Web Design Company or A Freelancer?

Practically, business owners often get stuck between a web design agency and a freelancer because both market the same services and skills. As a business owner, you just want an attractive web design at a better rate that gives your business leverage over your competitors. Choosing between a web design company and a freelancer depends on your web design requirements, budget, etc. 

To help you out in this matter, we have curated a list that will put you in a better position to choose which one is better for you. Let’s start.

Specialized Expertise

A massive advantage of hiring a web design team is that each person is a master of a specific skill like web design, web security, search engine optimization (SEO), etc. Also, they hire quality people and make their skills exceptional under expert supervision. An extraordinary web design team learns and adapts new tools and technologies to provide better services. 

On the other hand, a freelancer is a jack of all trades. He is a web designer, an SEO guy, and a web security expert. He is a generalist, not a specialist. Also, he is his own critic. If he makes any mistakes, like a security bug in code, nobody will point it out unless he critically finds and fixes it. This can put a business owner at risk as you want your web design perfect.

Costs

Answer to this question: how much can you spend on your web design? is also a massive factor in deciding what route you should take. In the case of a web design agency, you are hiring a team of specialists who can better take care of your requirements, but it will cost you more than hiring a freelancer. 

A freelancer usually comes at a cheaper price, but if you are hiring a pro freelancer, it will cost you nearly as much as a good web design agency. Remember, the more specialized requirements you have for your web design, the more it will cost you. 

Typically, a freelancer charges $400 to $600 or $20 to $50/hour for a starter website while a web design company charges $600 to $1000.  

Stability and Reliability

A web design company strives hard to make a reputation in the industry. It has a more stable team structure, so in emergencies like a cyber attack on your website, you can rest and rely on their abilities to handle the situation. Also, during website development, you would not need to worry about constant delays in delivery or that they will leave the project if a developer is unavailable because you can trust their supervision and expertise. 

Unlike a web design company, you cannot get the same level of stability, trust, and reliability from a freelancer. One reason is that a freelancer is a single person. He cannot compete with the situation-handling abilities of a web design team. 

Also, a freelancer may get sick or decide to close their operations, change their area of expertise, or have other clients to deal with, which can hurt your business. That is why freelancers will never beat web design agencies in reliability and stability. 

Professionalism

Website design agencies and freelancers both act as professionals while providing services. It is up to you whose professionalism you want to choose. You can choose your way by answering a simple question. 

How complex is your web design?

If your website is large, complex, and has several features, you should hire a professional website design company. They have a team of professional web designers and developers who can work on all the features you want in your website by keeping you updated on progress and delivering high-quality web designs on time.

For small, simple, and minimalist web designs, you should hire a freelancer because as a single person, they can work on it more efficiently with better rates and on time than web design teams. Managing complex projects will be a headache for a freelancer, which may cause late delivery of your web design.

Support and Maintenance

A freelancer’s responsibility ends when he delivers the web design. However, you may get extra revisions at some cost, but those will also end. See, a website needs proper maintenance, and you may need occasional support about things like product listing, etc. Would you again find another freelancer?

On the other hand, web design companies come with in-house customer support. They offer support and maintenance to all minor and major issues your website may encounter, like technical glitches and new search engine optimization (SEO) strategies, saving you time and hassle, which helps you focus on business growth. 

Communication

When working with a freelancer, you communicate with the web designer directly throughout the project. This allows smoother and more personalized communication, enabling you to quickly modify, raise, and solve concerns and receive direct feedback. 

On the other hand, with a web design company, you usually communicate with a product manager, who acts as an intermediary between you and the design team. This can create a communication gap with the web designers for your web design visions. 

Conclusion

Whichever route you deem in your favor, make sure you know about the abilities to look for in a web design company or a freelancer. In a nutshell, a web design company is fit for you if you want a delicate, intricate, and immersive design to attract customers, and a freelancer is fit for you if you have a low budget and want a simple design. 

If you are still unsure about your decision, it is always a good idea to ask the best web design companies or freelancers about their services and skills. 

FAQs

What is the difference between a web design company and a freelancer?

Ans: Web design companies have specialized individuals like web designers, SEO experts, web security experts, etc who see relevant aspects of a web design project. A freelancer is a sole proprietor who covers all these roles single-handedly, which makes him less desirable for large and complex projects. 

Why Choose a web design company over a freelancer?

Ans: A web design company has talented teams that can deliver a complex project on a tight deadline and also provide support and maintenance after the website completion. A freelancer cannot do this alone, which gives web design companies a massive advantage over freelancers.

Why are freelancers cheaper to hire?

Ans: Freelancers work remotely and usually do not operate from an office, which cuts their business expenses and allows them to bid lower than web design agencies.