Why work with a web design agency over a freelancer?

You're almost there, you've worked so hard on setting your business up and now all you need is a website so that you can start letting people know more about your services or products. With two routes to go down and a whole host of companies to choose from, we understand that the world of website creation can be overwhelming.

Do you check out the local freelancers in your area to see what they can do? Or should you choose a design agency to get your ideas into motion? With lots of questions going around in your head about what the best option is, we're going to share with you the benefits and the not-so-good bits about working with both to help you make your decision.

Reliability & Reputation

When giving a company or individual a task that's so important as creating your website is, you want to ensure that they are going to be 100% reliable and be able to deliver exactly what you need. It's super important that you feel comfortable giving them a brief and trusting them that they'll do the best job they can. By looking into their portfolio and client testimonials, you can see what type of websites they've created previously as well what their customer's experiences have been.

It can often take time for freelancers to build up a reputation, as they won't have the capability of taking on the number of clients that an agency can and you also need to understand that with an individual freelancer you must take caution of possibly experiencing unexpected events. An illness in freelancing can completely pause a project, where an agency will have a full team working on any given website so the project should never be affected by such an issue.

Communication

Being able to communicate with your designer is crucial as with web design, there can often be plenty of discussions to be had surrounding your needs. Perhaps you've thought of something else to include in your design, or you've received a draft and want to make changes - it's always good for your designers to be available to hear your query and adapt quickly.

With a team of designers at a web agency, there should always be someone available (within working hours) to discuss and answer any of your questions. Whether you've sent an email or you've picked up the telephone, it's more than likely that your query will be answered there and then. However, with freelancers, although there's only one contact which makes the issue of mixed communication impossible, the availability may be an obstacle if the freelancer has other commitments like another job etc.

Costs

Cost is always a huge consideration of everything we do in life. In all walks of our buying lives, we're met with the dilemma of whether we ‘get what we pay for' or we go for the cheaper option - we have to use our initiative and get the best and most cost-effective solution for us.

Freelancers are known to have lower costs due to a number of reasons - whether its low overheads from working from home, less experience to attach a cost too or perhaps they're just starting out in their web design venture. They can often work on an hourly rate as well as having an initial fixed cost which can increase if there are multiple changes/tweaks to be made. A web design agency will most likely be a slightly more expensive option, however, you will be a bit more clear about what is included in the process and whether additional changes are included.

Experience

Experience is a huge factor in web design and can be a real difference on whether your website is basic or specialised to suit the needs of your basis. Most designers have the ability to tweak an already created theme or customise a website via HTML and others will have specialities within various industries.

Freelancers are often quick and work project to project, meaning that if you need something creating quickly they can usually do so. They often have a fantastic skill set so with a good reputation it all should be ok, but what if you ask them something that they can't provide? By working with a team of designers in an agency, you'll be working with a whole range of skillsets, meaning that no challenge should be too small for them to conquer, either as individuals or between themselves.

There are plenty of positives and negatives of working with both sides of the coin. If you're looking for a smooth, hassle-free option when it comes to web design, with an agency you will receive endless support, professional suggestion from a team of qualified web designers. But with a freelancer, you'll receive quick, one-to-one service. All we advise is that you do your own research into individual companies before you invest your cash - don't pay for mistakes that can be easily avoided!

Please get in touch if you would like to see how wayfresh can help you with your web project be it new or reworking your existing platform.