A lot of companies have been established with a small in-house team and enjoyed the successes of this set-up. Your brand, however, may be set for bigger and better things, which could involve expansion or looking at external sources for their design services. Every company is different, but when it comes to the bigger picture you need to ask the question, “what is suitable for your brand?”

Working in house versus outsourcing

Working in an in-house set up does have its benefits because you have a team who really understands your brand. It allows the team to cooperate with those who are carrying out the work, and keep an eye on how the project is developing. Projects can also grow more organically and you have more flexibility when it comes to a budget.

Working in-house does however have its pitfalls. Once you look at all the things a company must do to handle a service in-house, and keep it running continuously and effectively, it becomes more evident why many companies choose outsourcing. If a service is provided in-house, a company must:

• Locate a qualified employee
• Train the employee
• Pay employee wages and benefits
• Provide the employee a physical workspace
• Provide the required technology items
• Pay telecommunications costs

With outsourcing, the company must only:

• Locate a reliable and high-quality vendor
• Pay the vendor for the services provided

All too often companies settle for second best, like asking the guy who works in marketing and says he can write a bit to take on copywriting.

Keeping up with communication when outsourcing

Companies are sometimes put off outsourcing because it can be perceived as taking a great step into the unknown. The main barrier here is communication. If you can overcome this obstacle, outsourcing starts to look a lot more attractive. With the methods of communication available today and the ability to send large quantities of information instantaneously, this need not be a problem.

The key to maintaining good communication is to build regular meetings and phone-calls with your outsourced company into the schedule from the outset. It is surprising how rarely this is actually done – how often business wait until problems start arising before attempting to improve communication. By addressing it from the start, you will find you can have all the benefits of outsourcing, with none of the difficulties.

Outsourcing can bring fresh ideas and invaluable design expertise

Outsourcing allows for a fresh perspective on the project and new ideas, as specialist designers are more likely to keep up with industry trends. With experience comes knowledge; designers who have worked with multiple clients are sure to have a wider scope and a greater depth of expertise.

If you select an experienced company, they will also be able to offer advice regarding the budget, and remain realistic about the cost of what makes up the project. Ultimately, the money you spend on outsourcing should be more than compensated by what you save on National Insurance, office pace, annual leave, and numerous other expenses.