Your website is the face of your business. It can be your company’s home on the Internet, your online store, and your customers’ contact center. Whatever is your website’s purpose, you naturally want it to look best and perform optimally. Much will depend on how and who will design and build your website.
We’ve tackled extensively the web design service options for small businesses. There are four of them – web design agency, unlimited design service, freelance designer, and yourself. But many companies will also have their own in-house web design team, probably tucked in as part of the marketing or corporate communications department.
In this article, we’ll show you the advantages of hiring a professional web design agency and why it reigns supreme over other design services, including in-house web design.
Why a Web Design Agency Is Better Than In-House Web Design
What is a Web Design Agency?
First things first – what is a web design agency? Simply put, it’s a business comprised of creative professionals that include but are not limited to creative directors, web designers, web developers, graphic artists, copywriters, content writers and producers, photographers, videographers, and multimedia technicians.
In other words, they’re a bunch of experts in their fields who have combined their proficiencies under one roof and offer their services to those who need them. When it comes to your website, they can start from scratch or do a redesign. Whatever you want with your website, they are the specialists that can work on your project as a dedicated team.
Things to Know Before You Hire One
Before you entrust your website’s design and development to a web design agency, there are things you need to know and understand. These include the following:
- Price – What is the cost of their service from start to finish? Most prices normally depend on the scope of the project. Know if they charge by the hour, as a package price, custom pay-as-you-go, or some other pricing scheme. You must know these upfront.
- Services – What type of services do they offer? Can they manage your website project from end to end including planning, design, development, and all other phases and components? How long will it take to handle your website project?
- Results – What outcomes do they promise with your website? A professionally-built website is not only top-notch in its design and content but also fully responsive, thoroughly optimized, and completely functional. Can these be guaranteed and delivered to you?
- Background – How and when did they start? What is their corporate history? Do they have legal documents, certifications, and accreditations to show their legitimacy and qualification? Can they show proof of their work with previous clients? Do they have references and customer testimonials?
There may be many other details worth knowing. It’s good to have a checklist of items you want to know so that when the time comes to do an initial online search or go and consult with them, you can make the relevant queries.
Pros and Cons of In-House Web Design
Why do some companies prefer to have their own in-house web design group or organic design team? Let’s take a look at the pros.
- Cost management – Companies can have better control of the cost and expenditures since the budget would have been laid out beforehand. The design team would have to work within the budget, avoiding costly overruns.
- Close communication – You as the manager or supervisor can easily reach, collaborate, and discuss matters with any of the team member or of the group itself since they are company employees. Communication is timely, ensuring everyone is on the same page.
- First-hand knowledge – An in-house team will have first-hand knowledge of the business and the brand. They’ll be able to closely align design projects to the company’s mission and vision. Their motivation is and for the organization they work for.
Now for the drawbacks.
- Cost of hiring and training – Companies know they’ll incur substantial spending to hire and train people, not to mention the tools and equipment needed by new hires to do their job. And training is a regular activity which means continuing spending.
- Specialists are hard to find – Web designers and developers are specialists and they don’t come cheap and easy. Finding the right, qualified people to fill in highly technical roles is a struggle for many companies. It’s a challenge for HR to properly undertake job matching and attract bona fide talent.
- Creative limitations – Those in a design team are creative professionals and would seek out artistic freedom. It’s not in their DNA to be confined. They would rather be freelancers or join dedicated design agencies than be tied down in a routinary office job.
As you can see from above, both sides sort of balances the equation. Ultimately, it’s up to a company’s management on what option to take. But wait till you read the rest of the article and you’re likely to see the scale tilt in favor of a web design agency.
Advantages of a Web Design Agency
Keep in mind that web design agencies are the penultimate service providers when it comes to website design and development. They will aspire to deliver beyond what you expect. The following are some benefits and advantages of a web design agency.
1. Professionalism
One study found that a third of online visitors will judge a business’ credibility by its website. How your website functions even in just a matter of seconds when a visitor arrives will determine if that visitor will leave or stay. A website’s performance is largely the responsibility of the website creator. If the site loads fast, is responsive and is user-friendly, that’s because the site creator knows it needs to be and made it as such.
Professionals such as those of a web design agency team recognize the importance of what makes websites tick with visitors. They will strive to let you understand how it works and what the results are of putting in mechanisms that ensure optimal website performance which in turn brings in traffic and conversions.
2. Authority
Being professionals, those employed by web design agencies are authorities in their fields. Collectively, they have a deep understanding of the design industry as well as the latest tools and technologies. They are steep in the technical workings of web design and development, in coding and programming languages, as well as the business and marketing side of things.
They know what works and what does not, what functions and components are needed, and what you can expect from a given budget. They have an expansive knowledge to put your vision into reality, and what you can do with your website to level up your business. In contrast, those in an in-house web design team may lack the competency unless they have been thoroughly screened and vetted.
3. Experience
Web design agencies have the required experience to do their job well or else they won’t be in the business. This is why you have to look into their credentials, past clients, and previous projects because then you’ll see how expansive (or limited) their experience is. And they’ll only be so proud to show you their biggest and greatest accomplishments.
Having the experience, they can easily match your website to your style and content. Also, they know what to look for and troubleshoot when issues arise whether it be technical or business-wise. You can count on their familiarity with the industry and exposure to different kinds of challenges to give you an exceptional website that no other can deliver.
4. Resources
A full range of resources may not be at the disposal of a freelance designer or even the company of an in-house design team because of cost. These include top-of-the-line computer systems, specialized software, and design assets like icons, stock images, website templates, music, videos, and many more. While you can acquire some of these assets for free online, you can’t be sure you’ll find the right ones for your site.
There are also some other kinds of resources that you may not have to build a website. These include experience, expertise, patience, and time. Lacking any of these is sure to affect the quality and performance of your website. Time, even if it’s perennially there, is a most important resource that we feel is in short supply these days as we busy ourselves with the daily grind of life.
5. Optimization
A key parameter for a successful website is how well it ranks on search and how good it attracts traffic. And these are the results of a responsive website that’s beautifully designed with optimized content and properly implemented SEO. A web design agency can provide you with these, ensuring that every aspect of your website undergoes optimization and fine-tuning.
You may not be fully aware of what optimization can do and a freelance designer or in-house design team may not care to apply SEO tweaks. But a web design agency will highlight the significance of optimization and how it can boost your site’s rankings, grow your audience, add more customers, and eventually improve your bottom line.
6. Customization
The problem with creating websites through DIY using today’s website builder programs is that the outcome looks so generic. Your brand’s personality does not shine through and is obscured by the program’s built-in site templates that are similar to everyone else’s. And that’s something you want to avoid – for your website to be a lookalike or copycat.
A web design agency will provide a personalized website according to your unique and special requirements. It will thoroughly discuss with you your website goals, what you hope to achieve, how you want its parts to function, how you want its design to stand out, and many other details. From your inputs, they’ll give professional suggestions will custom build a website that closely complements your vision and ideas.
7. Support
Customer support can be comprehensive and continuing, depending on your agreement with the web design agency. The work doesn’t stop with a successfully launched website since there will be ongoing site maintenance to keep your website in tip-top shape. Sadly, there is no perfect website. Even the most fastidiously built sites may encounter some glitches like broken links or crawl errors.
On the aforementioned matters, a web design agency can provide continuous technical or troubleshooting support. They can be relied on to quickly address emergencies like sudden site outages and have backup measures in place. You must know how to reach the agency support personnel and that they are ready to assist you 24/7.
Are You Ready for the Big Time?
If you have the means and the budget, going for a web design agency is the logical option. If your projects are few and far between, it may even be a viable alternative to an in-house web design team that you keep on your payroll even if you don’t have any projects.
The ultimate point is – a web design agency can competently handle everything there is about your website, making it superior to other design services. It brings with it efficiency, experience, professionalism, and authority. It’s a big-time service provider if you’re ready for it.
