Freelance Graphic Designer Vs Design Agency: The Pros and Cons of Hiring Them

The world of business has moved so far that a team is no longer restricted to a physical office space. An entrepreneur can run a company with the help of a talented pool based globally. Platforms like Designhill have made it easier for marketers to find the right talent.

Should we hire a freelance graphic design or a Design Agency for our upcoming project? This is the question that every start-up or small company will probably fumble with when getting started with their project.

According to IBIS World report, in 2019, the U.S graphic design industry generated a total revenue of $15 billion. The freelance graphic designers account for approximately 90% of the total industry participation.

However, the advantages of working with a reputed design agency cannot be overlooked. A reputed agency considers any project as their project and put all their efforts to make it successful. According to Fast Company, we are living in Generation Flux, where everybody is making efforts to acquire skills and knowledge, which does not even resonate with their initial roles. The concept behind this is not seeking to become an expert in each subject, but rather be prepared for changes in the business landscape. People want to increase their probability to get jobs in the future market instead of simply performing effectively in their current role.

So, how can design agencies and freelancers fit in this Generation Flux? Let's find out the pros and cons of it:

a) Working with Freelancers: 

Freelancers are generally professionals who are self-employed and are not necessarily committed to a particular client. The relationship with clients can, of course, be taken for a longer period but they don't set expectations for the permanent client. They can work either from home or rental space.

• Pros of Hiring Freelancer Graphic Designers:  

1. Low Cost:

For many startups, the budget is always a constraint. The biggest advantage of hiring a freelance graphic designer is that they charge lesser amounts compared to a design agency. Even if they charge on an hourly basis, you can expect to save 20% to 30% annually. The reason behind this is that the operating costs of the freelancers are less. This cost-saving will ultimately pass on to the clients in the form of fewer service charges for the same work.

2. Availability:

Sometimes you may come across a situation where you need to get your work done on an urgent basis. Freelancers are the ones who can save you from such situations. The flexibility in working hours is not just a privilege for freelancers themselves, but it can prove a blessing for clients as well. They can adjust their routine as per the requirement of the project.

3. Communication:

In every work type, communication is very important. The lack of communication not only causes misunderstandings but delays in work too. When you hire a design agency, there will always be a middleman, probably a manager, between you and the designer. You will obviously brief your requirements to the manager. But in the end, it is the designer who is supposed to work on your project. When you explain your requirement to the manager, there are chances that some of the information may get filtered. Here, we are not saying that it will be done intentionally. No one can explain your requirement better than yourself. But this is not the case with freelancers. When you hire a freelancer, you can have direct communication with them. You can explain your requirements to them perfectly and, if in case they have any doubts you can clear with them on the spot.

4. Faster Delivery: 

Unlike design agencies, most of the freelancers take a maximum of two projects at the same time. Also they don't have to follow the long chain of processes. This makes them deliver their projects in a shorter span of time.

5. Global Reach:

Today, due to advancements in technology, marketers can hire talents from all over the world. Companies like Designhill, Fiverr, DesignCrowd, etc. are providing an online platform where both marketers and freelancers can connect globally. In such platforms, you get your work done either by hiring a freelancer directly or by launching a design contest.

6. High-quality work:

As said earlier, freelancers usually take a maximum of two projects at the same time. This helps them produce high-quality work. Moreover, freelancers are supposed to maintain healthy relationships with their clients so that they can keep getting work. If they do not provide quality work, clients not only give them bad ratings but may also not approach them for future projects. By looking at their work ratings, there are chances that they may lose potential leads as well.

• Cons of Hiring Freelance Graphic Designers

1. Reliability:

Although, this is a rare thing that can happen, but sometimes freelancers stop responding to emails, messages, or phone calls. There might be a chance that they have fallen sick or they are at different time zones. So if, for instance, you are going to launch your brand within a few days, and you have hired a freelancer for logo design, disappearance of the designer can be your worst nightmare.

2. No team spirit:

Team spirit plays a vital role in professional life. It improves the ability of individuals to work together and boosts morale. Since freelancing is all about taking ownership of everything, if anything goes wrong or if the designer couldn't take up your feedback in a positive way, it may demotivate the designer, and they may not give their 100% to the work. Motivating them and pushing them towards their goals can be quite difficult in the case of freelancers as compared to a design agency.

3. Less controllable: 

Freelancing is all about working independently. They work in their own terms. You can definitely negotiate with the terms before hiring them but you cannot rule or control them at every step.

b) Working with Design Agencies

An agency is usually a company that has a dedicated team of graphic design professionals, each of which is trained to do different types of jobs. Design agencies usually focus on design services but sometimes they offer strategy services too.

• Pros of Hiring Design Agencies

1. Diverse Expertise:

While freelancers tend to focus on niche service areas, design agencies typically offer diverse expertise. When you choose to hire a design agency, you are hiring the whole team of people who bring a wide range of skills to the table. Whether you need to design a website, a company logo, brochure, or any other thing, the agency will provide you all these services.

2. Reliability:

Agencies are more reliable as compared to freelancers. If by any chance, a person, who is responsible to complete your work, falls sick or takes an emergency leave; your work will not get delayed. It is the responsibility of the agency, and they can assign your project to some other expert within the organization. Agencies usually have proper systems and processes so that the projects run smoothly and are completed on time.

3. Team Work:

When an agency handles projects, they divide them into various tasks that are assigned to different individuals with different skills. Working as a team, professionals can brainstorm ideas or ask the opinion of other individuals anytime. Also, since its teamwork, the members of the team will put their best efforts to make the project innovative and unique.

• Cons of Hiring Design Agencies

1. Costly:

As compared to freelancers, design agencies charge high price. Freelancers work only for themselves. They don't have any team. But agencies have a team of professionals and they need to pay salaries to them. Also, agencies have various additional costs that they cannot ignore.

2. Delay in work:

To pay salaries, bills, and earn profits, agencies don't depend on a single project. They work on multiple projects at the same time. Sometimes, the hired professionals have to work in multiple projects as well. This may lead to delay in projects.

3. Lack of Flexibility:

Agencies work on fixed hours. If, for instance, something urgent comes up in the evening, and you want to communicate with them, you cannot do that as they might not be available at that moment. You have to wait until the next morning.

4. Communication Gap:

When you tie up with an agency, you generally discuss your requirement with the manager or project head. You explain all your requirements to them. And afterwards, they explain the requirement to their team who will be working on your project. No matter how good a communicator you are, when there is a middleman, information always gets filtered, which is obviously not intentional. There are chances that the outcome may not come out exactly the way you thought of.

Conclusion:

So now that you know the pros and cons of hiring a freelancer and a design agency, it's time to make a decision. But before making any decision, have a clear understanding of your needs. If your project requires multiple skills, then it's better to go with a design agency. But if you think that your project requires specific skills, then it's better to hire a freelancer. The choice is yours!

Author Bio:

Jelly Shah works as a Digital Marketer, brand consultant and business strategist with Designhill- A reliable marketplace for Logo maker, business card maker, cosmetics & beauty logo design, custom cool tank tops , and many other designing works like Printshop By Designhill. With extensive experience working both client side and within the agency environment, he has authored several articles on topics related to digital marketing, business strategies, content marketing etc.