‘Won’t a freelancer do just as good of a job as software companies in developing my website or application?’ – maybe not. Here is why
Web and mobile app development have become the must into almost every business nowadays. Almost all the companies are in need of a developer at one point or another and this is the situation where the entire company falls in a dilemma. Businesses are often confused about whom to hire for the betterment of their company. is a freelancer better or should I go with a software company?
Who is a freelancer?
A freelancer is a person who has a specific set of skills. A freelancer either works for various companies as a contractor or has their own clients and is self-employed. An independent contractor mostly works from home (or any other place she feels cozy).
Let us start with some indisputable benefits of hiring a freelancer.
- Communication: When you deal with just one person, that person is responsible only for themselves and their own scope of work and this makes the communication easy with one person
- Flexibility: Freelancers are fine with working odd hours and mostly can be available whenever you need them.
- Low Rates: Most freelancers charge lower rates then software development companies.
We almost hear you saying ‘why not go for a freelancer, then?’ Well, there are always two sides to the coin. Let us look at some disadvantages of hiring a freelancer.
- They can disappear: Freelancers are typically working on several projects at the same time and mostly they priorities work based on different clients priority. And as they have flexible hours to work- some personal stuff may take priority into the working hours.
- Confidentiality Issues: When it comes to confidentiality it’s rare companies choose the freelancers as with freelancer you do not have much control over what they are doing and with whom they are sharing the information. Of course, you can ask that freelancers sign non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), but you’ll still have to weigh up the risks.
- Quality: Not all freelancers run their business to get returning clients. Your company’s individual success may not be their top priority.
- Limited Skills: Generally freelancers have specific skillsets. If they are web developers they only know their web development and if they are mobile, they only can help you with mobile development. But as a business, you might need a different kind of skills like you might need to design a web application and then develop it, you might need a mobile application as well, also you need to consider integration between your mobile and your web. In this case, if you are dependent on one freelancer, he might not be able to fulfill our requirements and you might end up with dealing many freelancers and all the issues to make they sync together and finish the product.
- No Further Maintenance. Freelancers completing a project and then leaving it is typical. So in case of bugs appear, you may have to look for other people to fix them.
Professional Company
No matter whatever business you are in, the expertise matters most. It is important for people to consider expertise before hiring any person. The team who are assigned by software companies will surely have great domain experience. Moreover, they might have already dealt with some of the projects that are similar to yours which will be added benefit to your product.
A software development company is a one-stop solution for all your app needs. It offers efficiency as well as a unified force towards the achievement of your business aims. Software firm generally has all kind of expertise under one roof from analysis to the deployment of the product. You will get designers, web developers, mobile developers, project managers, QAs under one roof. Even if you have any requirement which is out of their skill set then they generally hire those resources and get the work done.
The main focus of the company is to assist you to complete the entire product which can leave you with plenty of time you can focus on your core business areas instead of dealing with software development and related activities.
Only disadvantage people or business thinks to hire a software development firm is cost, they think that it will be more expensive to hire the software development firm to compare to a freelancer. This is a not true case, generally, software company uses the same model as the freelancer to charge the customers based on how many resources you need to develop the product, which anyway freelancers are charging you.
Software firm provides various engagement models to choose from which are:
- Resource base: This model generally considered the same as freelancing and you will be allocated with the required resources from the company. And the company will take responsibility for those resources to provide output on time, quality and security. Resources will work and reports to clients directly. Added advantages will be to share the skills and knowledge with the other resources, so if your resource stocks anywhere in the project, there will always be other tech leads and developers to help.
- Project base: It applies when you decide to give the entire project to the software company to handle. Software firm will charge based on the overall project cost. In this model, the company will select the required resources to complete the project. Generally, the client doesn’t need to be involved in the development phase of the project and can only focus on the end result of the product.
In both, the model the overall pricing will be the same as if you do it from the freelancer or from professional software firm. With freelancer you will spend more time on project analytics, requirements and QA compare to the firm where they will allocate resources for each task and will save your time.
Benefits of a Software company in Comparison with Freelancers
- Provides a complete solution: A software development company will provide all kinds of services, including business analysis and consulting, idea verification, designing, development, and deployment all under one roof.
- Collective expertise: Company will have many different kinds of resources, each expert in different domains. Company will select the required resources from all of the resources to do a specific task hence you will receive services from more than one professional.
- Development Team and Resources: If you hire a company for web development or mobile app development, the company ensures that the employee is provided with the dedicated resources to complete your project. Client satisfaction is the utmost priority for the companies and they will ensure that their developers are provided with the perfect resources, peer help and other requirements so that you can get the product that you have desired.
- Seamless workflow and attitude: Working closely with project managers using Agile and DevOps methodology, checking reports and directing the work, planning the next stages… all in all place, the workflow is established and deadlines are usually met. Software companies care about results in the same manner as they care about their reputation.
- No legal issues: As business entities, software development companies guarantee legality, reliability, and stability. Works and financial records are almost always available and transparent. In most cases, your work will be protected by NDA and other necessary documents to start work.
- Security: Probably the strongest asset, when compared to freelancers, is companies agree to a confidentiality agreement and they are bound to follow it under any circumstances. This will provide you with the assurance that your project is in safe hands.
Both software development companies and freelancers have their advantages and disadvantages, but your choice ultimately comes down to your project requirements and what you expect from the person you hire. It also depends on your long term goal of the product you are developing and making sure from the benign that you select the right team.
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