Freelancer vs Company – Make a Right Choice for Outsourcing

Increasingly more and more companies are inclining towards outsourcing their services as it is slowly becoming one of the most efficient ways of reducing overall costs and improving the final quality of the product. However, the benefits of outsourcing attract many companies to try out this lucrative option. But one of the significant questions remains - whom should I outsource to? A Freelancer or a company?

To solve this, head-scratchers take a closer look at the benefits of both options and reach a better-informed conclusion.

In this article, let us discuss the benefits of outsourcing to a company and a freelancer. Also, we will walk you through some essential factors to consider while outsourcing. 

Freelancer vs Company – Which One Should You Choose for Outsourcing? 

Let us compare freelancer vs company based on the following parameters before choosing the best outsourcing option for you:

1. Affordability
2. Quality of work
3. Availability
4. Experience
5. Flexibility
6. Risks involved

1. Affordability

Pricing is one of the primary reasons that makes or breaks a deal. It can be one of the primary reasons you choose between a freelancer and a company.

Outsourcing to Freelancers

One major attraction that draws many companies to pick a freelancer over a company is its reduced cost. You will have to pay significantly less to a freelancer than a company. Plus, there are no infrastructure costs incurred as the overheads of a freelancer are close to nonexistent. 

If you have a small-scale project, you can delegate tasks on a need basis. This means you can bring in more freelancers when work gets busy and cut back if the work slows down a bit.

Outsourcing to Companies

As a company has a team of people working for them, it is bound to be the more expensive option. Yet a company can be a one-stop solution for all your needs. With its team of experts, it offers efficiency in achieving your business goals. 

Companies also tend to offer a wide spectrum of services, ensuring you reach an effective outcome. So, if you have adequate resources and don’t want to compromise on the quality, don’t let the price factor sway your decision, as outsourcing to a company can be a better option. 

2. Quality of Work

Before hiring anyone for your company, you must go through their portfolio of work and understand their working process. This will give you an idea as to what to expect when you finally choose someone to come aboard your company project.

Outsourcing to Freelancers

While a freelancer might be experienced in your line of work, you need to think if you can burden him/her with your project responsibilities. If you want to carry out a small-scale business project, hiring a freelancer might be smart, as it will significantly reduce your production cost.

Outsourcing to Companies

While hiring a company, you hire an entire team of experts with it. When you outsource to a company, you buy the benefit of 24*7 availability. A company can handle your tasks much more effectively and ensure faster delivery as they have several experts to carry out your job. 

Here you don’t have to manage and be involved in every task a freelancer does but sit back and wait for your final product. A company often has strict quality check systems that self-verify the product at every process step.

3. Availability

One of the main points to bear in mind before deciding between a freelancer and a company is their availability, as you would never want your project to suffer.

Outsourcing to Freelancers

Freelancers might be unavailable at a point in time for many reasons, such as some personal family emergency or an unexpected workload from other clients. If nothing else, even the most talented freelancers sometimes cannot cope with the extreme work pressure. 

In addition, each of them might have a unique way of executing things that might not suit your business goal, which will require someone more organized and process-oriented.

Outsourcing to Companies

However, these problems are resolved regarding outsourcing for a company, as you buy the benefit of 24*7 availability. You don’t have to run behind a single person responsible for carrying out every task for you. 

A company can handle bigger tasks much more effectively and ensure faster delivery as they have several experts to carry out the job and also backups in case someone quits their job. 

4. Experience

Before you choose, you need to understand who will easily grasp your adequate requirements.

Outsourcing to Freelancers

While on the one hand, a good and dedicated freelancer can make your tasks easier. Half your job is done if you can find one who specializes in your business model. You will have to explain much less as to what you expect from a particular project and can look forward to some great ideas to overall improve the product.

While on the other hand, a freelancer might have some limitations because his/her experience will solely be limited to his personal experience and no collective team expertise and experience.

Outsourcing to Companies

When you choose a company, there is a high chance that they will quickly grasp your requirements and bring better solutions to the table because of the collective team experience.

5. Flexibility

Flexibility might hold an important place in your line of work. Frankly, who doesn’t like an easygoing process that gives you unlimited possibilities to explore your various options? 

Outsourcing to Freelancers

A freelancing individual is bound to be more flexible as they will bring into consideration your little concerns and try to resolve them to your liking. 

Outsourcing to Companies

Usually, companies follow strict set patterns while working on a project. The goal of a company is to ensure services systematically. Hence, indeed, the amount of flexibility will be quite less compared to the one with freelancers.

6. Risks Involved

Working with a freelancer or a company will expose you to different risks.

Outsourcing to Freelancers

The main problem here is that there is a risk in sharing confidential company data unless you find a reliable person ready to take all the responsibility and accountability on their shoulders.

Outsourcing to Companies

The data security risk is much lower while dealing with a company than with a freelancing individual. Additionally, a company has better access to new technology, the latest software, and tools in the market. 

You can rely on a company to safeguard all your highly confidential precious data and back up everything as it is developed. A company can easily handle large-scale projects with an additional offering of a diverse skill set.

Freelancer vs Company – A Head-to-Head Comparison

Let us now have a look at the following table highlighting the differences between a freelancer vs company. 

Hiring a Freelancer

There are both advantages and disadvantages to hiring a freelancer. Let us explore. 

Pros 

• Lower Cost: Freelancers generally charge lower than professionals working at a company. Surprisingly, companies charge 20 to 30% more than freelancers. They include many other expenses in the bill, apart from the cost of their service. 
• Availability: Freelancing individuals are flexible to work at even odd times and available any time you want. They do not work during typical business hours, i.e., 9 to 5. If you want any urgent updates, they can provide you without any hassle. 
• Easy Communication: When working with freelancing professionals, they are a single body with whom you communicate. This simplifies communication and promotes very few chances of miscommunications. This is not the case with companies. There are various professionals; hence, sometimes, it can create chaos. 
• No Legal Bindings: Freelancers do not require any legal bindings or bonds. They have very few legal terms and agreements to which you can easily agree. 

Cons 

• Confidentiality: Companies ensure extreme confidentiality. They sign agreements for non-disclosure. Freelancing individuals can sign the same agreements, but there is still a chance of risk. It might be the case that the same freelancer may work with your competitor at the same time. 
• Compromised Seriousness: Companies tend to be more serious about the work taken than freelancers. So, there is a possibility of quality compromise in the product or service. 
• Lack of Organizational Skills: Though freelancers are well-versed in technical skills, they lack organizational skills, such as organizational behavior, time management, professional approach, etc. 
• Difficult to Monitor: As freelancers work at their own pace and time, it is difficult to monitor them. 

Hiring a Company 

The same applies to hiring a company. Let us discuss the pros and cons. 

Before that, it is better to understand that a group of professionals in companies will be able to provide more effective and quick delivery of products or services than individuals. In addition, they have access to various latest, high-end tools and technologies that individuals can’t afford. 

Pros 

• Diverse Expertise: A company has a team of professionals with expertise in various fields. So, hiring a company means you are hiring an entire team. With their expertise, they can produce high-quality products and services. 
• State-of-Art technologies On-board: Companies have a budget to adopt and use contemporary technologies for their services. 
• Legal Safety: Unlike freelancing individuals, companies provide legal safety. They stick to the bond or agreement. They ensure the delivery of their services within the deadline and budget. 
• Continuous Support: Organizations provide continuous, on-time support with a dedicated team to help you.

Cons 

• High Cost: Undoubtedly, companies charge higher than freelancing individuals. They even include extra changes related to tax, rent, utilities, etc. 
• Miscommunication: While working with a company, you primarily communicate with its manager. The manager further guides the team to work accordingly. This can create miscommunication. 

Conclusion

Outsourcing to a freelancer might be effective if you are a small-scale company looking to complete a limited number of tasks, as hiring a freelancer is often very cost-effective. 

However, companies that are large in size or those who dream of becoming a big deal one day should consider hiring reliable companies like Squareboat, which provides effective solutions.

Want to get top-notch IT services and still wondering which company to choose? It’s simple, go for Squareboat. Why?

Squareboat builds beautiful, scalable, and features rich web and mobile applications. Squareboat offers Web and Mobile development serviceks, quality assurance, and complete project management.

Its founder and leader, Gaurav Gupta, has over 12+ years of experience in developing and maintaining large and scalable web and mobile applications, including product conceptualization, design, backend and frontend development, deployment, server management, uptime, reliability, performance, and scalability. So you can be sure about who you are handling your project.

If you want to collaborate with a company that takes its projects as seriously and professionally as you take yours, then call the experts at Squareboat today!

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Frequently Asked Questions

1. Do companies prefer freelancers?

Yes, many companies prefer freelancers for small-scale projects that need to be done by a single person. This way, they can reduce high costs. Also, freelancers work with full dedication to delivering high-quality work. 

2. Do we need a company as a freelancer?

No, there is no need for a company to be a freelancer. You can be one with the right set of skills, experience, and a good work portfolio. You must also be aware of the fact that you will be solely responsible for finishing projects with high quality and liable for everything. 

3. Is freelancing still worth it?

Yes, freelancing is still worth it. If you love working with flexibility and being your own boss, freelancing is the best option for you. You get more opportunities and more clients, which improves your credibility and helps you grow professionally. 

4. Is freelancer good for beginners?

Freelancing for beginners can be tricky, as they may struggle to get clients due to a lack of experience. Hence, as a beginner, gaining experience by working in a company is better. Once you get well-versed, you can start as a freelancer.