There are a plethora of reasons to outsource web development projects. Indeed, outsourcing is nothing new; between 35% and 40% of all businesses have done so, while more than 50% intend to follow. Reducing costs tends to be a primary motive, but there is much more to this subject than that alone. Furthermore, while outsourcing generally adheres to the same rules across the board, web development projects have some unique characteristics to note. Thus, let us explore outsourcing web development projects in more depth.
Outsourcing: Drivers and Benefits
First, I’d like to touch on the most frequent reasons – and potential advantages – of outsourcing in general.
Reducing workload and redirecting focus. Any business of any size may find itself overburdened with its workload. Strict time frames, limited resources, and other factors can cause one to lose sight of where their focus should be. Outsourcing web development projects can lessen this burden and let your business focus on more primary concerns.
Reducing costs and accessing an international workforce. There is no denying that outsourcing can reduce costs. Accessing an international workforce can reduce recruitment costs and let you work with specialists for that one task you need most. What’s more, such hires often don’t come with nationally mandated insurance, benefits, and other usual costs.
Improving creative control and driving substantial change. Finally, a more concise team can allow you to have better creative control over your projects. Hiring specialists for specific tasks – as long as a project manager supervises them – can effectively enable this. Lastly, new perspectives, expertise, and skills your in-house team may lack can better suit substantial change you may want to strive for.
Before outsourcing web development
Establish clear business goals. As with any business endeavor, you should be prepared and have a clear vision. You should know exactly what your business goals are and who can best suit your needs in this context. For example, if your WordPress website has to be taken care of, you should likely approach teams that focus on WordPress and web design. However, if you need to approach the mobile market, you will likely need a different team with a different skill set.
Find the right company, freelancer, or outsourcing provider. With your goals and budget in hand, you should identify who is best for you. You may need to contact an agency or a freelancer depending on your specific needs. The former can be found across the web, and the latter in such marketplaces as Fivver and Freelancer. In either case, consider the following qualifications and credentials for your potential candidates:
- Portfolio, experience, overall client record
- Skill sets, specialization
- Reviews, client testimonials, company account, and social media presence
During the project. After finding your ideal candidates and beginning your collaboration, remember that outsourcing web development projects requires continuous oversight.
Communication is key. Leaving your project entirely up to your new partners is ill-advised. Instead, you should strive to maintain constant communication so that your needs are met. Consider such communication apps and options as the following:
- Slack
- GitHub
- Dropbox
Such asynchronous means of communication should bypass the usual timezone differences and let you stay informed.
A project manager is invaluable. Directly tied to the above is the need for a project manager. When the explicit goal of outsourcing web development projects is often to reduce costs and increase productivity, a lack of organization can be damaging. Having a project manager oversee operations can prevent such troubles and ensure your collective efforts remain focused and efficient.
Having a contract can be a safeguard. Lastly, you may alleviate security concerns by signing a non-disclosure agreement (NDA). Outsourcing web development projects without such contracts can entail risks, such as having strategies, code, and other information shared with competitors and third parties. An NDA is thus highly advisable.