Many businesses have started looking at outsourcing as a way to get things done. One of the most popular services to outsource is website design and development. The reason this is such a popular service is that everything pertaining to web development can be done remotely.
There’s no reason to onboard and deal with payroll and HR when you can simply outsource web design to someone else and have a beautiful product afterward. With that being said, there are pros and cons to everything. I talked with web dev pros at The Site Helpers in order to get some advice for businesses that are thinking about outsourcing their web design.
The Site Helpers recommends taking a long hard look at your exact needs before outsourcing your website design. You should know whether you need to have a static website that simply displays your services and prices or if you need extra things like a blog, shopping cart, or even user accounts.
Knowing all of these things beforehand will make shopping around for a freelancer much easier. You’ll be able to easily convey your needs and get a much better idea of the pricing.
Another thing you should consider is how much maintenance you need on your website. The Site Helpers gave me a fantastic rule of thumb. If your website is just a static page, it will be much lower maintenance.
And it will be extremely easy to change when the time comes. However, if your website is complicated, then it will be much more difficult to update and customize, and you will likely need to outsource the work every time.
Depending on your preference and how well the initial site is built, this could be a good or bad idea. The Site Helpers believes that it’s important not to take any shortcuts. Otherwise, you may be hurt in the long term.
It’s important to know all of your options. With services like Shopify, Wix, and Squarespace, you may be able to create your entire website yourself. This may not be ideal for everyone, but most of these services have a free trial to take advantage of and find out if the service works for you.
The Site Helpers says the main disadvantage of using these services is that you end up at their mercy in the end. They could have an update that breaks your site or just one day decide they no longer want to host it. Still, they quickly make it very easy to get a prototype off the ground.
Another thing to keep in mind when deciding whether to outsource or not is how much time you can dedicate to your web design. If you can spend time designing and micromanaging your website development every day, then you can hire a less experienced developer and help them build.
However, if you’re extremely busy, there’s nothing wrong with relying on pros.
Last but absolutely not least, you need to keep your budget in mind. The Site Helpers gave me a rundown, and most of the time, it will be much cheaper to outsource a website’s design and development.
Most of the time, you’ll be able to build the website and let it sit there with very little maintenance for most of the year. Many contractors will even agree to perform annual maintenance for a small fee if they’ve built the site.
If you’re on a tight budget, outsourcing and avoiding employee costs is the way to go.
Read Next: The Site Helpers: Why I Love Using Their Learning Content – FeedYes.com
