dependencies are checked every month with npm audit to find known vulnerabilities.
Content and design changes: for most clients, this is the main reason for the plan. Each month, you can request changes: editing text, adding a testimonial, updating a service offer, replacing a photo, adding a block to an existing page. These requests are handled within 48 to 72 working hours.
SEO performance monitoring: a monthly report on Core Web Vitals, rankings for target keywords and organic traffic. If a drop is detected, it is fixed within the month at no extra cost.
Support and advice: you have a direct channel (email or messaging) to ask questions, get an opinion or discuss a change. No anonymous tickets: you write directly to the person who coded your website.
Monthly report: at the end of each month, a short summary of what was done, the key figures (traffic, conversions, Lighthouse score) and recommendations for the following month.
3-year comparison: one-off project or monthly plan
Here is a 3-year comparison for a typical SME in French-speaking Switzerland: a 6-page website, no e-commerce, 2-3 change requests per month.
For a comparable overall cost, the monthly plan gives you assured maintenance, regular improvements, available support and performance monitoring. A one-off project without serious maintenance often leads to a website that degrades over time, then a redesign sooner than planned.
The plan mainly saves money through avoided costs: performance drops left untreated, security incidents not prevented, a redesign brought forward for lack of follow-up.
Frequently asked questions about the monthly plan
"What if I need fewer changes in some months?"
It is a fair question. In the INFUSE plan, months without requests are used for background tasks: performance audits, image optimisation, tracking new Next.js releases, detailed SEO analysis. Even in quiet months, the site is still looked after.
"What happens if I want to stop the plan?"
The plan is monthly, with no minimum commitment beyond the first 3 months (the start-up and settling-in period). To stop, you give one month's notice. The code belongs entirely to you: you can hand it to another provider or manage it in-house.
"Does the monthly plan replace a future redesign?"
No. If in 3 or 4 years you want a complete redesign (new positioning, new design from scratch), that is a separate project. The monthly plan maintains and develops the existing website, it does not rebuild it.
"Can I start with a one-off project and switch to the plan later?"
Yes, and it is the most common path. The website is built as a project, delivered, and then a support plan starts after 1 to 3 months, once you have validated the quality of the work and trust is established with the provider.
Which model should you choose for your profile?
Here is a simplified decision tree:
Do you have an in-house web resource able to handle the technical side? → YES: a one-off project may be enough, provided that person is available and competent. → NO: read on.
Is your website a simple presentation that never changes? → YES: one-off project, handling maintenance yourself or accepting the risk. → NO: read on.
Does your business evolve regularly (new offers, new markets, new projects)? → YES: monthly plan, so your website keeps pace with your business.
Do you not want to deal with the technical side of your website? → YES: monthly plan, you save time and worry.
Is your website meant to generate enquiries (not just act as a business card)? → YES: monthly plan with SEO monitoring, because performance needs to be watched continuously.
The INFUSE model: bespoke build and monthly support
The INFUSE monthly plan differs from standard offers because it does not rely on a generalist WordPress infrastructure. It is designed for bespoke websites built in Next.js, with an architecture that limits risk from the start.
In practice:
No third-party plugins to monitor: no Elementor to update, no Gravity Forms to patch, no Wordfence to renew. Security risks are reduced by design.
Stable performance: a well-built Next.js website keeps its Lighthouse scores over time, because it does not accumulate technical debt from conflicting plugins.
One point of contact: the person who handles your plan is the person who designed and coded your website. There is no handover to an account manager or a generalist maintenance technician.
Simple changes: adding a block, editing a section or integrating a new tool is done in the original code, with the same care as during the initial development.
For Swiss SMEs that need a professional, up-to-date website without hiring a developer or handling the technical side themselves, this model offers a good balance between quality, flexibility and controlled cost.
What matters: the value of your website over time
A website is not a fixed asset. It is a working tool that must evolve with your business, keep its performance and stay secure. So the right question is not "which model costs less?" but "which model ensures my website is still doing its job in 12, 24 or 36 months?"
A one-off project is a good answer if you have the resources and discipline to manage things after delivery. For the great majority of Swiss SMEs, which have no in-house CTO, want to focus on their core business and need a website that grows with them, the monthly plan is the more solid option.
The two are not mutually exclusive: clients often start with a project and move to a plan once the benefit of ongoing support is clear.
To discuss your situation (the nature of your business, the state of your current website, the resources available), get in touch. The first meeting is free, and afterwards you will know which model fits your context.
Sources:
- Google Search Central, Core Web Vitals and Page Experience, developers.google.com
- npm, npm audit documentation, docs.npmjs.com
- Next.js, Release Notes and Changelog 2024, nextjs.org/blog