Web Development: Should You Hire An Agency or A Freelancer For Your Business

Every business needs a website to have a successful online presence. This is an undeniable fact. However, simply having a website is not enough to be successful online. A good website must be built with the right combination of usability, visual design, content etc.

That being said, developing a website requires so much time and effort. If you don’t have the experience, knowledge, skills and resources to do it on your own, should you hire someone to build it for you?

Before you start your search of who’s going to build your website, it is important that you understand the fundamental differences among types of web developers. Well, there are a few different options, but mainly it boils down to two options:

 1. Freelance web developer

 2. Web design/dev company  

Basically, web development is a complicated process of building a website that consists of several phases: web design, web development, content creation, SEO etc. In this article we will try to figure out the advantages and disadvantages of hiring a freelancer and compare them to the benefits of hiring an agency.

What Is A Freelancer?

A freelancer is a self-employed individual who works as a web designer, developer, content writer or even a blogger. A freelancer does not work for a business long term.

Advantages of Hiring a Freelancer

• Communication. When working with a freelancer, that person is responsible only for themselves and their own scope of work. You will only be in contact with him or her throughout the whole process.

• Lower Prices. Since most freelancers work alone and prefer to work from the comfort of their home, their expenses are much lower than that of an agency, who will have to include the cost of staff and office space into their fees. This means hiring a freelancer are cheaper than that of an agency.

• Flexibility. Oftentimes, freelancers work odd hours, so you can pretty much contact them with an update/question at any hour of any day and you’ll likely hear back within the hour.

Disadvantages of Hiring a Freelancer

• Availability. A freelancer will always work on multiple projects at the same time. I.e., they’ve got a day job. This will make any changes you require to take a long time to implement.

• Low quality of end product. Freelancers can be quick and cheap but there is a high chance that they wouldn’t be able to fix all your issues and it can badly impact the quality of the work delivered.

Now that the advantages and disadvantages of hiring a freelancer are clear, let us look at advantages and disadvantages of hiring an outsourcing agency.

Benefits of Hiring an Agency

• Collective expertise. A web development company carries a whole team of experienced individuals with different and latest digital marketing skill sets. Your end product will be made by more than one professional with expertise in more than one area including design, programming, coding content writing and SEO

• Continuous support. After launch of your website, an agency won’t leave your site as is. They will be around to provide you with ongoing support and maintenance.

• Reliability. An agency has long-term goals, so it works hard to provide the best service to its clients and build its reputation. The web design and development agency have a whole keep you updated on every stage about the website project.

• Efficiency. An agency has the multiple staff to work on multiple parts of the project at once. This enables projects to be completed at a faster. An agency can also support a wider variety of design, tech and marketing requirements.

• Stability. An agency is a legal business entity. They provide contacts and other documents regarding the website project to make sure they are reliable partners.

Disadvantages of Hiring a Company

• Higher cost. Agencies are typically more expensive than freelancers. Employing an agency that comprises a team is nearly always more expensive than hiring a single person, but in doing so, you are hiring a managed and controlled team of professionals who should deliver professional results.

Outsourcing Agency VS Freelance Developer

Now that we are familiar with advantages and disadvantages of both freelancers and outsourcing agencies, the bottom line is simple

With a web developer agency, you get what you paid for. With a freelancer, you’ll get the work for half the price.

What else is there to talk about, this is basically it. We won’t draw any conclusion which option the best for your business is. The choice depends on many factors, so before making your decision make sure to evaluate your goals, requirements, your budget, and your time-frame.