Should You Outsource Web Development & SEO Services?

Your business can probably thrive without a website when your brick-and-mortar location is known to most people in the community. But it does make miles of difference when you have both of a strong physical business location and online presence.

These days, people would look up on the internet first to compare brands and know more about them before making a purchase. So, if your business doesn’t have a website or even social media pages, it’s so easy for consumers to forget about you, especially if your target market consists of young people who are constantly living in the cloud.

No business would want that to happen. In fact, you would do everything you could to avoid that. To start, you need to build your own business website linked to all your official social media pages including your business’ Facebook page, Instagram account, YouTube channel, and some more social media platforms your target market might be frequently hanging out.

“That’s a lot of work. I should probably focus on running my business and finding more clients or customers”, you complain. Okay, okay. We totally understand that. You’re right after all—you should focus more on the most important aspects of your business. Building a website, optimizing its content, and regularly updating it eats up a lot of time. Yes. Lots. Of. It. So what can you do then?

Hire In-House Team or Outsource—Which is Better?

Since designing, building, publishing, and updating a website is a huge, demanding job, you need to admit the fact that you need help to make it happen. Now, you’re confronted with a choice to make: Should you hire in-house staff to manage all the web development and SEO work or outsource these tasks to either independent contractors or a full-service agency?

You’ll need to weigh in both choices. When you hire an in-house staff, they’re automatically under your direction and supervision. They would have ample time to get to know your company better since they’ll work there every day after you’ve hired them. Communication between you and your hired web developers and SEO specialists is much easier since you work in one office.

The most important perk about hiring in-house staff is that you somehow get a measure of their loyalty. Since they’re working exclusively for your company, they are more committed to coming up with a website that is unique and best represents your brand. They would do their best to rise above the competition—giving you the best possible quality of content to the best of their abilities.

However, huge downsides and risks may also come along those big advantages. The biggest disadvantage of which involves your finances. Hiring a full-time in-house staff is costly. You need to pay them an agreed salary per month, unlike when you outsource, you only pay based on project milestones and once the project is over, your commitment to each other is over as well.

Aside from that regular compensation, you also need to compel the best candidates with other incentives and bonuses. More than that, you’re required to allot a regular budget to pay for their benefits such as medical expenses, insurance, and even gym membership. That would mean lots of process, money, and paperwork.

Whereas, when you outsource these tasks to professionals who have already mastered the best strategies and processes in the industry, you’d probably save more time, energy, and money. And that commitment? You would also gain that as long as you hire the right website design and SEO company.

The bottom line is: Know the current situation of your company. Determine whether you need in-house staff to manage your web development and SEO tasks. If your project doesn’t require a regular, long-term commitment, then, outsourcing is probably the best choice since it is much simpler and economical. Also, give your company’s finances an honest look.

Steps to Outsource Web Development and SEO Services

Most startups wouldn’t afford to hire in-house staff for these jobs in the long run. So, as mentioned above, it’s best to outsource. But what are the steps to do that?

Decide whether to hire independent freelancers or a full-service agency.

When you decide to outsource, you’ll need to consider another question: Should you hire independent freelancers or a full-service agency? Both has its own advantages. The first one though might mean you’ll need to communicate with several different people. But the thing is, all of you should be on the same page.

On the other hand, everything you’ll need for your website would be taken care of in a full-service web development and SEO agency. Communication is easier since you’ll have it in one place.

Check the chosen company’s portfolio as well as their own website.

First of all, it’s their job to create visually-appealing, clean, and professional-looking websites. They should live by their name. If their website doesn’t look that way or doesn’t even rank on search engines, you better find someone else who is more credible. Because if they can’t commit to coming up with the best possible output for their own company, what more for you? You’re just one of their many clients. Check out this related content on what you should look for in an SEO firm.

Clearly, communicate what you want to see on your website.

After describing your target market, ask the team: If you’re one of the individuals who belong to my target market, what would compel you to visit my company’s website? What would make you say that it is visually-arresting? What would capture you and encourage you to spend some time to read and view the content that’s published there?

Then, based on their answers, you can decide whether they’re the best people who can work on your project or you should look for someone else.

When all things are clear, you may talk about your terms and agreement regarding the deliverables and compensation for the work done. Then, come up with a contract.

So, should you outsource or hire in-house staff for your web development and SEO needs? That would depend on your actual needs and your current situation. One thing is certain though: Your business needs a strong online presence. That’s what you should bear in mind whatever your decision might be.