Many businesses worldwide now turn to outsourcing web design projects to third parties, such as freelancers or agencies, as a cost-saving and workflow-streamlining solution. This approach is especially beneficial for startup businesses with limited resources and manpower.
In our guide, we'll cover how to outsource web designs, its benefits, and how to find the best outsourcing partners. We’ll also provide an overview of outsourcing costs and top regions to determine if this approach is right for your business and can offer the best ROI.
Table of Contents
- 5 Steps to Outsourcing Web Design
- Key Reasons To Outsource Web Design for Your Business
- Who Should Outsource Website Design?
- How Much Does Outsourcing Web Design Cost?
- Most Affordable Regions for Outsourcing Web Design
- Tips and Best Practices for Outsourcing Web Design
- Top 5 Agencies for Outsourcing Web Design
- Takeaways on Outsourcing Website Design
5 Steps to Outsourcing Web Design
With a well-defined plan, outsourcing your web design project becomes much easier. Here are the steps you should take:
- Identify your web design goals and requirements
- Choose your web design outsourcing model
- Pick your outsourcing agency
- Begin the hiring process
- Set your web design KPIs
1. Identify Your Web Design Goals and Requirements
The first step in getting an outsourced web design partner is establishing your exact web project requirements, goals, and current roadblocks. This way, you can prevent inaccurate expectations that can lead to lost time and resources.
Ask yourself the following questions to objectively analyze your current situation and define the requirements you’ll communicate to your outsourced agency:
- What is my website project’s goal? This can be anything from capturing leads and increasing brand awareness to advertising your products and growing your mailing list — it completely depends on your larger business needs.
- What is my budget? Knowing and setting your budget as accurately as possible will determine the realistic scope of your project.
- What are my website’s requirements? Think in terms of website functionality: do you need lead-generating form submissions, an eCommerce page, a 360-degree VR tour, or a large gallery of images? It’s best to draft a product specification document to provide a starting point in the design process.
- What pain points do you need to solve? Does your current website have a high bounce rate, low time-on-page stats, or very little qualified traffic? Pointing to your current website issues helps the outsourced agency find the solution for your predicament.
2. Choose Your Web Design Outsourcing Model
To choose the right outsourced web design service provider, you must establish the type of outsourcing you need: onshore, nearshore, or offshore.
2.1. Onshore Outsourcing
Onshore outsourcing is contracting web design activities to areas within your region or country. This saves you from cultural and linguistic obstacles while avoiding the cost of in-house training. If you’re in the United States, onshore outsourcing will result in steeper pricing than offshore or nearshore options.
2.2. Nearshore Outsourcing
Outsourcing a project to a company in the same or nearby time zone is called nearshore outsourcing. The key advantage of this type of outsourcing is the cultural similarity between the client and vendor, which minimizes misunderstandings and miscommunications.
Nearshore outsourcing companies offer a blend of cost efficiency and high-quality output. That's why it's a viable option for businesses wanting to maintain close collaborative ties without the premium costs of onshore services.
2.3. Offshore Outsourcing
Hiring web design outsourcing companies in a foreign country is called offshore or international outsourcing. This type of outsourcing gives you access to the biggest pool of diverse specialists and is the most cost-effective option.
3. Pick Your Outsourcing Agency
Once you decide on a type of outsourcing, you can begin looking for a specific website design vendor.
Here are some important aspects you should assess:
- Experience: Ask each potential agency if they have experience creating web projects in a similar field, niche, or industry as yours.
- Portfolio: Review the company’s previous projects and objectively analyze their quality.
- Technology: Find out about the tools and tech stack your potential vendor uses, as well as their level of proficiency.
- Team: Review the agency’s team members’ skills and experience.
- Customer feedback: Look for third-party, independent reviews from previous clients to see what they say about the company’s services and their collaboration outcomes.
You can check DesignRush’s global directory of web design agencies to help with your search. You can filter them by criteria such as rates, location, team size, and more to find the one that meets your business requirements.
4. Begin the Hiring Process
The penultimate stage in getting your outsourced website project off the ground is to conduct a thorough hiring process with your chosen agency. To do this, have them provide you with information and specific steps on the following:
- Project evaluation and estimation: The outsourced agency should present in-depth competitive market research and analysis, as well as a comprehensive overview of the entire project.
- Team flexibility: You should be able to pick, add, or reduce web design team members based on their core competencies and skills.
- Accurate pricing: Have your agency present you with the precise pricing plan for the project and, if possible, include potential extra costs that they may charge you down the line.
- Timelines and deadlines: They should update you frequently on the progress of the project and if it is moving along according to the agreed schedule.
- Project management: Your outsourced web design agency should be able to conduct and deliver your web design project without your constant supervision. Their managers should be able to keep you in the loop and make sure the designers stay within the project’s scope and timeline.
5. Set Your Web Design KPIs
Finally, to make your collaboration a success, make sure to establish realistic and measurable key performance indicators (KPIs). When deciding on your website project’s KPIs, you should take the following into account:
- KPIs should be objectively measured in numerical terms (quantity, percentage, time, volume, etc.)
- They should be aligned with your short-term and long-term website goals, like increasing conversion rates, reducing bounce rates, boosting organic traffic, getting more leads, etc.
- Establish each KPI’s “weight” and the gradation of the levels of their achievement — in other words, rank them according to how likely they are to be achieved.
You must set these KPIs with your outsourced service provider and consistently monitor their progress and how they plan to track and achieve such KPIs.
Key Reasons To Outsource Web Design for Your Business
The global IT outsourcing market will be worth $812.70 billion by 2029. This massive growth is mostly driven by the following benefits:
1. Cost Efficiency
Outsourcing web design is more cost-efficient than in-house services. Hiring a website design expert or an agency in Eastern Europe or Asia cuts costs in the long term. On average, companies pay in-house web designers $90,000 annually, while offshore web design professionals can provide the same quality of services for half the price.
2. Global Talent Pool
Outsourcing web design projects gives you access to talents across the globe. You are not restricted to your in-house specialists or even web design agencies in your hometown or region. Thanks to the modern means of communication and file transfer, the world is your market.
3. Time Efficiency
Hiring and working with a full-time in-house employee includes going through rigorous company processes that take up time. An outsourced web designer can switch between your projects without being integral to your team. For example, you can slot them into the process when you require them to iron out a certain design wrinkle.
4. Fresh Perspective
Outsourcing a web design project introduces an element of new creative flair and lends a fresh take on your project and overall business.
Hiring an external person to apply their expertise to your project often results in new ideas and perspectives you may miss out on. Outsourced specialists from top-rated IT servicing companies have insights and knowledge your employees may not have.
For example, an outsourced web design expert might be able to suggest a more efficient way to design a website layout or offer insights on what they did on a similar project in the past.
5. High-Quality Website
Outsourcing web design projects to outside specialists increases the number of higher quality output. If you were to hire third-party UX design experts, they would most likely give a day rate for the time it takes to complete the work required.
While that rate might be higher than what you’re currently paying your internal designer, the UX specialist will likely be able to deliver a more refined, advanced assessment and improvements on your current website.
Who Should Outsource Website Design?
No matter what industry or business you’re in, you should consider outsourcing a website designer if you’re encountering the following issues:
- The price of services in your area is higher than in places where you can outsource
- Your company is young, has a limited budget and you need a maximum ROI
- You need a one-time service instead of a full-scale, in-house team
- You need fresh insights into your company and projects
- Your conversion rates and other metrics are not hitting your projected goals
- The terms of employing an outsourced team suit you better
- You require new website functionalities or changes that your team cannot provide
- Your business is growing, and your in-house team can no longer meet the deadlines and demands
Outsourcing a website design team can help you solve most project management problems, such as:
- Working with a limited budget: You can opt to delegate specific project tasks to those who have the right skills and technologies.
- Overwhelming workload and limited time: An overwhelming workload is one of the most common reasons why businesses outsource projects. If the number of tasks is higher than the time frame you have on your hands, outsourcing can help avoid delays.
- Not having a website-savvy team: An outsourced team of web designers can provide the specialized skills and expertise to complete your web project timely and successfully.
- Urgent need for results: If your in-house team can't keep up with the constant changes in the IT industry, you can’t expect to get the desired results fast. Collaborating with an outside agency generates tangible results in a shorter time frame.
How Much Does Outsourcing Web Design Cost?
Multiple factors affect the cost of web design:
- Template vs custom web design approach
- Agency’s hourly rate
- Website’s framework, functionalities, and integrations
- The total number of website pages
- Custom messaging
For U.S.-based businesses seeking onshore web design services, you should know the four ways U.S. web design agencies charge their services:
- Hourly fee: $100-$175 per hour
- Per-project fee: at least $1,000
- Results-based fee: This depends on the KPIs set by the client. The payment is often sent to the agency after the goals have been achieved.
- Flat fee: This is common for businesses that need an agency on a retainer for periodic consulting.
As expected, outsourcing to a web development company overseas will bring down the hourly fee expenses.
Outsourcing Web Design Cost by Region
Region | Designer | Frontend Dev. | Backend Dev. |
Eastern Europe | $25-40/hr | $25-50/hr | $30-60/hr |
South America | $15-30/hr | $15-40/hr | $20-50/hr |
South & SE Asia | >$30/hr | >$35/hr | >40/hr |
Most Affordable Regions for Outsourcing Web Design
The most common reason why companies outsource their projects is to save on costs. If you’re looking to cut down expenses while getting top-quality service, offshore outsourcing to these regions may be your best bet.
1. Eastern Europe
Website design outsourcing in countries like Ukraine, Romania, and Poland can provide highly competent talents to businesses of all sizes and profiles at lower costs.
Businesses in the U.S. and Western Europe often outsource their projects — and even entire businesses — to Eastern Europe because of these reasons:
- Affordable pricing for top-notch professionals
- A big talent pool
- Proficiency in English and cultural proximities
2. South and Southeast Asia
Countries like India and the Philippines supply some of the best web design talents in the world while being one of the most cost-effective regions for outsourcing such services. Smaller US-based firms may, however, face difficulties caused by cultural differences too big to overcome.
3. South America
This continent is a relatively new outsourcing destination whose experts can provide good website services at a reasonable cost. However, South American countries are still in the process of developing business procedures and training professionals that could match those in Asia and Eastern Europe.
Tips and Best Practices for Outsourcing Web Design
Whether you’re a large enterprise or small business in need of web design tips, the right company will always know what to offer. So, to ensure you have chosen the best fit for you, here are a few best practices you can use:
- Communication is key! Your outsourced web development or web design company can only achieve your goals if you tell it what they are. Communication can help the outsourced agency understand your goals and mission better so they can design your website to showcase your best features.
- Set realistic goals. If you’re a small business, you can’t expect sales to soar high in the first year. Setting realistic and achievable goals doesn’t just help you grow as a brand, but it will show the outsourced web designer how they should progress to best present the brand’s mission and vision.
- Mind the cultural differences. Some outsourced designers won’t have the same customs as you so their way of work may be different. Before you hire a company, ensure that you’re on the same page — even check with them about their holidays so the project will keep on always running smoothly.
- Stay on top of the project. Don’t just hire the company and let the reigns go. Monitoring their work and the project’s progress will show you whether your needs and wants are all satisfied. If there are any changes, you can act fast and prevent further damage.
Top 5 Agencies for Outsourcing Web Design
Before we wrap up, here are 5 agencies that we’re sure would fit any company’s web design needs:
1. Digital Silk
- Location: 18 West 18th Street, New York City, New York 10011, United States
- Expertise: Web design, branding, digital marketing, web development, etc.
- Price: On request
If you’re looking for a web design company that also handles marketing, Digital Silk is the way to go. This agency has worked with brands like HP, P&G, NFL, and more to help improve their digital footprint.
From marketing to designing from scratch and even redesigning a website, Digital Silk is equipped with professionals who can tackle any problem. By improving your UI/UX design, working on your SEO ranks, and creating bespoke designs, you can grow your reach, drive traffic, and improve engagement rates in no time.
2. Clay
- Location: 300 Broadway, Suite 23, San Francisco, California 94133, United States
- Expertise: Web development and design, UX/UI design, mobile app development, logo design, etc.
- Price: On request
Clay is more than just a web design agency; from full company branding to content creation in every form, you get a full design package. Some of its clients include Fiver, Slack, Facebook, Amazon, and Stripe — and the list of famous names just goes on!
You can hire Clay to just take care of your web design or go a step further and have the whole development process done in one place.
3. Lounge Lizard
- Location: 112 West 34th St. 18th Floor, New York City, New York 10120, United States
- Expertise: Web development, web design, branding, eCommerce, digital marketing, etc.
- Price: On request
An agency that focuses on your brand’s voice and mission will get the best results. This is exactly what Lounge Lizard does. It uses your goals to create a story every customer would want to hear.
The web design skills coupled with the years of digital marketing experience make this agency a great choice for businesses of all sizes. Lounge Lizard also takes care of SEO, UI, and UX, providing a complete design and development service.
4. Creative Brand Design
- Location: 77 New Cavendish Street, London, W1W 6XB, United Kingdom
- Expertise: Web design & development, creative, UX/UI design, SEO, etc.
- Price: On project
When you have an award-winning web design agency on your side, every project is sure to excel. Creative Brand Design helps brands create a custom website, fortifying it with SEO practices, UI innovations, and interactive animations.
These creative designers also tackle eCommerce, graphic design, and hosting. Your website doesn’t have to be spread out on different platforms when you can host and create it all from one place!
5. Digital Ink
- Location: 5050 Avenida Encinas, Carlsbad, California 92008, United States
- Expertise: Web design, branding, digital marketing, web development, advertising, etc.
- Price: Upon contact
Digital Ink is an agency that levels with its clients, striving to provide the best web design services by working together. But that’s not all you get! From branding to hosting your site, SEO management, and even copywriting and publishing, Digital Ink is ready to fully manage your website.
Clients that have enjoyed Digital Ink’s collaboration include Samsung, Mitsubishi, Playback Now, and CAT.
Takeaways on Outsourcing Website Design
Finding the right website design agency can take time. To make the most of your search, remember to define your requirements and expectations. You must have a clear understanding of what you need and want when outsourcing your web project to any agency or organization for each of the tasks to be successful.
Don’t forget to be direct and clear in sharing these goals. The most valuable resource for web design outsourcing companies is their customers’ input. Help them understand your point of view and your project requirements by providing timely feedback and openly communicating your concerns, wishes, and instructions.
