# Alterra Studio: full text > Alterra Studio is a full-stack design and development partner for tech, SaaS, AI and Web3 companies. Brand identity, websites, product design, launch films and motion, designed and built by senior people. Projects from $10k. Last updated: 2026-10-03. Short index: https://alterra.studio/llms.txt ## Studio facts - Name: Alterra Studio (https://alterra.studio) - Founded: 2024, by Ryan Hofmann (Founder & CEO) - Team: Ryan Hofmann, Founder & CEO; Koen Van Vliet, Head of Branding; Ramy Raafat, Motion Designer; Max Van den Berg, Project Manager; Samuel Jutras, Motion Designer; Adrian Daniluk, UI/UX Designer - Clients: funded tech, SaaS, AI and Web3 companies - Services: Brand Identity, Website Design & Development, Product & UI/UX Design, Motion, 3D & Launch Video, Design Partnership - Clutch: 5.0 rating across 3 verified reviews (https://clutch.co/profile/alterra-studio-design-development) - Languages: English - Contact: hello@alterra.studio. Book a call: https://alterra.studio/connect ## Services ### Brand Identity URL: https://alterra.studio/services/brand-identity Brand strategy, identity systems and guidelines for funded tech, SaaS and AI companies. Look like the company you've become, not the one you started as. You raised, launched or repositioned. Your brand still looks like the side project it started as. We build identity systems that make buyers, investors and hires take you seriously on first sight. Why the usual fix fails: A logo from a contest or an AI generator gives you a mark with no rules around it. The moment your team needs a deck, a product screen or a launch campaign, everyone improvises, and the brand drifts further every week. What you need: A positioning-led identity system: the story, the visual language and the rules, built to work across your product, website, decks and launch creative from day one. - Positioning first: We pin down who you're for, what you replace and why you win before a single shape gets drawn. The visuals carry that argument. - Built for real surfaces: We test the identity in your product UI, website, pitch deck and social before calling it done, not on mockup business cards. - A system your team can run: Guidelines, templates and organized source files so anyone on your team can ship on-brand work without calling us. - Ready for what's next: Your identity connects straight into the website, product and launch work, with the same team and the same strategy. Deliverables: - Brand strategy & positioning - Logo, wordmark & monogram - Color, type & imagery systems - Iconography & illustration direction - Brand guidelines - Pitch deck & sales templates - Social & campaign templates - Organized source files Process: - Week 1, Discovery & positioning: Workshops on audience, competitors and the story you need to tell. We agree what the brand has to make people believe. - Weeks 2–3, Identity directions: Two to three distinct directions shown in real applications: product, site, deck and social. You pick the one that fits. - Weeks 3–4, System & rollout: We refine the chosen direction into a full system, then build the guidelines and templates your team will use daily. **How long does a brand identity project take?** A focused identity system usually takes three to six weeks. TICKIZ, a ticketing platform, went from kickoff to a complete identity system in four weeks. The timeline depends on how many directions you want explored and how many applications we design. **Can you evolve our existing brand instead of starting over?** Yes. If your brand has recognition worth keeping, we refine it: keep what works, fix what's inconsistent, and build the system around it. **Do we get the source files?** Yes. Once paid, the final identity, guidelines and organized source files are yours. Fonts, stock and other third-party assets stay under their own licenses. **Can you design our website and pitch deck in the same engagement?** That's where we're strongest. The same team carries the identity into your website, deck, product and launch creative, so nothing gets lost in a handoff. ### Website Design & Development URL: https://alterra.studio/services/website-design-development Conversion-focused website design and Framer, Webflow or Next.js development for SaaS, AI and tech companies, designed and built by the same people. Your site is where interest turns into a call or disappears. We design and build websites that make a complex product easy to understand, back it with proof, and make the next step obvious. Why the usual fix fails: Most sites are designed as a gallery of sections, not as an argument. A template looks finished but says nothing specific, and a design-only agency hands Figma to a developer who cuts the details that made it work. What you need: A website built like a sales conversation: it names the visitor's problem, shows why the usual fixes fail, proves you've solved it before and makes the next step easy. Then it's built by the same people who designed it. - Story before pixels: We map your buyer's questions and objections first, then structure every page to answer them in order. - Proof everywhere: Results, logos, reviews and case studies are placed where doubt shows up, not buried on a testimonials page. - Designed and built by the same people: No handoff. The site ships the way it was designed, in Framer, Webflow or Next.js depending on what your team needs. - Ready to rank and be cited: Clean structure, fast pages, structured data and answer-first content, so search engines and AI assistants can understand and recommend you. Deliverables: - Messaging & page architecture - Conversion copy direction - Responsive web design - Framer, Webflow or Next.js build - CMS & blog setup - SEO & schema foundations - Analytics & booking integration - Launch QA & handover Process: - Week 1, Audit & strategy: We review your current site, competitors and funnel data, then map the buyer journey and the pages it needs. - Weeks 2–3, Wireframes & design: Structure first, then visual design. Every page is reviewed against one question: does it move the right visitor forward? - Weeks 4–6, Build & launch: We build, connect the CMS and integrations, test on real devices and launch, with your team trained to edit it. **Do you build in Framer, Webflow or code?** All three. Framer is fastest for marketing teams that want to edit everything themselves, Webflow suits large CMS-heavy sites, and Next.js fits sites that need custom logic or tight integration with your product. We recommend one after the audit, based on who'll maintain it. **How long does a website take?** A focused landing page can launch in two to three weeks. A full marketing site usually takes four to eight weeks, depending on page count, content readiness and integrations. **Will our team be able to update the site?** Yes. We set up the CMS and reusable components so your team can publish pages, posts and case studies without a developer, and we walk them through it at handover. **Do you write the copy?** We shape the messaging and page structure with you, and write or refine the copy as part of the project. The best results come from combining your product knowledge with our sales structure. **Is SEO included?** Technical SEO foundations are: page structure, metadata, structured data, performance, sitemaps and answer-first content patterns. Ongoing content production is scoped separately. ### Product & UI/UX Design URL: https://alterra.studio/services/product-design Product design, UI/UX, prototypes and design systems for SaaS, AI and Web3 products. Senior designers who work alongside your engineers. If users need a demo to understand your product, growth stalls. We design flows, interfaces and design systems that make complex products feel simple and give your engineers clear, buildable specs. Why the usual fix fails: Adding screens one ticket at a time creates a product that works but doesn't make sense. Freelance UI work often stops at pretty mockups that never survive contact with real data and real engineering constraints. What you need: Product design that starts from user flows and business goals, ends in a reusable design system, and is worked out with your engineers so what ships matches what was designed. - Flows before screens: We map the journeys that matter, like onboarding, activation and the core loop, before polishing any pixels. - Built for real data: Empty states, edge cases, errors and long names are designed in, so the product holds up in production. - Design systems that scale: Reusable components and tokens your engineers can implement once and use everywhere. - Inside your workflow: We work in your Slack, Linear and Figma, review builds and answer implementation questions as they come up. Deliverables: - UX audit - User flows & journey maps - Wireframes & prototypes - UI design (web & mobile) - Design system & components - Interaction & motion specs - Developer handoff & QA - Pitch & demo prototypes Process: - Week 1, Product audit: We walk through the product with your team, review analytics and feedback, and agree the flows that will move the numbers. - Weeks 2–4, Flows & interface: Wireframes and prototypes first, then high-fidelity UI tested against real content and edge cases. - Ongoing, System & handoff: Components and specs organized for your engineers, with build reviews so the shipped product matches the design. **Do you work with our existing engineering team?** Yes, that's the usual setup. We join your tools, plan with your product lead and review builds with your engineers so the design survives implementation. **Can you build the product as well?** We design and build marketing sites, front-ends and prototypes. For full application engineering we scope the build case by case, or work alongside your developers. **Can you design a prototype for a fundraise or demo?** Yes. A clickable prototype that tells the product story clearly is often the fastest way to show investors or early customers where the product is going. **Do you do user research?** We run lightweight research like interviews, usability tests and analytics reviews where it changes decisions. Larger research programs are scoped separately. ### Motion, 3D & Launch Video URL: https://alterra.studio/services/motion-3d Product launch videos, motion design and 3D for SaaS, AI and Web3 companies. Launch films that explain the product and get people to act. A launch has seconds to earn attention. We make launch films, product animations and 3D visuals that stop the scroll, explain what's new and push people to act, like the OMNI launch film that helped drive 260k+ wallet connections. Why the usual fix fails: Most launch videos are made by people who learn your product the week before they animate it. You get something pretty that explains nothing, in one aspect ratio, delivered the day after launch. What you need: A launch film built from your positioning: a story that lands in the first three seconds, product UI shown so people get it, and every cut your channels need, delivered before launch day. - Hook first: We script for the first three seconds, because that's where reach is won or lost on every platform. - Product as the hero: Real UI and 3D product shots make the value visible instead of describing it with stock footage. - Every cut you need: Hero film, social cutdowns, loops for the website and stills for the deck, all from one production. - On time for launch: Milestones are set backwards from your launch date, and the storyboard is signed off before animation starts. Deliverables: - Launch & announcement films - Product explainer videos - 3D product visuals & renders - UI animation - Social cutdowns & loops - Lottie & web animation - Sound & voice direction - Motion guidelines Process: - Week 1, Story & script: We find the one message that matters, write the hook and script, and agree where the film will live. - Week 2, Storyboard & look: Every shot planned and signed off before production, so feedback happens when it's cheap to change. - Weeks 3–4, Production & delivery: Animation, 3D, sound and every cut your channels need, delivered ahead of launch. **How long does a launch video take?** Most launch films take three to five weeks from brief to final delivery. The OMNI launch film was produced across March and April 2026 and delivered ahead of its deadline. Complex 3D or long-form pieces take longer, and we plan backwards from your launch date. **Do I need a script?** No. Bring the product and the goal. We write the script with you, and if you already have one, we sharpen the hook and structure. **What formats will we get?** Whatever your channels need: the hero film plus vertical and square cutdowns, website loops, GIFs and stills. We agree the list in the brief. **Can the video match our brand and website?** Yes. Because we also design brands and websites, the film uses the same visual system, so the launch feels like one company everywhere. ### Design Partnership URL: https://alterra.studio/services/design-partnership An embedded senior design and development team for funded startups. Brand, web, product, decks and launch creative on a monthly partnership. Hiring a senior designer takes months, and one hire still covers one skill set. A design partnership gives you a senior team across brand, web, product and motion, working inside your priorities every month. Why the usual fix fails: A full-time hire is slow to find and covers one discipline. A bench of freelancers means you become the project manager, and every one of them learns your brand from scratch. A traditional agency wants a fixed scope before it understands your business. What you need: Senior designers who already know your brand, plans with you each month, and moves between web, product, decks and launches as your priorities change. - Context that carries over: The same people work on your brand every month, so each request starts from what we already know. - Every discipline in one partnership: Brand, web, product, motion and development, all available inside one partnership. - Planned with you: Monthly priorities, weekly check-ins and a shared board, so you always know what's shipping. - Flexes with your roadmap: Scale capacity up for launches and down between them. No hiring, onboarding or notice periods. Deliverables: - Marketing & campaign design - Website pages & updates - Product UI support - Pitch & sales decks - Social & ad creative - Launch videos & motion - Email & lifecycle design - Brand system upkeep Process: - Week 1, Onboarding: We learn your brand, roadmap and team, set up the shared board and agree the first month's priorities. - Every week, Ship & review: We work through priorities in order, share progress in your channels and run a weekly check-in. - Every month, Plan & report: We review what shipped, what moved and what's next, then adjust capacity for the month ahead. **How is a design partnership different from hiring?** You get a senior team across several disciplines in weeks instead of one hire in months, without recruiting, onboarding or long-term commitments. You also keep the context of a team that already knows your brand. **How do we request work?** Through a shared board and your Slack. We agree priorities each month and work through them in order, with weekly check-ins so nothing gets lost. **Can we scale up for a launch?** Yes. Capacity can grow for a launch or fundraise and drop back afterwards. We plan the change with you a month ahead where possible. **Who will we work with?** Senior designers and developers, coordinated by one lead who owns your account. No juniors learning on your project and no layers between you and the people doing the work. ## Case studies ### A complete brand identity for a $5M+ ticketing platform, in four weeks URL: https://alterra.studio/projects/tickiz (client result, in the client's words) Client: TICKIZ, a ticketing platform that has raised $5M+ Stage: Funded startup, $5M+ raised Services: Brand identity Timeline: 4 weeks Tools: Figma, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop TICKIZ is a ticketing platform that has raised $5M+. It needed one identity that event-goers and event organizers would both trust. We built the system in four weeks: the mark, color, type, tone of voice and every application from app screens to merch. The challenge: TICKIZ sells to two audiences. Event-goers want buying a ticket to feel quick and safe. Organizers need a platform they can trust with their events. The identity had to feel easy to the first group and dependable to the second, on app screens, print, merch and social. The approach: We started from the two audiences and the promise they share: effortless, secure access to events. That became one visual system, with a confident electric blue, a lightning-ticket mark and a precise tone of voice, built to work everywhere from app screens and lanyards to merch, social and organizer materials. The result: TICKIZ went from kickoff to a complete identity system in four weeks: the lightning-ticket mark, an electric-blue palette, Poppins type and a confident, precise tone of voice, applied across the app, web, merch, stationery and social. Its CEO called us one of the highest-quality design teams they've worked with. Results: - 4 weeks from kickoff to a complete identity system - 2 audiences served by one system - $5M+ raised by TICKIZ "Super smooth experience working with Alterra, one of the most high quality design teams we've ever worked with." (Adrien, Chief Executive Officer) ### A launch film that drove 260,000+ wallet connections, and the launch graphics around it, for Watt2Trade URL: https://alterra.studio/projects/watt2trade (client result, verified Clutch review) Client: Watt2Trade, a blockchain platform for trading energy and natural resources, with its agency OMNI Stage: Direct client since January 2026, plus a launch film through its agency OMNI Services: Launch film (with OMNI), launch graphics, banners and signage Timeline: January 2026 to ongoing Watt2Trade is a blockchain platform for trading energy and natural resources. We have designed its launch graphics since January 2026, and through its marketing agency OMNI we made the film for its $4M rewards program, which helped drive more than 260,000 wallet connections. The challenge: Rewards programs live or die on the first few seconds. People scroll past anything that looks like another token promotion, so the program's value had to be clear immediately, and the whole campaign hung on a fixed launch date. Around the film, Watt2Trade needed steady graphics for every launch moment, from the rewards program to the $WATTOIN round on Fjord Foundry. The approach: We built the film around one job: make the program's utility obvious and make connecting a wallet feel like the natural next step. Motion graphics carried the explanation, so it worked without sound in the feed, and we delivered before the deadline. For Watt2Trade directly, every launch asset lives in one system: banners, partner lockups and community posts. The result: The launch film helped drive over 260,000 wallet connections, along with 146,000+ impressions and 1,800+ likes on X alone. OMNI's CMO called it instrumental in communicating their client's utility and rated the project 5.0 on Clutch. Watt2Trade's General Manager rated the ongoing work 5.0 too, citing on-time delivery and support when unexpected challenges came up. Results: - 260k+ wallet connections - 146k+ impressions on X - 1.8k+ likes on X - 5.0 on Clutch from both the agency and the client "Alterra's motion design garnered us over 260k+ wallet connections, 146k+ impressions and 1.8k+ likes on X alone, ultimately proving instrumental in communicating our clients' utility." (Van, Chief Marketing Officer) Source: https://clutch.co/profile/alterra-studio-design-development#reviews ### A website that turns a referral into a call, for a geotechnical engineering firm URL: https://alterra.studio/projects/kaveree (client result, verified Clutch review) Client: Kaveree, a geotechnical engineering firm in Virginia Stage: Rebrand of an engineering firm Services: Brand strategy, logo and visual identity, merchandise, statement of qualifications, website, 3D renders Timeline: June 2026 to ongoing Tools: Astro, Blender Kaveree is a geotechnical engineering firm in Virginia that works on public-sector and design-build projects. After refreshing its identity, we rebuilt its website around the four fears its buyers have. In a model buyer benchmark of 16 geotechnical home pages, the new site ranked first and the old one last. The challenge: Kaveree is judged by the company it keeps: the clients, teaming partners and prime contractors it pursues public-sector and design-build work with. The brand had to present the firm professionally and consistently to every one of them, on paper, on site and online. Its first website draft was a Framer template that still carried placeholder content. The approach: We updated the logo, visual identity, typography and colors, then carried the system into the company's merchandise and a professional statement of qualifications (SOQ). For the website we rebuilt the draft in Astro around one position, an independent geotechnical partner for design-build teams, and rendered the ground itself in Blender: procedural soil cutaways, and an x-ray pass from the same camera that shows the borehole, strata and groundwater line under a site. The result: Kaveree now presents itself more professionally and consistently to clients, teaming partners and prime contractors. Its CEO rated the engagement 5.0 in a verified Clutch review. The website is in progress. Results: - 5.0 verified Clutch rating from Kaveree's CEO "Alterra Studio's new ideas and fresh look are impressive." (Sushant Upadhyaya, CEO) Source: https://clutch.co/profile/alterra-studio-design-development#reviews ### Our own history brand, from first commit to a live 50-product shop in three days URL: https://alterra.studio/projects/then-and-theory (own venture, not client work) Client: Then & Theory, an Alterra Editions brand Stage: Venture / in-house Services: Website, shop, 3D history reels Timeline: First commit September 28, 2026, live September 30, 2026 Tools: Astro, three.js, Rive, Blender, Fourthwall, Cloudflare Then & Theory is Alterra Editions' history brand: short films about what happened, and how we know. It's our own venture, not client work. We designed and built its website and shop, and we make its 3D history reels. The challenge: The films live in the feed. The plates from each film needed a home people would want to visit and buy from: a shop that feels like a museum after hours rather than a merch page, and that still runs smoothly on an ordinary laptop. The approach: We built the site in Astro. The shop's garment rail is three.js: each garment photo hangs as a Verlet cloth on a real mesh, inflated from the photo in headless Blender, so the photography stays the texture. Shop by era runs on Rive living plates. Checkout runs through Fourthwall and the email list on Cloudflare D1. The reels come out of a Blender, voiceover and ffmpeg pipeline. The result: thenandtheory.com went live on September 30, 2026, with 50 products across tees, long sleeves, hoodies, art prints, mugs and stickers. An analytics loop reads every reel on the channel, most of which predate our work on it: across all 38, the lower a reel's skip rate, the more views it gets (ρ = −0.82). Results: - 3 days from first commit to a live site - 50 products in the shop at launch - 38 reels analyzed by September 30, 2026 ### A launch video that generated 1.9M+ views across iAgent's socials URL: https://alterra.studio/projects/iagent-launch-video (client result, in the client's words) Client: iAgent + Redacted, $13M+ raised and 700k+ users Stage: Funded, $13M+ raised and 700k+ users Services: Launch video iAgent hired us for a launch video. In their CEO's words, it generated over 1.9M views across their socials. The challenge: iAgent, together with Redacted, had raised $13M+ and had more than 700,000 users. Its launch came down to a single short video on its social channels, so every second had to show the product rather than the brand. The approach: The 22-second video makes four moves, each one a thing you do in the product: play games, upload game footage, train your AGNT, earn $AGNT. Each is a full-screen beat built around the AGNT mark, with no explainer voiceover; the verbs carry it. A 38-second 3D cinematic was made for the same launch. The result: In the words of iAgent's CEO, the launch video generated over 1.9 million views across its socials. Results: - 1.9M+ views across socials from one launch video "We hired Alterra for a launch video that generated us over 1.9M+ views across our socials. Super easy to work with and very experienced." (Jamie, Chief Executive Officer) ### A brand film, landing page and staking dashboard for a tokenized-retail launch URL: https://alterra.studio/projects/hubsai (client result, in the client's words) Client: HubsAI, a tokenized-retail infrastructure startup ($HUBS) Stage: Token launch Services: Landing page, product UI/UX for the staking dashboard, user flows, brand film Tools: Figma, Spline HubsAI mints retail products as on-chain tokens and pays holders who stake them and its $HUBS token. For the $HUBS launch we designed the landing page, the staking and rewards dashboard with every wallet and pool state, and a 45-second brand film. The challenge: A shopper had to see how a watch or a pair of sneakers becomes something they can stake, before they ever connect a wallet. A holder had to trust the staking product before moving any $HUBS, which means seeing balances, lock periods, rewards and failed transactions stated plainly. The approach: The landing page walks through the model in order: tokenized retail, the kiosk as a 3D object labelled with its rewards dashboard, brand promotions and token staking, the dashboard itself, then three steps, mint your NFT, stake or play, earn $HUBS, and the $1M airdrop. The kiosk, coins and bolt are 3D renders we built in Spline, ready as video loops or as interactive embeds that follow the cursor. In the product we mapped the user flows first, then designed every screen they pass through: wallet connect and signature, holdings, staking pools, positions, rewards, leaderboard and transaction history, including an empty wallet, paused and ended pools, failed transactions and network congestion. The 45-second film opens on a padlock, shows the product cards and dashboard in 3D, and ends on an on-chain QR card. All three use the same near-black surfaces, the same glass cards and HubsAI's teal for every action and status. The result: HubsAI had its landing page, a complete staking product design and its launch film in one visual language. A shopper who meets the brand on the landing page sees the same cards and colours when they connect a wallet and stake, and the flow maps cover every path through the product, from the first wallet connection to claiming rewards. Results: - 45 s brand film, from padlock to on-chain - 30+ product screens designed, from connect wallet to claim - 3 launch pieces in one system: site, dApp and film ### A year of design for a game studio: quest hub, token portal, whitepaper and launch campaigns URL: https://alterra.studio/projects/everreach-labs (client result, in the client's words) Client: Everreach Labs, the game studio behind REVENGE and the $EVER token Stage: Funded game studio Services: Product UI/UX, token website, whitepaper, campaign and social design, social media guidelines Tools: Figma Everreach Labs makes REVENGE, a co-op shooter where Twitch viewers can change the match. On an annual design membership we designed its quest and rewards hub, the $EVER claim portal and tokenomics site, the spectator voting overlay, a 46-page whitepaper and the campaigns around each launch. The challenge: One release could touch the Terminal, the token site and the social channels in the same week, and each had to look like the same world: dark, neon green and lime, the Everreach mark. The product pieces handled XP, prizes, tokens and votes, so the rules and rewards had to be readable on a phone as well as a desktop. The approach: We worked as Everreach's design team on an annual membership. For the Everreach Terminal we designed the gashapon prize machine and its VIP tier, the XP quest list with NFT multipliers and about 25 quest pop-ups, each at four widths from 1920 down to 390 pixels. We designed the $EVER claim portal with wallet onboarding for people with and without a wallet, and a responsive tokenomics site with the allocation, the unlock schedule and its forms in every state. For CROWDPLAY we designed the spectator interface laid over REVENGE gameplay: live votes, boosts and the viewer currencies. Around the launches we made the 46-page whitepaper, the Terminal and MARA teasers, partner quest banners and the social media guidelines. The result: Everreach's Terminal seasons, token claim and the campaigns announcing them were all designed by one team in one visual language. Its COO describes the membership in his own words below. Results: - 25 quest pop-ups designed for the Terminal, each at four widths - 46 pages in the Everreach whitepaper - 4 products: quest hub, claim portal, tokenomics site, spectator overlay "Everreach is on Alterra Studio's annual membership, we get immense value from Ryan and his team and we couldn't be happier." (Ethan, Chief Operating Officer) ## Guides ### How to redesign a website without losing SEO URL: https://alterra.studio/insights/website-redesign-without-losing-seo Author: Ryan Hofmann. Published 2026-10-02. To redesign a website without losing SEO, keep every URL that earns traffic or links, 301-redirect every URL that changes straight to its closest new equivalent, carry over titles, content and structured data, and watch Search Console for the weeks after launch. Google's site-move documentation says permanent redirects don't cause a loss in PageRank and recommends keeping them for at least a year. Most traffic drops after a redesign trace back to missing redirects, deleted content or a staging noindex left on at launch. #### Where do redesign traffic drops come from? The new design is rarely the cause. Search engines rank pages, and a redesign changes what's on those pages and where they live. The common failures are mechanical: - **URLs change with no redirect.** Old links and indexed pages now return 404. - **Redirects point to the wrong place.** Everything goes to the homepage, or to URLs that don't exist. Google's guidance names wrong or non-existent redirect targets as a frequent mistake. - **Content gets cut.** A long page that ranked becomes a short, pretty page with half the text. - **The new site is blocked.** A `noindex` tag or a robots.txt block from staging ships to production. - **Metadata is lost.** Titles, descriptions, canonicals and structured data aren't rebuilt. - **Mobile loses content.** Google indexes the mobile version of your pages, and it asks that the mobile site contain the same primary content as desktop. - **The site gets slower.** Heavy hero video and unoptimized images push Largest Contentful Paint past 2.5 seconds, the threshold web.dev treats as good. All of these are preventable with a plan made before design starts. #### Step 1: inventory what you have Before anyone opens Figma, export a list of every URL that matters. Google's site-move guide suggests where to look: 1. **Your sitemaps.** They probably list your most important URLs. 2. **Analytics or server logs.** The URLs that get the most traffic. 3. **Search Console's Links report.** Pages with internal and external links pointing at them. 4. **Your CMS.** A full listing of every URL that hosts content, including images and video files. Combine them into one sheet. For each URL, record monthly clicks, backlinks, the main query it ranks for and its title. This is the list you protect. #### Step 2: build the redirect map Decide what happens to every URL on the list. Each one falls into one of four cases: | Old URL status | Action | Example | |---|---|---| | Keeps its content and path | Keep the URL exactly | `/pricing` stays `/pricing` | | Same content, new path | 301 to the new path | `/blog/post-name` to `/insights/post-name` | | Merged into another page | 301 to the page that now covers it | Three thin feature pages into one | | Retired with no equivalent | Let it return 404 or 410, or 301 to the closest parent | An old event page | Rules that keep the map clean: - **Use server-side permanent redirects.** Google recommends HTTP 301 or 308 where possible, and treats them as a signal that the target should be canonical. - **Redirect to the final destination.** Googlebot can follow up to 10 hops in a chain, but Google advises redirecting straight to the final URL. - **Map one to one.** Send each old page to the page that answers the same question. A blanket redirect to the homepage throws away what each page had earned. - **Fix the old chains too.** If an earlier migration left redirects behind, point them at the new final URLs. On our own site, the redirect file maps old Framer URLs to their new homes. A retired case study path, `/projects/genesy`, now sends visitors straight to `/projects/tickiz`, the case it became. #### Step 3: carry the content and metadata across The redesign can change everything visual. These should move across deliberately: - **Titles and meta descriptions.** Rewrite them if they're weak, but don't drop them. - **Headings and body copy.** If a page ranked for a query, keep the content that answers it. Shortening a page is a ranking decision, so make it on purpose. - **Internal links.** Update every link to point at final URLs, not redirects. - **Canonical tags.** After launch, canonicals must use the new URLs. - **Structured data.** Organization, Article, FAQ and Breadcrumb markup need rebuilding on the new templates. - **Image alt text and file names.** - **Mobile parity.** Primary content on mobile should match desktop, including content behind tabs or accordions. #### Step 4: launch day checks Google's site-move documentation lists these steps once redirects go live. In practice we run them in this order: 1. Turn on the redirects. 2. Remove any `noindex` rules and robots.txt blocks left over from staging. 3. Confirm canonical tags point to the new URLs. 4. Test redirects in bulk with a script, and spot-check key pages with the URL Inspection tool. 5. Submit an updated sitemap with the new URLs. 6. If the domain or subdomain changed, submit a Change of Address in Search Console for the old site. Google shows a notice that the move is in progress for 180 days. Make sure both the old and new properties are verified in Search Console before launch, including www and non-www variants. #### Step 5: monitor after launch Expect some movement. Google says that for medium-sized sites it can take a few weeks or more before the new URLs consistently replace the old ones in results, and longer for large sites. In the first weeks, check: - Search Console for an unusual number of "Not found" errors, which usually means a missing or wrong redirect. - Clicks and impressions for the pages on your inventory sheet. - The sitemap report, to confirm the new URLs are being indexed. - Core Web Vitals, to catch a slower template before it costs you. Then leave the redirects in place. Google recommends keeping them for at least a year, and there's little reason to ever remove them. #### Changing platforms: Framer, Webflow, Astro or Next.js Platform migrations add a few specific risks: - **URL structures differ.** Webflow CMS collections, Framer CMS pages and file-based routing in Astro or Next.js all generate paths differently. Decide the new URL scheme first, then map to it. - **CMS content needs exporting.** Export collections to CSV or JSON and import them, rather than copying by hand. - **Redirect setup moves.** Hosted builders manage redirects in their dashboard. On a static host like Cloudflare Pages, they live in a `_redirects` file in the repository, which is easier to review and test. - **Generated extras disappear.** Sitemaps, RSS feeds and social images that the old platform made automatically need rebuilding. When we rebuilt Kaveree's site, its first draft was a Framer template that still carried placeholder content. We rebuilt it in Astro, and its old `.php` URLs return 301s to the new pages. The [Kaveree case study](/projects/kaveree) covers the brand and site. Our own [Then & Theory](/projects/then-and-theory) site, also on Astro, went from first commit to live in three days. If you're still choosing a platform, read [Framer vs Webflow vs Next.js](/insights/framer-vs-webflow-vs-nextjs). #### How does Alterra Studio handle redesigns? We treat the URL inventory and redirect map as part of the design project rather than a launch-week task. The map is agreed before design starts, content decisions are made per page, and redirects are tested before DNS moves. We record your starting point before we begin, including search traffic, and review what moved after launch. Redesigns usually run as a Brand + Website Build, with a starting price on our [pricing page](/pricing). See our [website design and development service](/services/website-design-development), how we work with [SaaS companies](/industries/saas), or look up [301 redirect](/glossary#301-redirect) and [LCP](/glossary#lcp) in our glossary. #### The short version - Inventory every URL that earns traffic or links before design starts. - Keep URLs where you can, and 301 or 308 the rest one to one to their final destination. - Carry titles, content, canonicals, structured data and mobile content across deliberately. - On launch day, remove staging blocks, update the sitemap and test every redirect. - Expect a few weeks of movement, watch Search Console, and keep redirects for at least a year. Planning a redesign or a platform move? [Book a 30-minute call](/connect) and we'll look at your current site and what's worth protecting, or take the free [Brand & Website Scorecard](/scorecard) first. #### Sources Checked October 2, 2026. - Google Search Central, [Site moves with URL changes](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/site-move-with-url-changes) (last updated August 20, 2026). - Google Search Central, [Redirects and Google Search](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/301-redirects). - Search Console Help, [Change of Address tool](https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/9370220). - Google Search Central, [Mobile site and mobile-first indexing best practices](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/mobile/mobile-sites-mobile-first-indexing) (last updated December 10, 2025). - web.dev, [Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)](https://web.dev/articles/lcp). **Will a redesign hurt my Google rankings?** It can if URLs change without redirects, content is cut or the new site is blocked from indexing. Done carefully, a redesign on the same domain usually causes only a short fluctuation while Google recrawls. Google says medium-sized sites can take a few weeks or more to settle after a move. **Should I use 301 or 302 redirects?** Use permanent redirects, 301 or 308, for pages that have moved for good. Google treats a permanent redirect as a signal that the new URL should be canonical. Temporary redirects don't send that signal. **How long should I keep redirects after a migration?** Google recommends at least a year, and keeping them longer costs almost nothing. Links on other sites keep pointing at your old URLs for years. **Can I move from Framer or Webflow to a coded site without losing traffic?** Yes. The platform change matters less than the URLs, content and metadata. Export every live URL first, keep the ones that earn traffic, redirect the rest one to one and rebuild titles, descriptions and structured data on the new stack. ### Product launch creative checklist for SaaS and AI startups URL: https://alterra.studio/insights/startup-launch-checklist Author: Ryan Hofmann. Published 2026-10-02. A product launch needs a small set of creative assets ready before the day: a launch film with cutdowns for each channel, a landing page that states the value in the first screen, share images and social posts at each platform's size, a press kit, and material for sales, investors and existing users. Start six to eight weeks out, lock the message before anything is designed, and plan every asset backwards from the date. The checklist below lists each asset, the spec that matters and when it should be done. #### Why do launches run out of time? Launch creative usually starts late because the product is still moving. Engineering ships the feature the week before, design starts on the film when the UI is final, and the landing page gets written the night before. The launch goes out with one video in one shape, a page that wasn't tested and share images that crop the headline. Most of that is avoidable. The product can keep changing while the message, structure and asset list are locked early. Recreated UI in motion can be updated late in a way a screen recording can't. #### Timeline: what to finish and when | When | Finish | |---|---| | 8 weeks out | Launch goal, audience and the one message agreed. Asset list and owners set | | 6 weeks out | Script and storyboard approved. Landing page structure and copy drafted | | 4 weeks out | Design frames approved for film and page. Press kit contents gathered | | 3 weeks out | Animation and sound in progress. Landing page built on staging | | 2 weeks out | Film locked. Cutdowns, teasers and share images exported. Page tested on mobile | | 1 week out | Posts written for every account. Emails scheduled. Partners briefed | | Launch day | Publish in order, monitor, reply | | 1–2 weeks after | Review results, publish follow-up content | #### The one message comes first Every asset on the list repeats one message in a different shape. If it isn't agreed, the film says one thing, the page another and the founder's post a third. - [ ] One sentence: what's new, for whom and why it matters. - [ ] Three supporting points, each with proof (a number, a customer quote or a demo moment). - [ ] The call to action: sign up, book a demo, join a waitlist, upgrade. - [ ] Words to avoid, so nobody writes "revolutionary" in the press release. #### Launch film and cutdowns - [ ] Hero film, 16:9, for the website, YouTube and the launch post. - [ ] Vertical cut, 9:16, for Reels, Shorts and TikTok. - [ ] Feed cut, 4:5 or 1:1, for LinkedIn and X. - [ ] Two or three teasers, 6 to 15 seconds, for the week before. - [ ] A short loop or GIF of the product in action for the homepage and posts. - [ ] Captions for every cut, as burned-in text or caption files. - [ ] Stills from the film for posts, press and thumbnails. Plan the cutdowns before animation starts. Framing and text placement need to survive the crop. Exact sizes and length limits per platform are in our [launch video specs reference](/insights/launch-video-specs), and [what makes a launch video work](/insights/what-makes-a-launch-video-work) covers the creative side. #### Landing page Visitors decide fast. Nielsen Norman Group's analysis of page dwell times found that users often leave within 10 to 20 seconds, and that a page has to communicate its value proposition within 10 seconds to earn more time. - [ ] Headline that states the one message in plain words. - [ ] The product visible in the first screen: the film, a loop or a real screenshot. - [ ] One primary call to action, repeated at the end. - [ ] Proof near the claim: a customer quote, a metric, a logo. - [ ] FAQ that answers the objections sales hears most. - [ ] Largest Contentful Paint at 2.5 seconds or less, the threshold web.dev calls good. Heavy hero video is the usual cause of a slow launch page. - [ ] Tested on a phone, since that's where most launch traffic from social arrives. - [ ] Analytics and conversion events firing before the day. - [ ] If URLs change as part of the launch, redirects in place. See [how to redesign without losing SEO](/insights/website-redesign-without-losing-seo). #### Share images and metadata When someone pastes your link, the preview is the first thing people see. Get it right per page: - [ ] Open Graph tags on the launch page. The Open Graph protocol lists `og:title`, `og:type`, `og:image` and `og:url` as required. - [ ] Share image of at least 1200 × 627 pixels at 1.91:1, LinkedIn's stated minimum and recommended ratio. - [ ] Headline text inside the image kept away from the edges, so it survives cropping. - [ ] Title and description written for the preview, not copied from the page. - [ ] Preview checked by pasting the link into each platform before launch day. #### Social posts - [ ] A post for each account: company, founders, team, investors, partners. Different wording for each, same message. - [ ] Native video uploaded on each platform rather than links to YouTube. - [ ] X posts can carry up to four photos, one GIF or one video. Pick the video for the main post. - [ ] Images under 5 MB for X. - [ ] A thread or carousel that walks through the product for people who want more. - [ ] Replies drafted for the obvious questions: pricing, availability, comparisons. #### Press kit - [ ] Logo files in color, black and white, with a short usage note. - [ ] Product screenshots and film stills at high resolution. - [ ] Founder photos and short bios. - [ ] A 50-word and a 150-word company description. - [ ] The announcement itself, with date and contact. - [ ] Everything on one page or one shared folder with a stable link. #### Sales, investors and existing users - [ ] Email to existing users and customers, timed with the public announcement. - [ ] In-app announcement or changelog entry. - [ ] A slide for the sales deck and a short note for the sales team on how to talk about it. - [ ] Investor update with the launch and the first numbers a week later. - [ ] Customer success briefed on likely support questions. #### Launch day - [ ] Publish in a set order: site live, company post, founder posts, partner posts, email. - [ ] Someone watching comments and replies all day. - [ ] Someone watching the site, sign-ups and errors. - [ ] A short list of people to thank afterwards. #### After launch - [ ] Record views, clicks, sign-ups, demo requests and conversion rate per channel. - [ ] Note which cut and which post did best, and why. - [ ] Publish follow-up content: a deeper walkthrough, a customer story, a behind-the-scenes post. - [ ] Write down what you'd change for the next launch while it's fresh. #### How does Alterra Studio help with launches? Launches are what our Launch Sprint is built for: one focused deliverable, planned back from your date, in two to four weeks. Launch-critical work is planned backwards from the date you give us, and the plan is agreed in writing at kickoff. For OMNI Agency's rewards program launch, we delivered the film before the deadline, and it helped drive over 260,000 wallet connections. The [OMNI case study](/projects/omni-launch-film) has the details. Because one team handles [motion and 3D](/services/motion-3d) and [websites](/services/website-design-development), the film, the landing page and the share images come from the same system. The Launch Sprint's starting price is on our [pricing page](/pricing). If you're launching an AI product, see how we work with [AI companies](/industries/ai), and our glossary defines terms like [cutdown](/glossary#cutdown) and [landing page](/glossary#landing-page). #### The short version - Start six to eight weeks out and lock the message before anything is designed. - Plan the film and every cutdown together, with captions for each. - Make the landing page state its value in the first screen and load fast on a phone. - Set Open Graph tags and a 1200 × 627 share image, and check the preview on every platform. - Prepare posts for every account, a press kit, and material for users, sales and investors. Launch coming up? [Book a 30-minute call](/connect) and we'll plan the assets back from your date, or take the free [Brand & Website Scorecard](/scorecard) to check the page launch traffic will land on. #### Sources Checked October 2, 2026. - The Open Graph protocol, [ogp.me](https://ogp.me/), basic metadata. - LinkedIn Help, [Make your website shareable on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/a521928), image requirements. - X Developer Platform, [Media best practices](https://docs.x.com/x-api/media/quickstart/best-practices). - Nielsen Norman Group, [How Long Do Users Stay on Web Pages?](https://www.nngroup.com/articles/how-long-do-users-stay-on-web-pages/) (September 12, 2011). - web.dev, [Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)](https://web.dev/articles/lcp). **How far ahead should we start preparing launch creative?** Six to eight weeks for a launch with a custom film and a new landing page. Four weeks can work if the message is already agreed and the site only needs a new page. The message needs to be locked first, because every asset depends on it. **What's the minimum set of assets for a small launch?** A clear announcement post, one short video or GIF of the product in action, a landing page or updated homepage section, correct share images for that page and an email to existing users. Everything else on the checklist scales up from there. **Do we need a press kit if we aren't pitching press?** A small one, yes. Partners, investors, podcast hosts and community members will ask for your logo, screenshots and a short description. A single page or shared folder saves you answering the same request ten times. **What size should the share image for a launch page be?** LinkedIn asks for at least 1200 by 627 pixels at a 1.91:1 ratio, and that size works well on most other platforms. Set it with the og:image tag, alongside og:title, og:type and og:url, which the Open Graph protocol lists as required. ### Is your brand ready for a Series A? A pre-raise checklist URL: https://alterra.studio/insights/series-a-brand-readiness Author: Ryan Hofmann. Published 2026-10-02. Your brand is ready for a Series A when someone who lands on your website can tell within about ten seconds what you do, who it's for and why you'll win, and when the site, deck and product all look like the same company. Investors usually look at the site before the first meeting and again after it. Nielsen Norman Group's analysis of page dwell times found that users often leave within 10 to 20 seconds and that a page has to communicate its value proposition within 10 seconds to earn more time. Check four things before you raise: clarity, credibility, consistency and conversion. #### Why does the brand matter at Series A? At seed, investors back the team and the idea, and a rough brand is forgiven. By Series A, you're claiming traction, a repeatable motion and a company that will scale. The brand is the first visible evidence of whether that's true. People judge fast. Nielsen Norman Group's article on first impressions cites research suggesting visual impressions of a web page form in as little as 50 milliseconds, and notes that people tend to remember attractive sites as more usable than they were. Stanford's Web Credibility Project, based on research with more than 4,500 people, found that people quickly evaluate a site by visual design alone. None of this means a beautiful site raises a round. It means a weak one costs you time in every meeting, because you start by correcting the impression it left. #### The pre-raise checklist These map to the four areas of our free scorecard. Work through them with someone who hasn't seen your site before, because founders can't unsee their own company. ##### Clarity - [ ] A stranger understands what you do within five seconds of landing on the homepage. - [ ] The homepage speaks to one primary buyer, in the words they use for their problem. - [ ] The category is obvious. An investor can repeat it to a partner in one sentence. - [ ] Why you're different is on the site, not saved for the call. - [ ] The story matches the deck: same problem, same market, same words. ##### Credibility - [ ] The brand looks as established as your funding, traction and team. - [ ] Specific results are visible: numbers, timelines, customer names you're allowed to use. - [ ] Real people are shown. Stanford's guidelines list showing the real organization and the honest people behind a site among the ten ways to build credibility. - [ ] Contact details and a real location are easy to find. - [ ] The site has been updated recently. Stanford's guidelines note that people trust sites that show recent updates more. - [ ] No typos, broken links or placeholder content. The same guidelines say small errors hurt credibility more than most people expect. - [ ] Logos, reviews and case studies match the customers you want more of. ##### Consistency - [ ] Website, deck, product and social look like the same company. - [ ] One logo, one palette, one type system, used the same way everywhere. - [ ] The team has brand guidelines and templates they use every week. - [ ] The data room, one-pagers and investor updates use the same templates. ##### Conversion - [ ] Every key page ends with one clear next step. - [ ] The product is shown in motion or real UI, not only described. - [ ] The site loads fast on a phone. web.dev treats a Largest Contentful Paint of 2.5 seconds or less as good. - [ ] You know which pages bring in qualified demos, so you can show traction from the site itself. #### How common gaps read to an investor Each unchecked box above shows up somewhere in a raise. Here's how the most visible ones read, and the fix for each: | Gap | What investors see | Fix | |---|---|---| | Homepage written for everyone | A company that hasn't picked its buyer | Rewrite the hero for one buyer and one problem | | Seed-era identity | A company smaller than the deck claims | Refresh identity, starting with site and deck | | No proof on the site | Claims with nothing behind them | Add two or three specific results with sources | | Deck and site disagree | Two versions of the story | Rewrite both from one message document | | Product not shown | A product that may not be real yet | Recreated UI in motion, or real screenshots | #### Refresh, rebrand or leave it? Most companies preparing a Series A need a refresh: the same name and core identity, with a sharper message, a cleaner system, a rebuilt homepage and a new deck. A full rebrand makes sense when the company has changed category or audience since seed. A rename mid-process is almost always a bad idea, because it adds legal work, a domain migration and confusion just as people are trying to remember you. Our guides on [when a startup should rebrand](/insights/when-should-a-startup-rebrand) and [how much a rebrand costs](/insights/how-much-does-a-startup-rebrand-cost) go deeper. #### A timeline that works | When | What to do | |---|---| | 8 weeks before first meetings | Run the checklist. Agree the one-sentence story with your co-founders | | 6–7 weeks | Positioning and messaging locked. Identity refresh starts | | 4–5 weeks | Identity approved. Homepage and deck designed from the same system | | 2–3 weeks | Site built and tested on mobile. Deck finalized | | 1 week | Data room templates, one-pager and investor update template ready | | Raise | Keep the site current. Investors will look again after every meeting | Four weeks is possible when positioning is already clear and decisions are quick. TICKIZ, which has raised more than $5 million, went from kickoff to a complete identity system in four weeks. The [TICKIZ case study](/projects/tickiz) shows the system. #### How does Alterra Studio help before a raise? Our page for [companies raising a round](/for/raise) covers how we plan brand, deck and website back from your first investor meeting. Most pre-raise work runs as a Brand + Website Build, or a Launch Sprint when it's only the deck or a refresh. Both have published starting prices on our [pricing page](/pricing). If you're not sure what to fix first, our Brand & Website Diagnostic reviews your site, brand, deck and launch material in five working days and gives you a written 90-day roadmap. The full fee comes off any project you book with us within 30 days. See our [brand identity service](/services/brand-identity), how we work with [SaaS](/industries/saas) and [AI companies](/industries/ai), or the [glossary](/glossary) for the terms used here. #### The short version - An investor should understand what you do, for whom and why you'll win within about ten seconds on your site. - Check clarity, credibility, consistency and conversion, with someone who hasn't seen the site before. - Make the website and deck tell one story, in one visual system. - Show proof and real people, fix every small error and make the site fast on a phone. - Start six to eight weeks before your first meetings. Most companies need a refresh, not a rename. Raising in the next few months? Take the free 12-question [Brand & Website Scorecard](/scorecard) for your top three fixes, or [book a 30-minute call](/connect) and we'll tell you what we'd change before your first meeting. #### Sources Checked October 2, 2026. - Nielsen Norman Group, [How Long Do Users Stay on Web Pages?](https://www.nngroup.com/articles/how-long-do-users-stay-on-web-pages/) (September 12, 2011). - Nielsen Norman Group, [First Impressions Matter: How Designers Can Support Humans' Automatic Cognitive Processing](https://www.nngroup.com/articles/first-impressions-human-automaticity/) (October 1, 2017), citing Lindgaard et al., 2006. - B.J. Fogg, [Stanford Guidelines for Web Credibility](https://credibility.stanford.edu/guidelines/index.html), Stanford Persuasive Technology Lab (May 2002). - web.dev, [Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)](https://web.dev/articles/lcp). **Do investors really care about a startup's brand?** They care about signals of quality and clarity, and the brand is where they see them first. An investor will look at your site before and after the meeting. If it explains the company badly or looks far smaller than you are, you spend meeting time correcting that impression. **Should we rebrand right before raising?** Only if the current brand actively undercuts the story. A focused refresh of the website and deck six to eight weeks out is usually the better move. A full rebrand or a rename in the middle of a process adds risk and distraction. **What matters more before a raise, the deck or the website?** They need to tell the same story. The deck gets you the meeting and carries it. The website is what investors and their associates check afterwards, often on a phone, so it has to confirm what the deck said. **How long does a pre-raise brand refresh take?** Four to eight weeks for a focused identity, deck and website update when positioning is clear and decisions are quick. TICKIZ went from kickoff to a complete identity system in four weeks. ### Launch video specs for every platform (2026 reference) URL: https://alterra.studio/insights/launch-video-specs Author: Ryan Hofmann. Published 2026-10-02. Export a launch video in three shapes and you cover almost every placement: 16:9 at 1920 × 1080 for YouTube, your website and LinkedIn, 9:16 at 1080 × 1920 for Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts and TikTok, and 4:5 at 1080 × 1350 for the LinkedIn feed, where it's LinkedIn's recommended ratio for video ads. Then check length limits per platform: YouTube Shorts run up to 3 minutes, TikTok's non-Spark in-feed ads up to 10 minutes, and LinkedIn recommends 15 to 30 seconds for video ads. Keep text and logos inside each platform's safe zones and caption every cut. All figures below come from each platform's own documentation, checked on October 2, 2026. Platforms change these often, so check the linked page before a big export. #### Specs by platform | Platform | Aspect ratios | Resolution | Length | File size | Notes | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | YouTube | 16:9 standard on desktop | 1920 × 1080 for 1080p | Not covered here | Not covered here | Upload at the frame rate you recorded. No baked-in black bars | | YouTube Shorts | Vertical or square | Up to 1080p upload | Up to 3 minutes | Not stated | Views count every start or replay since March 31, 2025 | | Instagram Reels | 1.91:1 to 9:16 | At least 720 px | Not covered here | Not stated | At least 30 fps. Cover image 420 × 654 (1:1.55) | | TikTok in-feed ads (non-Spark) | 9:16 recommended, 16:9, 1:1 | 9:16 at least 540 × 960 | Up to 10 minutes | Up to 500 MB | Bitrate at least 516 kbps. MP4, MOV, MPEG, 3GP, AVI | | LinkedIn (organic) | 1:2.4 to 2.4:1 | 256 × 144 to 4096 × 2304 | 3 seconds (2 on mobile) to 15 minutes | 75 KB to 5 GB | 10 to 60 fps. 192 kbps to 30 Mbps | | LinkedIn video ads | 16:9, 1:1, 4:5 (recommended), 9:16 | Up to 1920 × 1080, 1920 × 1920, 1080 × 1350, 1080 × 1920 | 3 seconds to 30 minutes, 15–30 seconds recommended | 75 KB to 500 MB | Captions as SRT. Under 30 seconds loops until 30 seconds of playback | | X | Not specified in the media docs | Not specified for video | 0.5 seconds to 20 minutes (125 minutes for Premium) | Up to 8 GB (16 GB for Premium) | One video per post, or up to four photos or one GIF | "Not covered here" means we didn't find the figure in the page we cite. Don't fill the gap with guesses from old blog posts. #### The three masters to export | Master | Size | Use it for | |---|---|---| | 16:9 landscape | 1920 × 1080 | Website hero, YouTube, LinkedIn, X, investor updates, press | | 9:16 vertical | 1080 × 1920 | Reels, Shorts, TikTok, Stories | | 4:5 vertical | 1080 × 1350 | LinkedIn feed and ads, other feed placements | Add a 1:1 version at 1080 × 1080 only if a specific placement needs it. LinkedIn accepts square up to 1920 × 1920, and TikTok in-feed ads accept square at 640 × 640 or larger. #### Encoding settings that travel well YouTube's recommended upload settings are a good baseline for every platform, since most accept the same files: - **Container and codec:** MP4 with H.264, High Profile, progressive scan. - **Frame rate:** the same rate the video was made at. YouTube lists 24, 25, 30, 48, 50 and 60 fps as common. - **Chroma subsampling:** 4:2:0. - **Bitrate for 1080p SDR:** about 8 Mbps at 24 to 30 fps, 12 Mbps at 48 to 60 fps. - **Audio:** AAC, stereo, 48 kHz. - **Fast start:** moov atom at the front of the file. Check the bitrate against each platform's limits. LinkedIn's organic upload accepts up to 30 Mbps, and TikTok's in-feed ads need at least 516 kbps. #### Safe zones and framing Every platform lays its interface over the video: captions, buttons, profile names, the progress bar. LinkedIn's help page says to keep the top, bottom and sides free of key elements, text and logos. TikTok publishes downloadable safe-zone templates for in-feed ads, and the zone changes with the caption length and any extra formats. In practice: - Keep headlines and logos in the middle 70 to 80 percent of the frame on vertical cuts. - Design the 16:9 master with the vertical crop in mind. If the product UI sits on the left third, the 9:16 cut will lose it. - Avoid adding padding or black bars yourself. YouTube says they interfere with how the player resizes the video. - Use the platform's own templates for a final check before export. #### Captions and sound-off viewing Plan for people watching without sound. Platforms handle captions differently: - **LinkedIn ads:** caption files in SRT format, text only, no custom styling. - **TikTok ads:** captions display in white in a uniform font you can't customize, and don't support clickable links, @ symbols or hashtags. - **Everywhere else:** burned-in captions give you full control over type and placement, at the cost of editing later. Put the core message in on-screen text that's part of the design. Captions should support the story, and the story should still make sense without them. #### Length by placement The limits above are maximums. What works is shorter: - **Website hero film:** 45 seconds to 2 minutes, for people who chose to watch. - **Feed posts:** 30 to 60 seconds for the main cut. LinkedIn recommends 15 to 30 seconds for ads, and loops anything under 30 seconds until it reaches 30 seconds of playback. - **Teasers:** 6 to 15 seconds, posted before launch. - **Shorts, Reels and TikTok:** 15 to 45 seconds for a launch cut, even though Shorts allow up to 3 minutes. #### How we deliver cutdowns Every launch film we make ships with the cutdowns planned from the storyboard, so framing and text work in each shape. The OMNI Agency film was built so the explanation worked without sound in the feed, and it helped drive over 260,000 wallet connections. The [OMNI case study](/projects/omni-launch-film) and the [iAgent launch video](/projects/iagent-launch-video), which its CEO says generated over 1.9M views across their socials, show the results. See our [motion and 3D service](/services/motion-3d), how we work with [Web3 teams](/industries/web3), or look up [cutdown](/glossary#cutdown) and [launch film](/glossary#launch-film) in our glossary. For budgets, read [how much a launch video costs](/insights/how-much-does-a-launch-video-cost), and for the full asset list, the [product launch checklist](/insights/startup-launch-checklist). #### The short version - Export three masters: 16:9 at 1920 × 1080, 9:16 at 1080 × 1920 and 4:5 at 1080 × 1350. - Encode H.264 MP4 at the original frame rate, 4:2:0, about 8 Mbps for 1080p, with 48 kHz stereo audio. - Respect length limits: Shorts up to 3 minutes, TikTok in-feed ads up to 10, LinkedIn ads ideally 15 to 30 seconds. - Keep text and logos inside safe zones and design the master for the vertical crop. - Caption every cut, and put the core message in on-screen text. Need the film and every cut done for a launch date? [Book a 30-minute call](/connect) and we'll plan it backwards from the day. #### Sources Checked October 2, 2026. Each row in the tables comes from one of these pages. - YouTube Help, [Recommended upload encoding settings](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/1722171) and [Video resolution and aspect ratios](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/6375112). - YouTube Help, [Get started creating YouTube Shorts](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/10059070). - Instagram Help Center, [Reel size and aspect ratios](https://help.instagram.com/1038071743007909). - TikTok Ads Manager, [Auction In-Feed Ads](https://ads.tiktok.com/help/article/tiktok-auction-in-feed-ads) (last updated June 2026). - LinkedIn Help, [Video sharing troubleshooting](https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/a548372), and LinkedIn Marketing Solutions Help, [Video ads advertising specifications](https://www.linkedin.com/help/lms/answer/a424737). - X Developer Platform, [Media best practices](https://docs.x.com/x-api/media/quickstart/best-practices). **What is the best aspect ratio for a launch video?** There isn't one. Export a 16:9 master for YouTube and your website, a 9:16 cut for Reels, Shorts and TikTok, and a 4:5 cut for LinkedIn and other feeds. Those three cover almost every placement. **What resolution should we export at?** 1920 by 1080 for 16:9 and 1080 by 1920 for 9:16 is the safe default. YouTube Shorts accept a maximum upload resolution of 1080p, and LinkedIn's video ad specs top out at 1920 pixels on the long side. **How long can a launch video be on LinkedIn?** Organic LinkedIn video can run up to 15 minutes. Video ads can run from 3 seconds to 30 minutes, but LinkedIn recommends 15 to 30 seconds so the ad qualifies for every placement. **Do we need captions on every platform?** Yes, for practical reasons. Much of the feed watches without sound. LinkedIn ads take captions as SRT files, and TikTok shows ad captions in a fixed white font, so key messages should also be designed into the video itself. ### How to choose a design agency: a checklist for startups URL: https://alterra.studio/insights/how-to-choose-a-design-agency Author: Ryan Hofmann. Published 2026-10-02. Choose a design agency by checking four things in order: work for companies at your stage and in your category, who will do the work, how the agency scopes and prices, and what the contract says about ownership and exits. Verified reviews and one reference call settle most of what's left. The checklist below turns that into questions to ask on a first call, with the answers that should reassure you and the ones that should worry you. #### Before you shortlist: know what you're buying Most bad agency choices start before the first call. The founder hasn't decided whether they need a one-off project, ongoing support or a hire, so every agency pitches something different and nothing is comparable. Decide three things first: - **The outcome.** A brand that holds up in a Series A process, a site that converts enterprise buyers, a launch that gets attention. Write it down. - **The shape of the work.** One project with an end date, or continuous work across brand, web, product and launches. If you're unsure, read [design agency vs freelancer vs in-house](/insights/design-agency-vs-freelancer-vs-in-house) and [design subscription vs design partner](/compare/design-subscription-vs-design-partner). - **The brief.** One to three pages that every candidate gets. Our [design brief template](/insights/how-to-brief-a-design-agency) is a starting point. #### The checklist: questions to ask a design agency Use this on the first call. You don't need every row. The first six are the ones that separate agencies fastest. | Area | Ask | Good answer | Red flag | |---|---|---|---| | Relevance | "Show me work for companies at our stage and in our category." | Two or three close examples, with what changed for the client | Only big-brand logos, or work from a different category | | Results | "What happened after this launched?" | Specific outcomes, ideally in the client's words | "The client loved it" and nothing else | | People | "Who will work on our project, and who did this case?" | Named people, the same ones you met | Senior people on the call, unnamed juniors on the files | | Process | "What happens in the first two weeks?" | A strategy and direction phase before production | Straight to design comps | | Questions | Did they ask about your buyers, goals and constraints? | Many questions before any price | A price without a single question | | Scope | "What's included, line by line?" | Strategy, design, development, copy, motion, QA, handover all stated | "Everything you need" | | Price | "How do you price, and what changes it?" | Fixed price per written scope, changes approved in writing | Open-ended hourly with no cap | | Timeline | "How do you plan around our date?" | A schedule worked back from your date, agreed at kickoff | "We'll see how it goes" | | Feedback | "How many rounds, and who decides?" | Clear rounds and a small decision group | Unlimited revisions, which usually means no plan | | Ownership | "Who owns the final files and source?" | You do, on payment, with a written assignment | Vague, or licensing your own brand back to you | | Exit | "What if the direction isn't right?" | A defined point where you can stop and keep the work | Full fee owed regardless | | After launch | "What happens in month two?" | Handover, documentation, optional ongoing support | Nothing, or lock-in | #### How to read a portfolio A portfolio shows taste and craft. It rarely shows judgment. When you look at case studies, check: - **Stage and category.** Work for funded tech companies is a different job from work for local businesses or global consumer brands. - **The problem.** Does the case say what wasn't working before? An agency that can explain the problem can usually solve yours. - **The system.** One beautiful hero image is easy. Look for the identity applied across product, web, deck and social. - **The outcome.** Numbers, quotes or what the client did next. "Delivered on time" is something, and a result in the client's words is more. Ask to see one project that didn't go to plan and what they changed afterwards. The answer tells you how they'll behave when yours hits a problem. #### How to check reviews Reviews on an agency's own site are curated. Third-party reviews are harder to fake. Clutch, for example, requires reviewers to log in with LinkedIn, Google or a company email, has human editors check reviews before they're published and says it rejected 10% of submitted reviews in 2025 for signs of falsified information. Verified reviews carry a badge on the profile. A few reviews with specific details are worth more than many short ones. Read for the things that matter to you: schedule, communication, how changes were handled. Then ask for one reference call with a client at a similar stage. #### What the contract must cover The contract is where good intentions become enforceable. Check for these: - **Ownership.** Under US copyright law, a commissioned work by an outside contractor is only a work made for hire if it falls into one of nine specific categories and both sides sign a written agreement saying so. A logo or website usually needs an explicit assignment clause instead. Make sure you get one, and that it covers source files. - **Third-party assets.** Fonts, stock imagery, music and plugins stay under their own licenses. The agency should list them and tell you what you need to buy. - **Scope and change control.** A written scope with a fixed price, and a rule that changes are approved in writing before work starts. - **Payment schedule.** Deposits and milestones tied to deliverables, not dates alone. - **Exit terms.** What you owe and what you keep if you stop early. AIGA's Standard Form of Agreement for Design Services, last updated in 2020, is a useful reference for what a design contract can cover. Have a lawyer review anything you sign. #### How should you compare prices? Compare scope first and totals second. Clutch's 2026 web design data puts typical US agency rates at $100–$149 per hour, which means two quotes at very different totals are usually pricing very different amounts of work. Ask each agency to break the quote into strategy, design, development, content and motion. If one quote is far cheaper, find the line that's missing. For typical ranges by project type, see [how much a startup website costs](/insights/how-much-does-a-startup-website-cost), [how much a rebrand costs](/insights/how-much-does-a-startup-rebrand-cost) and [how much a launch video costs](/insights/how-much-does-a-launch-video-cost). #### Red flags worth walking away over - They quote without asking about your buyers or goals. - They won't say who will do the work. - Every case study is a logo wall with no problem or result. - The contract is vague on ownership or has no exit. - They promise unlimited revisions and an unrealistic date in the same breath. - They agree with everything in your brief. A good agency pushes back on at least one assumption. #### How does Alterra Studio answer this checklist? We'd rather you hold us to it. Our case studies name the client, the problem and the result, in the client's words or from verified reviews, such as the [OMNI launch film](/projects/omni-launch-film) and the [TICKIZ brand identity](/projects/tickiz). We hold a 5.0 rating on Clutch from three verified reviews. The people you meet are the people who do the work, and our [about page](/about) names them. Every written scope includes the same commitments. Each project starts with a strategy and direction phase, and if the direction isn't right you can stop there, keep that work and owe nothing more. The price in the scope is the price, and it only changes if you approve a change in writing. Once paid, the final deliverables made for you are yours, with organized source files. Fonts, stock and other third-party assets stay under their own licenses. Our starting prices are on our [pricing page](/pricing). For ongoing work, see the [Design Partnership](/services/design-partnership). If you're building an AI product, see how we work with [AI companies](/industries/ai). Our [glossary](/glossary) defines the terms agencies tend to use without explaining. #### The short version - Decide the outcome, the shape of the work and the brief before you shortlist. - Start with relevance, results, the people doing the work and the process. Those four separate agencies fastest. - Trust third-party verified reviews over curated testimonials, and make one reference call. - Get ownership, third-party assets, change control and exit terms in writing. - Compare quotes by scope, line by line, before comparing totals. Shortlisting now? [Book a 30-minute call](/connect) and run this checklist on us, or take the free [Brand & Website Scorecard](/scorecard) to sharpen the brief first. #### Sources Checked October 2, 2026. - Clutch, [Methodology and review verification](https://clutch.co/methodology). - US Copyright Office, [Circular 30: Works Made for Hire](https://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ30.pdf) (revised August 2024). - AIGA, [Standard Form of Agreement for Design Services](https://www.aiga.org/resources/aiga-standard-form-of-agreement-for-design-services) (updated 2020). - Clutch, [Web Design Company Pricing Guide 2026](https://clutch.co/web-designers/pricing) (published January 30, 2025). **How many design agencies should I talk to?** Two or three serious candidates is enough. Shortlist from portfolios and reviews, send the same brief to each, and hold one call with each. Talking to ten mostly costs you time. **Should I pick the agency with the best portfolio?** Pick the one with the best relevant portfolio and the clearest answers about who does the work. A beautiful portfolio from a different stage or category tells you less than a smaller body of work for companies like yours. **Is it a red flag if an agency won't share prices?** Not on its own, because scope drives price. It's a concern if they can't give you a range or a starting point after a call. Agencies that publish starting prices save both sides time. **Who owns the design work when an agency makes it?** Check the contract. Under US copyright law, commissioned work from an outside contractor only counts as work made for hire in specific categories and with a signed written agreement, so most agency contracts transfer ownership through an assignment clause. Ask for it in writing. This isn't legal advice, so have your lawyer review the contract. ### How much does a startup rebrand cost in 2026? URL: https://alterra.studio/insights/how-much-does-a-startup-rebrand-cost Author: Ryan Hofmann. Published 2026-10-02. A startup rebrand in 2026 can cost anything from a few thousand dollars for a freelance logo and color refresh to six figures for a full agency program. Clutch's 2026 branding pricing guide puts most branding projects reviewed on its platform at $10,000 to $49,999, with an average of about $71,650 across verified reviews. For a seed to Series A company, the number depends less on the logo and more on how much positioning work is needed, how many places the new identity has to reach and whether the name changes. If you're still deciding whether you need one at all, start with [when a startup should rebrand](/insights/when-should-a-startup-rebrand). This guide assumes you've decided and want to know what it should cost. #### Why do rebrand quotes vary so much? Ask three providers to quote a rebrand and you'll get three different projects. One prices a logo, a palette and a type pairing. Another prices a positioning workshop, an identity system, guidelines and templates. A third prices all of that plus a website, a deck and launch assets, and calls it the same thing. The word "rebrand" covers everything from a visual tidy-up to a new name, so comparing totals without comparing scope tells you very little. Before you compare numbers, line up what each quote includes: strategy, identity, guidelines, templates, rollout, website, and who does the work. #### What does the market data say? Clutch publishes pricing data drawn from verified client reviews. Its branding figures are the most useful public benchmark we've found: | Measure (Clutch branding data, 2026 guide) | Figure | |---|---| | Most common project size | $10,000–$49,999 | | Average project cost across verified reviews | $71,651.70 | | Average monthly cost of branding projects | $8,868.33 | | Typical hourly rate, US agencies | $100–$149 | | Ongoing branding packages | About $1,000 to $15,000 per month | Two things to read into this. First, the average sits well above the most common band, which means a minority of large programs pulls it up. For a funded startup, the $10,000–$49,999 band is the better reference. Second, hourly rates barely vary between branding disciplines on Clutch, so the total is driven by hours, which means by scope. #### What drives the cost? These are the factors that move a rebrand quote, roughly in order of impact: - **Positioning work.** If the team can't agree in one sentence on who you serve and why you win, someone has to run that process before design starts. It's the most valuable part of most rebrands and the part cheap quotes skip. - **Number of audiences.** A brand that has to work for one buyer is simpler than one that has to work for two. TICKIZ, a ticketing platform, needed one identity that event-goers and event organizers would both trust. - **A name change.** Renaming adds naming work, legal clearance, trademark filings, a new domain and a site migration. It's the single biggest jump in cost and risk. - **Depth of the system.** A logo and palette is one price. A system with type scales, iconography, illustration, motion rules, product UI guidance and templates is another. - **Rollout.** Website, deck, product UI, social, sales materials, merch, signage. Each touchpoint is design time. - **Speed.** A tight deadline doesn't always cost more, but it needs decision makers who can review fast. Waiting on feedback is what makes rebrands long and expensive. #### Which costs do founders forget? The identity is usually the line item everyone budgets for. These are the ones that surprise people: | Cost | Why it comes up | What to plan | |---|---|---| | Trademark | A new name or mark needs clearance and filing | The USPTO lists $350 per class for a base application, plus attorney time | | Website changes | The old site won't match the new identity | Reskin at minimum, often a rebuild | | Domain and SEO migration | A new name usually means a new domain | Redirect every URL and keep the redirects for at least a year, per Google | | Product UI | The app has to match the new brand | Design and engineering time, often phased | | Sales and investor materials | Decks, one-pagers and email templates | Templates in the new system | | Internal time | Workshops, reviews and approvals | Founder and leadership hours | The SEO line catches people out most. Google's site-move guidance says rankings can fluctuate while it recrawls the new URLs and recommends keeping redirects in place for at least a year. If your rebrand includes a new domain, read [how to redesign a website without losing SEO](/insights/website-redesign-without-losing-seo) before launch day. #### Refresh, rebrand or rename: which one are you paying for? Most of the cost difference comes from which of these three you need: | | Refresh | Rebrand | Rename | |---|---|---|---| | What changes | Type, color, layouts, imagery, tone | Positioning, identity system, messaging | Name, domain and everything in a rebrand | | Strategy work | Light | Substantial | Substantial, plus naming and legal | | Rollout | Website and key templates | Website, deck, product, marketing | Everything, plus migration | | Relative cost | Lowest | Middle | Highest | Most funded startups that feel off-brand need a strong refresh or a focused rebrand. Very few need a new name, and the ones that do usually know it because of a legal conflict or a name that no longer fits the product. #### How long does a rebrand take, and does time change the price? A focused identity can be done in weeks when the positioning is clear and decision makers are available. TICKIZ, which has raised more than $5 million, went from kickoff to a complete identity system in four weeks: the lightning-ticket mark, an electric-blue palette, Poppins type and a tone of voice applied across app, web, merch and social. The [TICKIZ case study](/projects/tickiz) shows the full system. Time affects price indirectly. A project that drags for four months because feedback takes two weeks per round costs more for everyone, and the brand launches into a market that has moved. Keep the decision group to two or three people and give them review dates up front. #### How do you scope a rebrand so the quote means something? Send every shortlisted provider the same short brief, and ask each one to price against it. Include: 1. What has changed in the business and why the brand no longer fits. 2. Whether positioning is settled or needs work. 3. Whether the name stays. 4. Every touchpoint the new identity must reach in the first 90 days. 5. Your launch or raise date, if there is one. 6. A budget range. Clutch's own guidance is to share what you expect to spend so providers can point you to the right scope. Then compare quotes line by line. Our guide on [how to brief a design agency](/insights/how-to-brief-a-design-agency) has a template, and [how to choose a design agency](/insights/how-to-choose-a-design-agency) covers the questions to ask once the proposals arrive. #### What does Alterra Studio charge for a rebrand? Brand work sits in our Brand + Website Build when the site changes too, or a Launch Sprint for a focused identity refresh before a launch. Both start from a published price, which you'll find on our [pricing page](/pricing) so it's always current. We fix the exact price in a written scope after a 30-minute call, and it only changes if you change the scope. Every project starts with a strategy and direction phase. If the direction isn't right, you can stop there, keep that work and owe nothing more. Koen Van Vliet, our Head of Branding, leads the identity work, and the same team carries it into your [website](/services/website-design-development) and launch materials. See our [brand identity service](/services/brand-identity), the [Kaveree rebrand](/projects/kaveree) for an engineering firm, or how we work with [SaaS companies](/industries/saas). Our [glossary](/glossary) defines the brand terms used here. #### The short version - Clutch's 2026 data puts most branding projects at $10,000–$49,999, with a much higher average pulled up by large programs. - Positioning work, number of audiences, a name change and rollout drive the price far more than the logo does. - Budget for the forgotten costs: trademarks, website changes, SEO migration, product UI and internal time. - Most startups need a refresh or focused rebrand. Renaming is the expensive exception. - Send everyone the same brief and compare scope line by line before comparing totals. Not sure whether you need a refresh or a full rebrand? Take the free 12-question [Brand & Website Scorecard](/scorecard), or [book a 30-minute call](/connect) and we'll tell you what we'd scope and why. #### Sources Checked October 2, 2026. - Clutch, [Branding Pricing Guide 2026](https://clutch.co/agencies/branding/pricing) (published January 28, 2025, updated for 2026). - Clutch, [Web Design Company Pricing Guide 2026](https://clutch.co/web-designers/pricing) (published January 30, 2025), for the advice to share your budget with providers. - USPTO, [Fee schedule](https://www.uspto.gov/learning-and-resources/fees-and-payment/uspto-fee-schedule), trademark fees, base application per class. - Google Search Central, [Site moves with URL changes](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/site-move-with-url-changes) (last updated August 20, 2026). **How much does a brand identity cost for a seed or Series A startup?** Most branding projects reviewed on Clutch fall between $10,000 and $49,999, according to its 2026 pricing guide. A focused identity for a seed or Series A company usually lands in that band. Positioning work, a name change or a large rollout across product and marketing push it higher. **Is a refresh cheaper than a full rebrand?** Yes, usually by a wide margin. A refresh keeps your positioning and name and updates type, color, layouts and tone. A rebrand reopens positioning and the whole identity system, so there's more strategy time and a bigger rollout. **Should the website be priced with the rebrand?** If the site will change anyway, scope them together. Building a site on a brand you plan to replace means paying for the design twice, and one team doing both keeps the system consistent. **What does a trademark filing add to a rebrand budget?** In the US, the USPTO fee schedule lists $350 per class for a base trademark application, before any attorney fees or clearance searches. If the name changes, budget for clearance and filing before you commit to it publicly. ### How much does a launch video cost for a SaaS or AI startup? URL: https://alterra.studio/insights/how-much-does-a-launch-video-cost Author: Ryan Hofmann. Published 2026-10-02. A launch video for a SaaS or AI startup in 2026 can cost from a few thousand dollars for a template or freelance motion piece to tens of thousands for a custom 2D or 3D film with a full set of cutdowns. Clutch's 2026 video production guide says most projects on its platform cost under $10,000, while the average across verified reviews is about $42,280, so a smaller number of large productions pulls the average up. Your price is driven by length, how much of the product has to be rebuilt in motion, whether you need 3D and how many cutdowns the launch needs. #### Why do launch video quotes vary so much? "Launch video" means different things to different studios. One quotes a 30-second screen recording with music. Another quotes a scripted 90-second film with recreated UI, 3D scenes, voiceover, sound design and six platform cuts. Both are called a launch video, and they can differ by ten times in price. The other reason is production type. Live action is priced around shoot days, crews and locations. Motion graphics and 3D are priced around design and animation time per second. Most software and AI launches use motion, so this guide focuses on that. #### What does the market data say? Clutch publishes figures from verified client reviews of video production companies: | Measure (Clutch video production data, 2026 guide) | Figure | |---|---| | Most common project size | Under $10,000 | | Average project cost across verified reviews | $42,280.92 | | Average monthly cost | $7,788.37 | | Typical hourly rate, US | $100–$149 | | Hourly rate for 2D or 3D animation | $100–$149 | The gap between the common band and the average matters. Many reviews on Clutch cover short, simple videos. A custom launch film for a funded company, with original design and cutdowns, sits above the common band. Because hourly rates are flat across 2D and 3D on Clutch, the total depends on how many hours the film takes. #### What drives the cost of a launch video? | Driver | Costs less | Costs more | |---|---|---| | Length of the hero film | 30–45 seconds | 90 seconds to 2 minutes | | How the product is shown | Screen recordings | Recreated UI animated frame by frame | | Style | 2D motion graphics | 3D scenes, or 2D and 3D combined | | Script and story | You supply a finished script | The studio writes it from your positioning | | Audio | Stock music, on-screen text | Original music, voiceover, sound design | | Cutdowns | One master cut | Hero, vertical, feed, teasers and loops | | Review rounds | One decision maker, fast feedback | Large group, slow feedback | | Timeline | Six to eight weeks | Two weeks | Length has the biggest effect. Every extra second has to be designed, animated and reviewed. A 45-second film with a sharp opening usually outperforms a two-minute film in the feed anyway, so cutting length is the first place to save. Recreated UI costs more than screen recordings, and it's usually worth it. Rebuilt interfaces stay sharp at every size, let you zoom straight to the moment that matters and can be reframed for vertical without losing detail. #### When is 3D worth paying for? 3D adds modeling, lighting and rendering on top of animation. It earns that cost when the thing you're selling is hard to film or screenshot: an AI agent working in the background, data moving through infrastructure, a hardware product before it exists, an onchain asset. For a product whose value is obvious from its interface, well-designed 2D motion with recreated UI is usually enough. #### Which costs get left out of quotes? - **Music licensing.** Check that the license covers paid ads, not only organic posts. - **Voiceover.** A professional voice artist is often a separate fee. - **Captions.** Needed for sound-off viewing on every platform. LinkedIn, for example, requires ad captions as SRT files. - **Cutdowns.** If they aren't planned in the master, reframing later can mean re-animating whole scenes. - **Distribution.** Paid support for the launch post, if you use it, is a media budget on top of production. - **Revisions after lock.** Changing the script after animation starts is the most expensive change you can make. Each platform has its own sizes and length limits. YouTube Shorts run up to three minutes, for example, and TikTok's non-Spark in-feed ads accept up to ten. Our [launch video specs reference](/insights/launch-video-specs) lists them so you can put the right cutdowns in the quote from the start. #### What can a launch video return? Cost only makes sense next to what the film does. Two launch videos we made: - **iAgent.** In their CEO's words, our launch video "generated us over 1.9M+ views across our socials." See the [iAgent launch video](/projects/iagent-launch-video). - **OMNI Agency.** For a Web3 rewards program launch in March and April 2026, our motion graphics film helped drive over 260,000 wallet connections, along with 146,000+ impressions and 1,800+ likes on X. OMNI's CMO rated the project 5.0 for quality, schedule, cost and willingness to refer in a verified Clutch review. The [OMNI launch film case study](/projects/omni-launch-film) has the breakdown. The OMNI film was built so the explanation worked without sound in the feed. That decision was cheaper than adding a voiceover and did more for the result. #### How should you budget and brief a launch video? Work backwards from the launch date and fix four things before asking for quotes: 1. **The one message.** What should someone know after 15 seconds? 2. **The hero length.** Pick a target, such as 45 or 60 seconds, rather than "as long as it needs." 3. **The cutdown list.** Which platforms, which aspect ratios, which lengths. 4. **The date.** Four to eight weeks before launch gives room for script, design, animation, sound and review. Send the same brief to each studio, and ask every quote to separate script, design, animation, audio and cutdowns so you can compare line by line. Our guide on [what makes a launch video work](/insights/what-makes-a-launch-video-work) covers the creative side, and the [launch checklist](/insights/startup-launch-checklist) covers everything else the launch needs. #### What does Alterra Studio charge for a launch film? A launch film is usually a Launch Sprint: one focused deliverable, planned back from your date and delivered in two to four weeks. The starting price is on our [pricing page](/pricing), and we fix the exact price in a written scope after a 30-minute call. Launch-critical work is planned backwards from the date you give us, and the plan is agreed in writing at kickoff. Motion designers Ramy Raafat and Samuel Jutras lead the animation, and the people you brief also handle the script, design, sound and every cutdown. See our [motion and 3D service](/services/motion-3d) or how we work with [Web3 teams](/industries/web3) and [AI companies](/industries/ai). Our glossary explains terms like [cutdown](/glossary#cutdown) and [launch film](/glossary#launch-film). #### The short version - Most video projects on Clutch cost under $10,000, but the average is about $42,280. Custom launch films for funded startups sit above the common band. - Length, recreated UI, 3D, audio and the number of cutdowns drive the price. - Pay for 3D when the product can't be shown through its interface. - Ask about music licensing, voiceover, captions and cutdowns before you sign. - Brief the message, length, cutdown list and date so quotes are comparable. Have a launch coming up? [Book a 30-minute call](/connect) and we'll scope the film with you, or take the free [Brand & Website Scorecard](/scorecard) to check the site the video will send people to. #### Sources Checked October 2, 2026. - Clutch, [Video Production Pricing Guide 2026](https://clutch.co/agencies/video-production/pricing) (published August 26, 2024, updated for 2026). - LinkedIn Marketing Solutions Help, [Video ads advertising specifications](https://www.linkedin.com/help/lms/answer/a424737), for SRT captions. - TikTok Ads Manager, [Auction In-Feed Ads](https://ads.tiktok.com/help/article/tiktok-auction-in-feed-ads) (last updated June 2026). - YouTube Help, [Get started creating YouTube Shorts](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/10059070). **Is a 3D launch video much more expensive than 2D motion graphics?** Usually, yes. 3D needs modeling, texturing, lighting and rendering on top of animation, so each second takes longer. It earns its cost when the product is hard to show with UI alone, such as infrastructure, hardware, AI agents or onchain systems. **How many cutdowns should be in the quote?** Plan for at least a 16:9 hero film, a 9:16 vertical cut and a short teaser, plus a 1:1 or 4:5 feed version if LinkedIn or Instagram matter to you. Cutdowns planned from the start are much cheaper than reframing a finished film. **Do we need to pay for music and voiceover separately?** Often. Licensed music, a professional voiceover artist and sound design are separate line items in many quotes. Ask whether they're included and whether the music license covers paid ads as well as organic posts. **Can we reuse the launch video assets later?** You should be able to. Ask for the project files, rendered stills and loops as part of the delivery. Style frames, 3D scenes and UI recreations can be reused in product pages, ads and the next launch. ### How much does a design retainer cost? Subscription, partner or hire URL: https://alterra.studio/insights/design-retainer-cost Author: Ryan Hofmann. Published 2026-10-02. A monthly design retainer in 2026 can cost anywhere from about $1,000 to $15,000 a month: that's the range Clutch gives for ongoing branding packages, where the average monthly cost of branding projects is about $8,870. Where a service lands depends mostly on seniority and how many disciplines it covers. Compare any retainer with the hire it would replace. BLS data puts the median web and digital interface designer at $104,000 a year in wages, about $148,600 once benefits are added, or roughly $12,400 a month for one person's skills. This guide covers the money. For how the two monthly models work day to day, see our comparison of [design subscription vs design partner](/compare/design-subscription-vs-design-partner). #### What do monthly design services cost? Clutch publishes monthly cost figures from verified client reviews. They're the best public benchmark for ongoing design work: | Measure (Clutch 2026 pricing guides) | Figure | |---|---| | Ongoing branding packages | About $1,000 to $15,000 per month | | Average monthly cost, branding projects | $8,868.33 | | Average monthly cost, video production projects | $7,788.37 | | Average monthly cost, web design projects | $5,279.79 | | Typical hourly rate, US agencies (branding, web, video) | $100–$149 | Read the averages as a guide to the middle of the market. They mix small and large engagements, and a monthly average for project work isn't the same thing as a retainer. The hourly rate is the steadier figure: at $100 to $149 an hour, $10,000 a month buys roughly 65 to 100 hours of agency time. #### What does the same work cost as a hire? The fair comparison for any retainer is the person you'd otherwise hire. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports these median annual wages for May 2025: | Role (BLS, May 2025) | Median wage | With benefits | Per month, all in | |---|---|---|---| | Graphic designers | $62,960 | About $89,900 | About $7,500 | | Web developers | $92,650 | About $132,400 | About $11,000 | | Web and digital interface designers | $104,000 | About $148,600 | About $12,400 | The benefits column uses the BLS Employer Costs for Employee Compensation release: in June 2026, wages made up 70.0% of private-industry employer compensation costs and benefits the other 30.0%. Dividing the median wage by 0.70 gives a rough total before recruiting, equipment, software, equity and management time. National medians also cover every experience level, so expect a senior hire to cost more. Two things change the comparison more than the salary does: - **Range.** One hire covers one person's skills. A launch year usually needs brand, web, product and motion. - **Ramp-up and risk.** A hire takes months to recruit and more months to learn the product. If the hire is wrong, you pay those costs twice. #### Subscription, partner or hire: what the money buys | | Design subscription | Design partner | In-house hire | |---|---|---|---| | Cost structure | Flat monthly fee | Monthly retainer sized to the work | Salary, benefits, equity, tools | | What you get | Production capacity, often one request at a time | A senior team that plans and makes the work | One person, full time | | Who sets direction | You, in every brief | Shared, the partner joins planning | The hire, once they're up to speed | | Disciplines | Often graphics, pages, simple UI | Brand, web, product, motion on one system | One person's strengths | | Hidden cost | Your time writing briefs and reviewing | Higher monthly fee | Recruiting, ramp-up, management | | Exit | Usually easy, monthly | Notice period, sometimes annual | Notice, severance, rehiring | | Cheapest when | Work is simple, defined and high volume | Work is strategic and spans disciplines | Work is continuous daily product design | The cheapest monthly fee isn't always the cheapest result. A subscription at a third of the price of a partner costs more if your team spends two days a week writing briefs and fixing direction. #### What drives the price of a design retainer? - **Seniority.** Senior designers cost more per hour and need fewer rounds. Ask who will do the work, by name. - **Disciplines.** Motion, 3D and development are often extra. A retainer that includes them costs more and saves a second vendor. - **Strategy time.** Planning, positioning and launch planning are where partners spend time that subscriptions don't. - **Volume and speed.** More parallel work or faster turnaround means more people on your account. - **Term.** Annual terms often buy a better rate or priority. Monthly terms buy flexibility. #### Costs that don't show up on the invoice - **Your direction time.** Every request needs a brief and a review. Someone senior on your side has to do it. - **Unused capacity.** Ask whether unused hours roll over, expire or aren't counted at all. - **Development.** Design files that nobody builds aren't finished work. Check whether the retainer ships code. - **Licenses.** Fonts, stock, music and plugins stay under their own licenses and are usually billed separately. - **Switching.** If you leave, will you have the source files and guidelines to hand to the next team? #### How to work out what you should spend 1. List the design work in the next six months: launches, a website, product screens, a deck, campaigns. 2. Mark which items carry strategic stakes, such as a raise, a rebrand or a major launch. 3. Price the strategic items as projects. Our guides cover [website](/insights/how-much-does-a-startup-website-cost), [rebrand](/insights/how-much-does-a-startup-rebrand-cost) and [launch video](/insights/how-much-does-a-launch-video-cost) costs. 4. If what's left is a steady stream of defined tasks, a subscription may cover it. If the strategic work keeps coming, a retainer with a partner usually costs less than buying projects one at a time. 5. Hold the monthly total against the all-in cost of the hire you'd otherwise make. #### Questions to ask before signing | Question | Why it matters | |---|---| | Who exactly works on our account? | Seniority drives both price and quality | | How is work prioritized each month? | A queue and a plan behave differently under pressure | | Which disciplines are included, and which cost extra? | Motion, 3D and development are often excluded | | What happens to unused capacity? | It's money either way | | Who owns the files, including source files? | You should, once paid | | What notice is needed to pause, scale or stop? | Lock-in is the main risk in any monthly agreement | Our [checklist for choosing a design agency](/insights/how-to-choose-a-design-agency) covers the rest of the evaluation. #### What does Alterra Studio's Design Partnership cost? Our [Design Partnership](/services/design-partnership) has a starting monthly price, published on our [pricing page](/pricing) so it's always current. It runs on monthly priorities rather than a ticket queue, the same senior people work with you every month, and you can scale up or down. One team covers brand, web, product, motion and 3D. Everreach Labs is an annual client. In their COO's words: "we get immense value from Ryan and his team and we couldn't be happier." You can also start with a single project, such as a brand identity like [TICKIZ's](/projects/tickiz), and move into a partnership afterwards. See how we work with [SaaS companies](/industries/saas), or look up [retainer](/glossary#retainer) and [design subscription](/glossary#design-subscription) in our glossary. #### The short version - Clutch puts ongoing branding packages at about $1,000 to $15,000 a month, with an average monthly cost near $8,870. - At typical US agency rates of $100 to $149 an hour, $10,000 a month buys roughly 65 to 100 hours. - A median web and digital interface designer costs about $148,600 a year with benefits, roughly $12,400 a month, for one person's skills. - Subscriptions are cheapest for defined, high-volume tasks. Partners cost more and cover strategy and several disciplines. - Count your own direction time, unused capacity, development and licenses before comparing. Not sure which model fits your next six months? [Book a 30-minute call](/connect) and we'll tell you, even if the answer is a subscription, or take the free [Brand & Website Scorecard](/scorecard) to see where design is slowing you down. #### Sources Checked October 2, 2026. - Clutch, [Branding Pricing Guide 2026](https://clutch.co/agencies/branding/pricing) (published January 28, 2025), [Web Design Company Pricing Guide 2026](https://clutch.co/web-designers/pricing) (published January 30, 2025) and [Video Production Pricing Guide 2026](https://clutch.co/agencies/video-production/pricing) (published August 26, 2024). - US Bureau of Labor Statistics, [Occupational Outlook Handbook: Graphic Designers](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/arts-and-design/graphic-designers.htm) (last modified August 27, 2026). - US Bureau of Labor Statistics, [Occupational Outlook Handbook: Web Developers and Digital Designers](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/web-developers.htm). - US Bureau of Labor Statistics, [Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, June 2026](https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.nr0.htm) (released September 9, 2026). **Is a design retainer cheaper than hiring a designer?** Often, once you count everything. BLS data puts the median web and digital interface designer at $104,000 a year in wages, and benefits add about 30% of total compensation on top. A retainer also covers several disciplines, while a hire covers one person's skills. A hire wins when the work is continuous, daily product design. **Is a design subscription cheaper than a design partner?** Usually, per month. A subscription prices production capacity and expects you to supply the direction. A partner prices a senior team that also plans the work. Compare the cost of a finished, usable result, including your own time spent writing briefs and reviewing. **What happens to retainer hours we don't use?** It depends on the contract. Some retainers roll unused capacity into the next month, some don't, and partnerships that run on monthly priorities don't count hours at all. Ask before you sign. **How long are design retainers usually?** Monthly with a notice period is common, and some studios offer annual terms. Shorter terms reduce lock-in. Longer terms usually buy priority or a better rate. ### When should a startup rebrand? 7 signals (and 3 bad reasons) URL: https://alterra.studio/insights/when-should-a-startup-rebrand Author: Ryan Hofmann. Published 2026-10-01, updated 2026-10-02. A startup should rebrand when its brand no longer matches the company it has become: the product, the market, the buyers or the price point have moved, and the brand is now creating doubt instead of trust. The clearest signals are losing deals or investor confidence on first impression, a brand that can't stretch to new audiences or products, and a team that avoids sharing its own website. Rebranding because you're bored, because a competitor did, or to cover a product problem is a waste of money. #### Why do founders put off rebranding? Most founders know their brand is off long before they do anything about it. The logo was made in a weekend before the first raise. The website was built by a contractor who has since disappeared. Sales has three versions of the pitch deck, none of them consistent. Everyone agrees it should be fixed "after the next milestone." The hesitation is reasonable. Rebrands have a reputation for being slow, political and expensive, with months of workshops that end in a logo nobody loves. But waiting has its own cost. Every investor meeting, sales call and candidate interview starts with a first impression, and an outdated brand taxes all of them. #### What are the 7 signals it's time to rebrand? ##### 1. You've moved upmarket and the brand hasn't You started selling to small teams. Now you're in conversations with enterprise buyers, procurement and security reviews. If your brand still looks like an early side project, it signals risk to exactly the people who are paid to avoid it. ##### 2. Your product or category has changed Many startups pivot or expand. A developer tool becomes a platform. An analytics product adds AI agents. If your brand was built around the old story, it now explains the wrong thing, and your team compensates by re-explaining everything on every call. ##### 3. You're about to raise, launch or enter a new market A fundraise, major launch or new region puts your brand in front of many new people in a short window. That's when a weak brand costs the most, and when a strong one does the most work. ##### 4. You need to speak to more than one audience Marketplaces, platforms and two-sided products have this problem early. The brand has to work for buyers and sellers, users and admins, consumers and businesses. A brand built for one side often alienates the other. ##### 5. Your brand is inconsistent everywhere The website says one thing, the product UI looks like another company, the deck uses a third set of colors and every new landing page is improvised. This usually means there is no real system, only a logo. Inconsistency reads as immaturity, even when the product is excellent. ##### 6. You lose on first impression Listen for it in sales and fundraising: "We weren't sure you were real." "You look smaller than you're." "I didn't get what you do from the website." If buyers and investors discount you before they have seen the product, the brand is costing you money. ##### 7. Your own team avoids using it When employees hesitate to share the website, rebuild slides from scratch or apologize for the logo, the brand has already failed internally. #### What are 3 bad reasons to rebrand? **1. You're bored with it.** Founders see their brand thousands of times a week. Customers see it a few times. Fatigue isn't a strategic reason. If the brand still matches the company, keep it and use it better. **2. A competitor just rebranded.** Reacting to a competitor usually produces a brand that looks like theirs. Your brand should follow your positioning, not their launch calendar. **3. To fix a product or growth problem.** If retention is weak or the product isn't finding fit, a new identity won't fix it. It may even burn trust by promising something the product can't deliver yet. Fix the product first, then make the brand match. #### Do you need a full rebrand or a refresh? Not every brand problem needs a full rebrand. Here is how the options compare: | | Refresh | Rebrand | Rename | |---|---|---|---| | What changes | Type, color, layouts, imagery, tone polish | Positioning, identity system, messaging, often website | Name, domain and everything above | | When it fits | Core story is right, execution is dated or inconsistent | Company, product or market has meaningfully changed | Legal conflict, confusion or name no longer fits | | Typical effort | Weeks | Weeks to a couple of months | Months, with legal and migration work | | Risk | Low | Moderate, managed with good rollout | Highest, needs careful SEO and comms planning | Most funded startups that feel "off-brand" need a strong refresh or a focused rebrand. Very few need a new name. If you do rename, search the USPTO trademark database before anything else. Its fee schedule lists $350 per class for a base trademark application, before attorney fees. For budgets, see [how much a startup rebrand costs](/insights/how-much-does-a-startup-rebrand-cost), and for name or domain changes, [how to redesign without losing SEO](/insights/website-redesign-without-losing-seo). #### How do you rebrand without losing momentum? The fear of a slow rebrand is fair, but the slowness usually comes from process, not from the work itself. A few things keep it fast: - **Start with positioning, not logos.** Agree on who you serve, what you replace and why you win. Visual decisions get much easier after that. - **Keep the decision group small.** Two or three people with authority. Feedback from everyone, decisions from a few. - **Design a system, not a logo.** Type, color, layout, iconography, motion and product UI rules that teams will use. - **Roll out in order of impact.** Usually website and deck first, then product UI, then everything else. - **Brief properly.** A clear brief saves weeks. Our guide on [how to brief a design agency](/insights/how-to-brief-a-design-agency) includes a template. #### What does a fast startup rebrand look like in practice? TICKIZ, a ticketing platform that has raised more than $5 million, needed a brand that worked for two very different audiences: event-goers buying tickets and organizers running events. We built a complete brand identity system for them in four weeks, designed to speak to both sides without splitting into two brands. You can see the full project in the [TICKIZ case study](/projects/tickiz), and a rebrand for an engineering firm in the [Kaveree case study](/projects/kaveree). Four weeks is possible when positioning is clear, decision makers are available and the same senior designers own the work from strategy to the final system. #### How does Alterra Studio approach a rebrand? We start with a discovery call to understand what has changed in your business and what the brand needs to do next. Sometimes the honest answer is a refresh, and we'll say so. When a rebrand is the right call, the designers from that first call handle positioning, [brand identity](/services/brand-identity), and the rollout across your [website](/services/website-design-development), product and launch materials, so the system stays consistent from the logo to the last landing page. Starting prices are on our [pricing page](/pricing). If a raise is the trigger, our [Series A brand checklist](/insights/series-a-brand-readiness) covers what investors see first. See also how we work with [SaaS companies](/industries/saas), or our glossary for the difference between a [brand refresh](/glossary#brand-refresh) and a [rebrand](/glossary#rebrand). #### The short version - Rebrand when the company has outgrown the brand: new market, new product, new audience, or a brand that creates doubt on first impression. - Don't rebrand out of boredom, to copy a competitor or to cover a product problem. - Many startups need a strong refresh, not a full rebrand, and very few need a new name. - Fast rebrands come from clear positioning, a small decision group and a usable system. - TICKIZ went from kickoff to a complete identity system in four weeks. Not sure whether you need a refresh or a rebrand? Take the free 12-question [Brand & Website Scorecard](/scorecard) for a quick diagnosis, or [book a 30-minute call](/connect) and we'll give you a straight answer. #### Sources Checked October 2, 2026. - Google Search Central, [Site moves with URL changes](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/site-move-with-url-changes) (last updated August 20, 2026). - USPTO, [Fee schedule](https://www.uspto.gov/learning-and-resources/fees-and-payment/uspto-fee-schedule), trademark base application per class. - USPTO, [Search our trademark database](https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/search). **How long does a startup rebrand take?** A focused brand identity for a startup can be done in four to eight weeks when decision makers are available and the positioning is clear. Rolling it out across website, product and sales materials takes longer and is often done in phases. **Should we change our company name when we rebrand?** Only if the name is actively causing problems, such as legal conflicts, confusion with competitors, or a meaning that no longer fits what you do. Most rebrands keep the name and change the identity, messaging and design system. **Will a rebrand hurt our SEO?** A visual rebrand on the same domain has little SEO impact. A name or domain change needs a proper redirect plan, updated listings and time for search engines to catch up. Google recommends keeping redirects for at least a year. Plan the migration before launch. **What is the difference between a refresh and a rebrand?** A refresh updates how the existing brand looks and sounds, such as typography, color and layouts, while keeping its core. A rebrand rethinks positioning, identity and often architecture. Many startups need a strong refresh, not a full rebrand. ### What makes a SaaS or AI launch video actually work? URL: https://alterra.studio/insights/what-makes-a-launch-video-work Author: Ryan Hofmann. Published 2026-10-01, updated 2026-10-02. A SaaS or AI launch video works when it earns attention in the first three seconds, shows the actual product doing something valuable, makes sense with the sound off and is cut for every channel it will run on. Just as important, it's planned backwards from launch day with a distribution plan already in place. Most launch videos that fail look fine. They open slowly, hide the product behind abstractions and get posted once with no plan. #### Why do so many launch videos underperform? You've spent months building. The launch date is set. You commission a video, it comes back looking polished and you post it. It gets a polite number of views, mostly from your team and investors, and then disappears. This is the common story, and the cause is rarely production quality. It's usually one of these: - The video opens with a logo, a slow fade or a vague statement about the future. - The product barely appears, replaced by abstract shapes, stock footage or glowing particles. - It depends on a voiceover most people never hear, because they scroll with the sound off. - There is one cut, in one aspect ratio, posted once. - It was finished the night before launch, so there was no time to plan distribution. #### What makes the first 3 seconds work? On social platforms, people decide whether to keep watching almost immediately. A good hook does one of these: - **Shows the outcome.** The result the product creates, on screen, immediately. - **States a sharp problem.** A line the viewer recognizes as their own pain. - **Creates visual tension.** Motion, contrast or a reveal that makes stopping feel natural. What it doesn't do is start with a logo animation. Put the brand at the end, or keep it small and present throughout. #### Why should the product be the hero? Buyers of software and AI want to see what it does. Abstract visuals can set a mood, but if the viewer finishes the video without knowing what the product looks like or does, the video hasn't done its job. Practical ways to make the product the hero: - **Recreate the UI in motion.** Rebuilt interfaces look sharper than screen recordings and let you focus attention on the exact moment that matters. - **Show one workflow end to end.** One clear before-and-after beats ten features flashing past. - **Use 3D to explain what is invisible.** AI, infrastructure and onchain products are hard to film. 3D and motion design can show data flowing, agents working or assets moving in a way screenshots can't. - **Keep text short and large.** Every line on screen should be readable on a phone in one glance. #### How do you design a launch video for sound-off viewing? Most social video is watched without sound, at least at first. Design for that: - Put the key message in on-screen text, not only in the voiceover. - Use captions for any spoken words. Platforms differ: LinkedIn ads take captions as SRT files, and TikTok ads show captions in a fixed white font, so design key text into the frame. - Let the visuals carry the story on their own. If you mute it and the story falls apart, it needs another edit. - Then make the sound version better: music and sound design that match the edit add real energy for people who do turn it on. #### What cutdowns does a launch video need? One master cut isn't a launch campaign. Plan these from the start: | Cut | Format | Length | Where it runs | |---|---|---|---| | Hero film | 16:9 | 45 seconds to 2 minutes | Website, YouTube, launch post, investor updates | | Social main | 1:1 or 4:5 | 30–60 seconds | X, LinkedIn feed | | Vertical | 9:16 | 15–45 seconds | Reels, Shorts, TikTok, Stories | | Teasers | Any | 6–15 seconds | Pre-launch posts, countdowns, ads | | Loops and stills | Any | Under 10 seconds or static | Website hero, product pages, press kit | Planning cutdowns early changes how the master is designed. Framing, text placement and pacing all need to survive the crop. Platform limits differ too: YouTube Shorts run up to three minutes, Instagram accepts reels between 1.91:1 and 9:16, and LinkedIn recommends 15 to 30 seconds for video ads. Our [launch video specs reference](/insights/launch-video-specs) has the full table. #### How should you plan the timeline? Work backwards from launch day: - **Launch week:** final exports, captions, cutdowns scheduled, partners and team briefed. - **Two to three weeks before:** animation and sound locked, review rounds done. - **Four to six weeks before:** script, storyboard and design frames approved. - **Six to eight weeks before:** brief, positioning and key message agreed. Teasers can start going out before the main film, which builds attention instead of hoping for it on the day. The [product launch checklist](/insights/startup-launch-checklist) lists every other asset the launch needs, on the same timeline. #### Why does distribution matter as much as production? A great video posted once from a small account is still a small launch. Before you finish production, decide: - Which accounts will post it, including founders, team, investors and partners. - What each post says, so it isn't the same caption repeated. - Where paid support, if any, goes. - How the website and product will reflect the launch on the same day. #### What does this look like in real results? We made a motion graphics launch film for OMNI Agency, a Web3 marketing agency, for their client's rewards program in March and April 2026. The film helped drive more than 260,000 wallet connections, along with 146,000+ impressions and 1,800+ likes on X. It was delivered before the deadline, and OMNI left a verified 5.0 review on Clutch. The full breakdown is in the [OMNI launch film case study](/projects/omni-launch-film). For iAgent, our [launch video](/projects/iagent-launch-video) generated more than 1.9 million views across socials, according to the client. #### How does Alterra Studio make launch videos? We start from the launch, not the video: what you're announcing, who needs to care and where it will run. Then the people from your first call handle the script, design, 2D and 3D animation, sound and every cutdown. Because we also do [brand identity](/services/brand-identity) and [websites](/services/website-design-development), the film, the site and the launch assets match on day one. See our [motion and 3D service](/services/motion-3d), more outcomes on our [results](/results) page, or how we work with [Web3 teams](/industries/web3). For budgets, read [how much a launch video costs](/insights/how-much-does-a-launch-video-cost). Starting prices are on our [pricing page](/pricing), and our glossary defines [cutdowns](/glossary#cutdown) and [launch films](/glossary#launch-film). #### The short version - Win the first three seconds with the outcome, a sharp problem or visual tension. Not a logo. - Make the product the hero. Show one workflow clearly, use 3D for what can't be filmed. - Design for sound off, then make the sound version better. - Plan cutdowns and the timeline backwards from launch day. - Decide distribution before production ends. Have a launch coming up? Take the free [Brand & Website Scorecard](/scorecard) to check whether your site is ready for the traffic, or [book a 30-minute call](/connect) and we'll map out the launch film with you. #### Sources Checked October 2, 2026. - YouTube Help, [Get started creating YouTube Shorts](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/10059070). - Instagram Help Center, [Reel size and aspect ratios](https://help.instagram.com/1038071743007909). - LinkedIn Marketing Solutions Help, [Video ads advertising specifications](https://www.linkedin.com/help/lms/answer/a424737). - TikTok Ads Manager, [Auction In-Feed Ads](https://ads.tiktok.com/help/article/tiktok-auction-in-feed-ads) (last updated June 2026). **How long should a SaaS launch video be?** For social, the main cut is usually 30 to 60 seconds, with shorter 6 to 15 second cutdowns. A longer 90 second to 2 minute version can live on the website or in a launch post for people who want the full story. **Should a launch video use motion graphics or live action?** For most software and AI products, motion graphics and 3D are the better default. They show the product clearly, are easier to update, and don't depend on shoots, locations or actors. Live action works when the story is about people using the product in the real world. **How far ahead should we start a launch video?** Start four to eight weeks before launch day for a full motion piece. That leaves room for script, design, animation, sound, cutdowns and review without rushing the final week. **Do we need a voiceover?** Not always. Many strong launch videos work with on-screen text, music and sound design. A voiceover helps when the product needs explanation, but the video should still make sense with the sound off. ### What is a design partner, and when does a startup need one? URL: https://alterra.studio/insights/what-is-a-design-partner Author: Ryan Hofmann. Published 2026-10-01, updated 2026-10-02. A design partner is a senior, multi-discipline design team that works with your company on an ongoing basis, covering brand, website, product and launch work as one consistent system. Unlike a project agency, it stays after the deliverable ships, so context about your product, buyers and decisions keeps building. A startup needs one when design needs are continuous and span several disciplines, but a full in-house team isn't yet the right investment. #### Why does design keep slipping at funded startups? You raised. The roadmap got bigger. Now every week brings a new design need: a feature launch, a landing page for a campaign, a deck for a conference, an investor update, new product screens, a hiring page. Each one is small. Together they never stop. So you patch it. A freelancer for the landing page. Another for the deck. An engineer builds UI from a rough sketch. Marketing designs social posts in a template tool. Six months later the brand looks like five different companies, the founder is acting as creative director at midnight and nothing ships as fast as it should. What's missing is someone who owns the whole system and remembers the decisions behind it. #### What exactly is a design partner? A design partner is defined by three things: - **Embedded.** The team works inside your rhythm. They join planning, know the roadmap and see launches coming before you brief them. - **Senior and multi-discipline.** One team covers brand identity, website design and development, product and UI/UX design, and launch video, motion and 3D. No handoffs between separate vendors. - **Ongoing, so context compounds.** Every project makes the next one faster. The team knows your positioning, your buyers, your design system and why past decisions were made. You stop re-explaining your company. Design quality depends heavily on context. A partner who has lived with your product for six months produces better work faster than a new vendor who started on Monday. #### How is a design partner different from an agency, a subscription or a hire? | | Project agency | Design subscription | In-house hire | Design partner | |---|---|---|---|---| | Engagement | One project, then ends | Monthly, request queue | Permanent employee | Monthly or annual, ongoing | | Scope | Defined deliverables | Individual tasks, one at a time | One person's skill set | Brand, web, product, motion across the company | | Seniority | Varies, often mixed teams | Often production-focused | Depends on the hire | Senior team | | Strategic input | At the start of a project | Limited, executes requests | Grows over time | Continuous, joins planning | | Context over time | Lost when project ends | Partial, task by task | High | High, and spans disciplines | | Speed to start | Weeks | Days | Months | Days to weeks | | Best for | A single, high-stakes project | High volume of simple tasks | Continuous core product design | Continuous multi-discipline work with strategic stakes | A few clarifications: - **Design subscriptions** are good for volume. You submit tasks to a queue and get assets back. They work well for straightforward production work. They're usually not set up to challenge your positioning or plan a launch with you. We compare the two in [design subscription vs design partner](/compare/design-subscription-vs-design-partner), and the monthly costs in [how much a design retainer costs](/insights/design-retainer-cost). - **Project agencies** are good for a defined, high-stakes piece like a rebrand. When the project ends, so does the context. - **In-house hires** are the right long-term answer for continuous product design. A single early hire rarely covers brand, web, product and motion at a senior level. For scale, the BLS puts the May 2025 median wage for web and digital interface designers at $104,000, and benefits make up 30% of private-industry employer compensation costs on top of wages. For a broader comparison, see [design agency vs freelancer vs in-house](/insights/design-agency-vs-freelancer-vs-in-house). #### What are the signals a startup needs a design partner? You probably need one if several of these are true: - **Design requests never stop**, but none are big enough to justify a new agency project. - **The brand is drifting.** The website, product, deck and social look like different companies. - **The founder is the creative director by default**, reviewing every asset late at night. - **You're juggling several freelancers** and spending more time coordinating than reviewing. - **Launches keep getting rushed** because design starts after engineering is nearly done. - **You have one in-house designer** who is stretched across product, brand and marketing. - **You're post-raise** with a roadmap that includes a rebrand, new site, product launches and hiring in the same year. You probably don't need one if you have a single, well-defined project and no ongoing needs. In that case, a project engagement is cleaner. #### What does a design partnership look like week to week? The details vary by studio, but a healthy partnership usually includes: - A shared view of priorities for the month, tied to the roadmap and launches. - Regular check-ins with the founder or marketing lead, kept short. - A single design system that brand, website and product all draw from. - Work moving across disciplines as needed: a product screen this week, a launch film next month, a new website section after that. - Proactive suggestions, not just responses to requests. You tell the partner what the business needs, and they work out the design that gets you there. #### What does this look like in practice? Everreach Labs works with Alterra Studio on an annual partnership. In their words: "we get immense value from Ryan and his team." The value in that kind of engagement comes from continuity. The team knows the product, the audience and the system, so each new piece of work starts from where the last one finished. Across our work, Alterra holds a 5.0 rating on Clutch from three verified reviews. You can see project outcomes such as the [TICKIZ brand identity](/projects/tickiz) and the [OMNI launch film](/projects/omni-launch-film) on our [results](/results) page. #### How does Alterra Studio's Design Partnership work? Our [Design Partnership](/services/design-partnership) is an ongoing monthly engagement where the same senior designers handle [brand identity](/services/brand-identity), [website design and development](/services/website-design-development) in Framer, Webflow or Next.js, [product and UI/UX design](/services/product-design), and [launch video, motion and 3D](/services/motion-3d). We work AI-native and human-directed: AI speeds up exploration and production, and senior designers make the decisions. Monthly design arrangements vary widely: Clutch's branding data puts ongoing packages at about $1,000 to $15,000 per month. Our partnership's starting monthly price is on our [pricing page](/pricing). Most partnerships start with a discovery call to understand the roadmap, then a short plan for the first months. You can also start with a single project and move into a partnership afterwards. If you want to make the first conversation productive, our guide on [how to brief a design agency](/insights/how-to-brief-a-design-agency) has a template you can use. See also how we work with [SaaS companies](/industries/saas), and our [glossary](/glossary) for the terms used here. #### The short version - A design partner is an embedded, senior, multi-discipline team that works with you on an ongoing basis. - It differs from a project agency (context ends), a subscription (task queue) and a single hire (one skill set). - The main advantage is compounding context: every project makes the next one faster and more consistent. - You likely need one when design requests are constant, span several disciplines and the founder is stuck as creative director. - It often works best alongside an in-house designer, not instead of one. Curious where design is slowing you down? Take the free 12-question [Brand & Website Scorecard](/scorecard), or [book a 30-minute call](/connect) and we'll tell you whether a partnership or a single project makes more sense. #### Sources Checked October 2, 2026. - US Bureau of Labor Statistics, [Occupational Outlook Handbook: Web Developers and Digital Designers](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/web-developers.htm). - US Bureau of Labor Statistics, [Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, June 2026](https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.nr0.htm) (released September 9, 2026). - Clutch, [Branding Pricing Guide 2026](https://clutch.co/agencies/branding/pricing) (published January 28, 2025). **How is a design partner priced?** Usually as a monthly retainer sized to the expected volume and mix of work, sometimes with an annual commitment. It's scoped around what the company needs to ship, not billed per deliverable. **Can a design partner work with our in-house designers?** Yes, and that's often the best setup. The in-house team owns the product day to day, while the partner covers brand, website, launches and specialist work like motion and 3D, all on the same system. **What is the minimum commitment for a design partnership?** It varies by studio. Many partnerships run for a few months at minimum, because the value comes from context building over time. Some companies start with a single project and move into a partnership afterwards. ### How to brief a design agency (with a template you can copy) URL: https://alterra.studio/insights/how-to-brief-a-design-agency Author: Ryan Hofmann. Published 2026-10-01, updated 2026-10-02. To brief a design agency well, explain the business situation, the goal and how you'll measure it, who the work is for, what problem it needs to solve, what you've already tried, and your constraints on scope, time, budget and decision making. Add a few references with notes on why you chose them. A brief built on business context gets better work than a list of deliverables, because it lets the agency solve the real problem instead of just producing the assets you guessed you needed. #### Why do most design briefs lead to disappointing work? You sent the agency a clear list: new homepage, five inner pages, refreshed logo, a pitch deck template. The work came back on time and looked fine. It just didn't do anything. Sales still struggles to explain the product. Investors still ask the same questions. The new site looks better and converts the same. That's what a deliverables-only brief produces. You told the agency what to make, not why. So they made exactly that. #### Why does business context beat a list of deliverables? A deliverables list is your guess at the solution. Sometimes the guess is right. Often it isn't: - You ask for a new homepage when the real problem is positioning, and no layout fixes unclear positioning. - You ask for a logo refresh when the bigger issue is that the product UI and the website look like two different companies. - You ask for a launch video when what the launch needs is a clear story across site, video and social. When you share the business context, the agency can push back, suggest a better scope or tell you something isn't worth doing. That conversation is worth more than any single deliverable. It's also how you find out whether an agency thinks strategically or just executes. #### What should a design brief include? Every good brief answers the same set of questions: | Section | What it answers | Why it matters | |---|---|---| | Business context | Who you're, stage, funding, what is changing | Sets the stakes and the level of polish needed | | Goal and metric | What success looks like and how you'll know | Lets the agency design for an outcome | | Audience | Who must be convinced and what they care about | Shapes message, tone and structure | | Problem | What isn't working today | Separates symptoms from causes | | What you've tried | Past attempts and what happened | Avoids repeating mistakes | | Scope | What you think you need, open to challenge | A starting point, not a contract | | Constraints | Platform, brand rules, legal, technical limits | Prevents work that can't ship | | Timeline | Key dates and what drives them | Allows planning backwards from launch | | Budget range | The range you're comfortable with | Lets the agency propose the best value scope | | Decision makers | Who approves and who gives input | Prevents late surprises and rework | | References | Examples you like, with reasons | Makes taste discussable | #### What is a design brief template I can copy? Copy this, fill it in and send it. Short, honest answers beat polished ones. ```text DESIGN BRIEF: [Company name] / [Project name] Date: [date] Contact: [name, role, email] 1. BUSINESS CONTEXT - What we do (one or two sentences): - Stage and funding: - What has changed recently (raise, pivot, new market, launch): - Why this project, why now: 2. GOAL AND METRIC - The outcome we need from this work: - How we'll measure it (e.g. demo requests, sign-up rate, investor feedback): - What happens if we do nothing: 3. AUDIENCE - Primary audience (role, company type, what they care about): - Secondary audiences (investors, candidates, partners): - What they believe about us today: - What we need them to believe after: 4. PROBLEM - What isn't working today: - Where we see it (sales calls, analytics, feedback): 5. WHAT WE HAVE TRIED - Previous attempts and results: - What we learned: 6. SCOPE (OPEN TO CHALLENGE) - What we think we need: - What is out of scope: - Existing assets we can reuse: 7. CONSTRAINTS - Platform or tech requirements: - Brand elements we must keep: - Legal, compliance or accessibility needs: - Ownership and licensing (source files, fonts, stock, music): 8. TIMELINE - Hard deadline and what drives it: - Key milestones (raise, launch, event): 9. BUDGET RANGE - Range we are comfortable with: - One-off project or ongoing support: 10. DECISION MAKERS - Final approver: - People giving input: - How fast we can give feedback: 11. REFERENCES - [Link] - what we like about it: - [Link] - what we like about it: - [Link] - what we want to avoid and why: ``` #### What mistakes should you avoid when briefing an agency? - **Writing a brief for consensus.** If the brief tries to please every stakeholder, it says nothing. Pick the goal. - **Hiding the budget.** You get proposals that are either too thin to work or too big to approve. Share a range. Clutch's pricing guidance says the same: tell providers what you expect to spend so they can point you to the right scope. - **Leaving ownership to the contract.** Under US copyright law, commissioned work from an outside contractor only counts as work made for hire in nine specific categories and with a signed written agreement. Say in the brief that you expect full ownership of final files and source, so it's priced in. AIGA's Standard Form of Agreement for Design Services is a useful reference for what a design contract covers. - **Sending references without reasons.** "We like Stripe" tells an agency very little. "We like how Stripe makes a complex product feel simple" tells them a lot. - **Leaving out the decision maker.** If the CEO sees the work for the first time in round three, expect a restart. - **Over-specifying the solution.** Say what you think you need, and invite the agency to challenge it. - **Skipping the "why now."** Urgency and stakes shape every decision, from scope to polish to timeline. #### What happens after you send the brief? A good agency should come back with questions, not just a price. Expect a discovery call where they test your assumptions, ask about buyers and sales conversations, and check the goal against the scope. If an agency quotes without asking anything, that tells you how they will run the project. If you're still deciding what kind of partner to brief, read [design agency vs freelancer vs in-house](/insights/design-agency-vs-freelancer-vs-in-house). When the proposals come back, [how to choose a design agency](/insights/how-to-choose-a-design-agency) has a checklist for comparing them. If budget is the open question, [how much a startup website costs](/insights/how-much-does-a-startup-website-cost) gives typical market ranges. #### How does Alterra Studio use your brief? We read the brief before a 30-minute discovery call, then use the call to pressure-test the goal, the audience and the scope. Sometimes the scope gets smaller. Sometimes we recommend doing brand work before the website, or the reverse. The proposal that follows is built around the outcome you described. Our designers cover [brand identity](/services/brand-identity), [websites](/services/website-design-development), [product design](/services/product-design) and [motion and 3D](/services/motion-3d). For companies with ongoing needs, a [design partnership](/services/design-partnership) means you brief us once and the context keeps building, instead of starting from zero every project. Our starting prices are on our [pricing page](/pricing), we show how we work with [AI companies](/industries/ai), and our [glossary](/glossary) defines the terms agencies use in proposals. #### The short version - Brief the business situation and the goal, not just a list of deliverables. - Include audience, problem, past attempts, constraints, timeline, budget range and decision makers. - Share references with reasons, including what you want to avoid. - Invite the agency to challenge your scope. Their questions tell you how they think. - Use the template above and keep it to one to three pages. Want a head start on your brief? The free 12-question [Brand & Website Scorecard](/scorecard) highlights where your brand and site need the most work. Or [book a 30-minute call](/connect) and bring your brief, finished or not. #### Sources Checked October 2, 2026. - Clutch, [Web Design Company Pricing Guide 2026](https://clutch.co/web-designers/pricing) (published January 30, 2025). - US Copyright Office, [Circular 30: Works Made for Hire](https://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ30.pdf) (revised August 2024). - AIGA, [Standard Form of Agreement for Design Services](https://www.aiga.org/resources/aiga-standard-form-of-agreement-for-design-services) (updated 2020). **How long should a design brief be?** One to three pages is usually enough. Long enough to give real context, short enough that every person on the agency team will actually read it. Link to supporting material rather than pasting it in. **Should I share my budget in the brief?** Yes, as a range. It lets the agency propose the scope that gives you the most value for that budget instead of guessing. Hiding the budget usually leads to proposals that are either too small to work or too big to approve. **What if I don't know what I need yet?** Brief the problem and the goal, and say clearly that you want the agency's recommendation on scope. A good agency will ask questions on a discovery call and propose the right deliverables. **Should I send the brief to several agencies?** Sending the same brief to two or three shortlisted agencies is reasonable and makes proposals easier to compare. Sending it to ten wastes your time on calls and rarely improves the outcome. ### How much does a website cost for a SaaS or AI startup in 2026? URL: https://alterra.studio/insights/how-much-does-a-startup-website-cost Author: Ryan Hofmann. Published 2026-10-01, updated 2026-10-02. A website for a funded SaaS or AI startup in 2026 typically costs anywhere from a few thousand dollars for a template or freelancer build to $15,000–$60,000 with a boutique studio, and $60,000–$150,000+ with an established agency. The right number depends less on page count and more on what the site has to do: raise trust with investors, convert enterprise buyers, explain a complex product, or support a launch. Price your site against the outcome it must deliver, not the number of pages it contains. #### Why is it so hard to get a straight answer on website pricing? If you've asked three providers for a quote, you probably got three numbers that look unrelated. One freelancer said $6,000. A studio said $35,000. An agency sent a deck and said "it depends." Most quotes are built from different assumptions about what you're buying. Some providers price a set of pages. Others price a strategy, a design system and a build. Some include copywriting, illustration, motion and CMS setup. Others treat all of that as extras you'll discover later. Until you know what is included, the number on its own tells you very little. #### What are the typical website cost ranges by provider type? For a public benchmark, Clutch's 2026 web design pricing guide says most web design projects reviewed on its platform cost under $10,000, with an average of about $38,105 across verified reviews and typical US agency rates of $100 to $149 per hour. A custom marketing site for a funded tech company usually sits above that common band. The table below shows typical ranges we see quoted for that kind of site. They aren't hard rules, and your scope can push any of them up or down. | Provider type | Typical range (USD) | Timeline | What you usually get | Best fit | |---|---|---|---|---| | Template / DIY | $0–$3,000 | Days to 2 weeks | A theme with your logo, colors and copy dropped in | Pre-launch waitlists, side projects | | Freelancer | $3,000–$15,000 | 3–8 weeks | One person's design and build, quality varies widely | Simple sites with clear content and a tight budget | | Boutique studio | $15,000–$60,000 | 4–10 weeks | Strategy, custom design, development, CMS, often motion | Seed to Series B companies that need to look credible fast | | Established agency | $60,000–$150,000+ | 3–6 months | Larger teams, research phases, extensive process and documentation | Late-stage companies with complex stakeholder groups | A few notes on reading this table: - **The ranges overlap on purpose.** A senior freelancer can out-deliver a junior agency team. Who does the work matters more than the label. - **Timeline is a cost.** A site that takes five months to ship costs you five months of weaker positioning, slower sales conversations and fundraising with an outdated story. - **Agency overhead is real.** Larger agencies carry account management, project management and layers of review. Sometimes you need that. Often a funded startup doesn't. #### What drives the cost of a startup website? Page count is the least useful predictor. Here is what moves the number: - **Messaging readiness.** If your positioning is still fuzzy, someone has to do that work before design starts. That's strategy time, and it's the most valuable part of most projects. - **Brand maturity.** A site built on a strong existing brand is faster than one that has to invent a visual language as it goes. If your brand needs work, see [our brand identity service](/services/brand-identity) or read [when a startup should rebrand](/insights/when-should-a-startup-rebrand). - **Product complexity.** AI and developer products are hard to show. Explaining them often needs custom diagrams, product UI recreations, interactive demos or motion. - **Custom motion and 3D.** Hero animations, product walkthroughs and scroll-driven sequences add real design and engineering time. They also have to load fast: web.dev treats a Largest Contentful Paint of 2.5 seconds or less as good. - **CMS and content structure.** A blog, changelog, case studies, careers and docs each need templates and editing workflows. - **Platform choice.** Framer, Webflow and a coded Next.js build have different setup costs and different long-term costs. We compare them in [Framer vs Webflow vs Next.js](/insights/framer-vs-webflow-vs-nextjs). If you're replacing a site that already ranks, budget for the migration too: see [how to redesign without losing SEO](/insights/website-redesign-without-losing-seo). - **Integrations.** Forms routed to your CRM, analytics, product sign-up flows, localization and gated content all add scope. - **Copywriting.** Many quotes assume you'll supply finished copy. Most founders don't have it, and copy written in a rush weakens even a good design. #### What do you get at each price level? **At the low end**, you get a site that exists. It looks like many other sites built on the same template. It works for a waitlist. It struggles when a VP of Engineering at a target account visits after a cold email and tries to understand, in fifteen seconds, why your product is different. Nielsen Norman Group's analysis of page dwell times found that users often leave within 10 to 20 seconds unless a page communicates its value proposition within 10. **In the middle**, from a good freelancer or studio, you should get a site that's designed around your positioning. The structure follows how your buyers make decisions. The visuals are specific to your brand. The CMS lets your team publish without a developer. **At the top**, you're paying for depth: research, multiple stakeholder rounds, extensive documentation and larger teams. This is valuable when many people need to agree and the site spans products, regions or audiences. Pick the tier that matches the job your site has to do in the next 12 to 18 months. #### Why is pricing by pages the wrong way to think about it? Pricing by pages treats a website like a print order: more pages, more cost. That framing pushes founders toward the wrong decisions. You cut the pages that would answer buyer objections. You skip the case study template. You accept a homepage that says what every competitor says because "it's only one page." A better lens is to start from what the site must achieve and work backward: 1. **What is the site for in the next year?** Closing a round, supporting outbound sales, converting product-led sign-ups, recruiting senior engineers, launching a new product? 2. **Who has to be convinced?** Investors, technical evaluators, economic buyers, candidates? 3. **What does a win look like?** More demo requests, higher sign-up conversion, shorter sales cycles, fewer "so what do you actually do?" questions on calls? 4. **What would it cost you if the site doesn't do this?** A weaker round, slower pipeline or a launch that lands quietly is usually far more expensive than the site. Framed this way, the budget conversation gets easier: you're paying for a site that has to help close deals and a round. #### How do you avoid overpaying or underpaying? - **Ask what is included, line by line.** Strategy, copy, design, development, CMS, motion, QA, SEO setup, analytics, training and post-launch support. - **Ask who does the work.** Senior people on the call and junior people on the files is a common pattern. - **Ask how they handle the next six months.** Your site will need new pages, launches and tests. A partner who knows your system will be faster and cheaper than starting over each time. - **Look for proof in your category.** Work for funded tech companies is different from work for local businesses. - **Don't buy the cheapest build you'll have to redo.** Rebuilding a site within a year is the most expensive option of all. #### How does Alterra Studio scope a website project? Websites are part of our Brand + Website Build, or a Launch Sprint when you need one landing page. Both have published starting prices on our [pricing page](/pricing). We fix the exact price in a written scope after a 30-minute discovery call, where we look at your current site, your positioning, what you need the site to achieve and how fast you need it. From there, we propose a scope built around the outcome: the pages and systems that do real work, the motion or product visuals your product needs to be understood, and a platform that fits who will edit it. The people who design your brand and site also build it and make the motion, so nothing gets passed between separate vendors. You can see how this works on our [website design and development service](/services/website-design-development), in the [Kaveree](/projects/kaveree) and [Then & Theory](/projects/then-and-theory) sites, and in our [results](/results). See how we work with [SaaS](/industries/saas) and [AI companies](/industries/ai), and our glossary for terms like [CMS](/glossary#cms) and [LCP](/glossary#lcp). If you need ongoing work after launch, many clients move into a [design partnership](/services/design-partnership) so new pages and launches ship on the same system. #### The short version - Clutch puts most web design projects under $10,000, with an average near $38,105. Typical ranges we see quoted for funded tech companies: under $3,000 for templates, $3,000–$15,000 for freelancers, $15,000–$60,000 for boutique studios, $60,000–$150,000+ for established agencies. - Page count is a weak predictor. Messaging readiness, brand maturity, product complexity, motion and CMS needs drive real cost. - Price the site against what it must achieve: funding, pipeline, conversion, hiring. - Ask what is included and who does the work before comparing quotes. Not sure where your current site stands? Take the free 12-question [Brand & Website Scorecard](/scorecard) to see where it helps and where it costs you. If you already know it's time, [book a 30-minute call](/connect) and we'll tell you what we would build and why. #### Sources Checked October 2, 2026. - Clutch, [Web Design Company Pricing Guide 2026](https://clutch.co/web-designers/pricing) (published January 30, 2025). - Nielsen Norman Group, [How Long Do Users Stay on Web Pages?](https://www.nngroup.com/articles/how-long-do-users-stay-on-web-pages/) (September 12, 2011). - web.dev, [Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)](https://web.dev/articles/lcp). **Is a template site good enough for a seed-stage startup?** It can be for a pre-launch waitlist or a very early product. Once you're raising, selling to enterprise buyers or running paid acquisition, a template usually starts costing more in lost trust and conversion than a custom site would cost to build. **How long does a custom startup website take to build?** Most focused marketing sites for SaaS and AI companies take somewhere between four and ten weeks from kickoff to launch, depending on how ready the messaging, brand and content are when the project starts. **Should I pay for the website and brand at the same time?** If your brand is weak or outdated, yes. Building a new website on a brand you plan to replace in six months means paying for design twice. Doing both together keeps the system consistent and usually shortens the total timeline. **What ongoing costs should I budget after launch?** Plan for hosting and CMS fees, plus design and development time for new pages, launches and experiments. Many startups handle this through a retainer or design partnership rather than one-off requests. ### Framer vs Webflow vs Next.js: which should your startup site use? URL: https://alterra.studio/insights/framer-vs-webflow-vs-nextjs Author: Ryan Hofmann. Published 2026-10-01, updated 2026-10-02. For most seed to Series A SaaS and AI startups, Framer is the fastest way to launch a high-quality marketing site that non-developers can edit. Webflow is the better pick when you need a larger, structured CMS and a marketing team that publishes often. Next.js is right when the website is part of the product, needs custom logic or demos, or your engineering team wants full control and will own it long term. #### Why does this decision feel harder than it should? Every platform has loud advocates. Developers say no-code tools are toys. Designers say coded sites make marketing wait weeks for a text change. Agencies often recommend whatever they happen to build in. You end up choosing a platform based on who you talked to last, not on what your company needs. Ask a different question: who will change this site, how often, and what does it need to do in the next 18 months? The answer usually makes the choice for you. #### What is the difference between Framer, Webflow and Next.js? Plain definitions first: - **Framer** is a visual website builder with a design-tool feel. You design and publish in the same place, with built-in hosting, CMS, animation and localization. - **Webflow** is a visual development platform. It exposes more of the underlying HTML and CSS structure, has a mature CMS, and includes hosting and an editor for content teams. - **Next.js** is a React framework, which its docs describe as a framework for building full-stack web applications. Your site is code in a repository, deployed to a host such as Vercel, usually connected to a headless CMS like Sanity, Contentful or similar. #### How do Framer, Webflow and Next.js compare? | Factor | Framer | Webflow | Next.js | |---|---|---|---| | Speed to launch | Fastest. Design and build are close to one step | Fast, a bit slower than Framer for custom layouts | Slowest. Design, then build, then CMS wiring | | Who edits | Designers and marketers, visually | Marketers via Editor, designers in Designer | Developers for layout, marketers via headless CMS | | CMS | Good for blogs, case studies, changelogs. Simpler data models | Strong. Collections, references, filtering, larger content volumes | Anything you want, via a headless CMS. Most flexible, most setup | | Animation and motion | Excellent. Scroll, hover and page transitions are native | Good. Interactions panel and GSAP support, steeper learning curve | Unlimited, but every animation is engineering time | | SEO | Solid fundamentals. Meta, sitemaps, clean URLs, fast hosting | Solid fundamentals with fine-grained control | Full control, including rendering strategy and structured data | | Integrations | Embeds, forms, common plugins. Limited custom logic | Wider ecosystem, Logic, Apps, more API access | Unlimited. Connect to your app, auth, data and APIs | | Cost of ownership | Low. Plan fees, little engineering time | Low to moderate. Plan fees, some specialist time | Highest. Hosting is cheap, engineering time isn't | | Main risk | Outgrowing it if the site becomes an app | Complexity creep in large builds without a system | Marketing waits on engineering for simple changes | | Choose it when | You need a premium site fast and a small team will edit it | Content volume is high and a marketing team publishes weekly | The site needs product logic, demos or deep app integration | #### When should a startup choose Framer? Framer fits when speed and polish matter most. That's most early-stage companies: - You're launching, rebranding or raising, and the site needs to look credible within weeks. - Your team is small and designers or marketers will make most of the changes. - Motion matters to your story. Framer makes high-quality animation cheap to add and change. - Your CMS needs are a blog, case studies, careers and maybe a changelog. Where Framer gets uncomfortable is complex, relational content, heavy custom functionality, or a site that's slowly turning into a web app. Its limits are published: with add-ons, the Pro plan goes up to 40,000 CMS items, 40 CMS collections and 700 pages, according to Framer's pricing FAQ. #### When should a startup choose Webflow? Webflow fits when content is a growth channel and the marketing team is publishing constantly: - You have hundreds of CMS items: blog posts, integrations pages, templates, glossary terms, comparison pages. - You need relationships between content types, like authors, categories and product areas. - Several marketers need to edit safely without breaking layouts. - You want visual building with more control over structure than Framer offers. Check the plan before you commit. Webflow's Basic site plan ($15 a month, billed yearly) is for simple sites that don't need a CMS, and the Premium plan ($25 a month, billed yearly) adds the Webflow CMS. Webflow sites stay healthy when they're built on a clear class system and component library. Without that, they get fragile as they grow. #### When should a startup choose Next.js? Next.js fits when the website isn't just marketing: - You want live product demos, interactive playgrounds or model outputs on the site. - The marketing site shares components, auth or data with your product. - You need custom rendering, complex localization or programmatic pages generated from your own data. - Your engineering team has the capacity and the interest to own the site. The cost is speed. If a headline change requires a pull request, marketing will slow down. A well-built headless CMS reduces that, but someone still has to build and maintain it. #### What do most startups get wrong when choosing? - **Choosing for a future that may not arrive.** "We might need custom logic someday" isn't a reason to pay for code-level maintenance today. Rebuilding later, with real requirements, is often cheaper, as long as you plan the redirects. See [how to redesign without losing SEO](/insights/website-redesign-without-losing-seo). - **Letting engineering own the marketing site by default.** Engineers are expensive and busy with the product. Marketing sites built in code tend to go stale because nobody wants the ticket. - **Ignoring who edits.** If the person updating the site every week can't do it without help, the platform is wrong, no matter how good it looks in a demo. - **Treating the platform as the strategy.** No tool fixes unclear positioning. A sharp message on Framer will do more than a vague one on a custom stack. #### How do you decide in five minutes? Ask these in order: 1. Does the site need to run product logic, demos or share code with your app? If yes, Next.js. 2. Will you publish a high volume of structured content each month? If yes, Webflow. 3. Otherwise, Framer is very likely the fastest path to a strong site your team can run. Cost also differs by platform, mostly in build time and long-term engineering. We break that down in [how much a startup website costs](/insights/how-much-does-a-startup-website-cost). #### How does Alterra Studio pick a platform? We build in Framer, Webflow and Next.js, so we don't have a reason to push one. We pick based on who will edit the site, what it needs to do and how fast it needs to ship. For most early-stage marketing sites we recommend Framer or Webflow, and Next.js when the site needs product demos or app integration. Because the same senior team handles [brand identity](/services/brand-identity), [website design and development](/services/website-design-development) and [motion](/services/motion-3d), the platform decision is made with the design and content system in mind, not after the fact. You can see the kind of work this produces in our [results](/results), how we work with [SaaS companies](/industries/saas), and starting prices on our [pricing page](/pricing). Our glossary defines terms like [headless CMS](/glossary#headless-cms). #### The short version - Framer: fastest launch, excellent motion, easy editing. Right for most seed to Series A marketing sites. - Webflow: stronger CMS for content-heavy sites with an active marketing team. - Next.js: right when the website needs product logic, demos or deep app integration, and engineering will own it. - Choose based on who edits the site and what it must do in the next 18 months, not on what you might need someday. - The platform doesn't fix positioning. Get the message right first. Want a second opinion on your current setup? Take the free [Brand & Website Scorecard](/scorecard) for a quick read on where your site stands, or [book a 30-minute call](/connect) and we'll recommend a platform for your situation. #### Sources Checked October 2, 2026. - Framer, [Pricing and plan FAQ](https://www.framer.com/pricing/). - Webflow, [Pricing](https://webflow.com/pricing), site plans. - Next.js, [Docs: What is Next.js?](https://nextjs.org/docs). **Can I migrate from Framer or Webflow to Next.js later?** Yes, but it's a rebuild, not an export. Design files and content can carry over, while templates, interactions and CMS structure need to be rebuilt in code. Plan for it as a project, not a weekend task. **Is Framer good for SEO?** Framer handles the fundamentals well: pre-rendered HTML, custom meta tags, clean URLs, sitemaps and fast hosting. For most startup marketing sites it isn't the limiting factor. Content quality and site structure matter more. **Do I need a developer to maintain a Webflow site?** Not for day-to-day content. Marketers can edit pages and CMS items in the Editor. You will want a Webflow-experienced designer or developer for new templates, complex interactions and structural changes. **Which platform is best for an AI startup specifically?** Most AI startups are well served by Framer or Webflow for the marketing site. Choose Next.js when the site needs live product demos, interactive model outputs or deep integration with your app and auth. ### Design agency vs freelancer vs in-house: what should a startup choose? URL: https://alterra.studio/insights/design-agency-vs-freelancer-vs-in-house Author: Ryan Hofmann. Published 2026-10-01, updated 2026-10-02. For most funded startups, the right choice depends on how continuous and how broad your design needs are. A freelancer is best for a single, well-defined task. A small senior agency or design partner is best when you need brand, website, product and launch work done fast and consistently. An in-house designer becomes the right call once design is a daily, core function and you already have a system for them to own. Many startups end up combining an in-house designer with an external partner. #### Why is this decision so easy to get wrong? You've just raised. The website looks early, the product UI is a patchwork, a launch is coming and sales wants a new deck. Everyone agrees you need design help. The debate becomes: hire someone, find a freelancer, or bring in an agency? Most founders compare these on price per hour or annual salary. That misses the real costs. The expensive part of design is rarely the designer's rate. It's the coordination, the ramp-up time, the handoffs between people and the work that gets redone because nobody owned the whole system. #### How do agencies, freelancers and in-house designers compare? | Factor | Freelancer | Design agency or partner | In-house designer | |---|---|---|---| | Speed to start | Fast, if available | Fast, usually within a couple of weeks | Slow. Hiring often takes months | | Range of skills | Usually one or two disciplines | Brand, web, product, motion and development under one roof | One person's strengths, plus growth over time | | Seniority | Varies widely | Senior team at a good studio, junior staff at some larger agencies | Depends on what you can attract and afford | | Context on your business | Low, rebuilt each project | Builds over time, strongest on ongoing engagements | Highest, they live in it daily | | Management load on you | High. You brief, coordinate and QA | Lower. The team manages itself and the handoffs | Moderate. Needs leadership, feedback and career path | | Cost structure | Hourly or per project | Project fee or monthly retainer | Salary, benefits, equity, tools, recruiting | | Flexibility | High, but availability is unpredictable | High. Scale up or down month to month | Low. A fixed commitment | | Best for | One clear deliverable | High-stakes, multi-discipline work on a deadline | Continuous product design at scale | #### What are the hidden costs founders miss? ##### Coordination cost If you hire a brand freelancer, a web developer, a motion designer and a product designer separately, someone has to brief all of them, keep the work consistent and make the final calls. That someone is usually the founder. An hour of founder time spent art directing is an hour not spent selling, hiring or raising. ##### Ramp-up cost Every new person needs to learn your product, your buyers, your positioning and your taste. With project-based freelancers, you pay that ramp-up again on every project. With a new hire, it can take months before they're fully productive. ##### Handoff cost Brand to website, website to product, design to development. Every handoff loses detail. The logo gets used at the wrong size, the website type doesn't match the product, the developer "interprets" the design. Fixing those gaps is real work that nobody budgets for. ##### Hiring cost An in-house hire comes with recruiting time, salary, benefits, equity, tools and management. The BLS reports May 2025 median wages of $62,960 for graphic designers and $104,000 for web and digital interface designers, and benefits make up about 30% of total compensation costs for private-industry employers. A designer at the $104,000 median costs roughly $148,600 a year before recruiting, tools and equity. If the hire is wrong, you pay all of that again. A first designer is also often expected to cover brand, web, product and motion, which is very hard for one person to do well. #### What should a startup choose at each stage? **Pre-seed and seed.** You need a credible brand, a website that explains the product and a deck that holds up in investor meetings. Work is bursty and high-stakes. A senior studio or design partner usually gives the most leverage. A strong freelancer works if the scope is narrow. **Series A.** Product design becomes continuous. Launches get bigger. This is often the right moment for a first in-house product designer, supported by an external partner for brand, website and launch work. The in-house hire focuses on the product, the partner keeps everything else consistent. **Series B and beyond.** You likely have an in-house design team. External partners are most valuable for specialist work such as launch films, 3D and motion, major rebrands, and for extra capacity during peaks. #### How do you decide in practice? Answer three questions: 1. **Is the need continuous or bursty?** Continuous, daily product work points to in-house. Bursty, high-stakes work points to a partner. 2. **How many disciplines are involved?** One discipline can be a freelancer. Three or more usually needs a team that shares one system. 3. **Who will manage the work?** If the honest answer is "the CEO, in between everything else," choose the option with the lowest management load. #### What is the middle option between agency and hire? There is a model that sits between a project agency and an in-house hire: an ongoing design partnership. A senior, multi-discipline team works with you month to month, keeps the context, and ships across brand, website, product and launches without re-briefing every time. We explain the model in more detail in [what is a design partner](/insights/what-is-a-design-partner), and compare it with a request-queue service in [design subscription vs design partner](/compare/design-subscription-vs-design-partner). It doesn't replace a great in-house designer. It often works best alongside one, or as the bridge until you're ready to hire. #### How does Alterra Studio fit into this? Alterra Studio is a full-stack design and development partner for funded tech, SaaS, AI and Web3 companies. The same senior designers cover [brand identity](/services/brand-identity), [websites](/services/website-design-development), [product design](/services/product-design) and [launch video, motion and 3D](/services/motion-3d). Clients can work with us on a single project or through an ongoing [design partnership](/services/design-partnership). We hold a 5.0 rating on Clutch across three verified reviews. Everreach Labs, who work with us on an annual partnership, put it simply: "we get immense value from Ryan and his team." Clutch reviews are checked by human editors before they're published, and Clutch says it rejected 10% of submitted reviews in 2025 for signs of falsified information, which makes it a fair place to start vetting any agency. Our [checklist for choosing a design agency](/insights/how-to-choose-a-design-agency) covers the rest, and our guide on [how to brief a design agency](/insights/how-to-brief-a-design-agency) will save you time either way. Starting prices are on our [pricing page](/pricing), we show how we work with [SaaS companies](/industries/saas), and our [glossary](/glossary) defines the terms used here. #### The short version - Freelancers are best for single, well-defined deliverables. - A senior agency or design partner is best for multi-discipline, high-stakes work on a deadline. - In-house designers are best once design is continuous and core, ideally with a system to inherit. - The real costs are coordination, ramp-up and handoffs, not the hourly rate. - Many funded startups combine an in-house designer with an external partner. Want to see where design is costing you most right now? Take the free 12-question [Brand & Website Scorecard](/scorecard), or [book a 30-minute call](/connect) and we'll help you decide what to hire for and what to partner on. #### Sources Checked October 2, 2026. - US Bureau of Labor Statistics, [Occupational Outlook Handbook: Graphic Designers](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/arts-and-design/graphic-designers.htm) (last modified August 27, 2026). - US Bureau of Labor Statistics, [Occupational Outlook Handbook: Web Developers and Digital Designers](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/web-developers.htm). - US Bureau of Labor Statistics, [Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, June 2026](https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.nr0.htm) (released September 9, 2026). - Clutch, [Methodology and review verification](https://clutch.co/methodology). **When should a startup hire its first in-house designer?** Usually when product design work is continuous and core to the roadmap, often around Series A, and when you can give that person a clear brand and design system to work within. Hiring before that often means one person is asked to cover five disciplines. **Can a freelancer and an agency work together?** Yes, but someone has to own the system and the handoffs. Without a clear owner, you get inconsistent work and the founder ends up as the creative director by default. **How do I evaluate a design agency's quality?** Look for work with companies at your stage and in your category, ask who will do the work, read verified reviews, and ask how they handle feedback and changes mid-project. ## FAQ **Who is Alterra Studio best for?** Funded tech, SaaS, AI and Web3 teams at a turning point: raising, launching, repositioning, or outgrowing how they look. If your product has moved faster than your brand, website or launch creative, we're built for you. If you need a quick, low-cost logo or a template site, we're probably not the right fit. **What can you help with?** Brand identity and guidelines, website design and development (Framer, Webflow or Next.js), product and UI/UX design, launch videos, motion and 3D, and ongoing creative for marketing and sales. The same senior designers carry it from strategy to build. **How much does it cost?** Projects start at $10k. Launch Sprint: from $10k. Brand + Website Build: from $25k. Design Partnership: from $8k/mo. The Brand & Website Diagnostic is $3,000, and the full fee comes off any project you book with us within 30 days. We price on what the work has to achieve, not hours, and your exact price is fixed in a written scope before anything starts. **What happens if the scope changes?** The price in your written scope only changes if the scope does. If you want to add or change something, we scope and price it in writing first, and nothing starts until you approve it. **Do you work on projects or ongoing?** Both. Fixed-scope projects suit launches, rebrands and website builds. A monthly design partnership suits teams that need senior design across brand, web, product and launches every month without hiring. **How fast can you start?** We confirm a start date on the call. Launch-critical work is planned backwards from your date, with the storyboard or direction signed off early so there are no surprises late. **Who will actually do the work?** Senior designers and developers, coordinated by one lead who owns your account. No juniors learning on your project and no account-manager layer between you and the people doing the work. **Who owns the work?** You do. Once paid, the final deliverables made for you are yours, with organized source files and documentation your team can keep building on. Fonts, stock and other third-party assets stay under their own licenses. **Do you design for conversion, and will a redesign hurt our SEO?** Looking good is the starting point; the site's job is to explain the product and book calls. Before a rebuild we record your current traffic, rankings and key pages, map every old URL to its new home with redirects, and carry over titles and metadata. After launch we check the numbers against that starting point. **Can you work with our in-house team?** Yes. We can lead a project end to end, support your designers and marketers, or work alongside your engineers on design systems, handoff and build reviews. **What happens on the discovery call?** We start with your business: where it is, where it's going and what's in the way. Then we look at how brand, website, product or launch creative can close that gap. You leave with a recommended scope and next steps, even if we're not the right fit.