Outsourcing tasks is one of the quickest ways to get one’s work done without compromising on the quality and without hiring an extra bunch of employees. In fact, with cheap labor being a major benefit, many tend to resort to outsourcing.
But there are quite a few shortcomings that can arise if one does not pay heed to the procedures followed while outsourcing. Below are mentioned ten mistakes one can avoid while outsourcing projects to graphic designers.
1. Not paying at par to the quality of work
Even though outsourcing is a cheaper way of getting the work done, many pay the designer way less than they deserve. They may even bargain harshly with them.
If an outsourcer requests a higher payment than what one usually pays, there must be some reason behind it, including better quality. Thus, it is best to stay away from graphic designers who work at very low prices. If you are looking for an authentic place to get your graphic design projects done, visit BrandRipe for the best quality of work.
2. Lack of plan and proper methodology
Outsourced graphic designers do not have the whole idea of the project and are only aware of the part that they are meant to work on. Many people who hired these outsourced graphic designers withhold major information and do not plan how to deal with them.
This results in a drop in performance as well as a lack of understanding of what is expected of these graphic designers. Thus while working with an outsourced graphic designer, ensure that there is a plan and method followed so as to avoid any errors.
3. Outsourcing it all
Outsourcing the entire task, especially if the outsourced personnel is quite new to the company hiring it, comes with a lot of risks. Many tend to give away the entire project to the client. This must not be done.
Instead, start by giving the designer small and easier tasks that can be corrected by the company themselves if the necessity arises. Furthermore, if the designers are providing great quality work, you can go on and provide them with harder and bigger tasks the next time.
4. Entire payment before starting the job
Many designers ask for the full payment to be made before they can start working on the project. This is usually quite suspicious as many of these outsourced workers tend to take away the client’s money and do not perform the work for them.
This happens especially when the outsourced designer is working with the company for the first time. It is best to just pay a certain percentage instead of the whole amount to the designer before you start working with them. The usual initial percentage of payment offered is 25%.
5. Setting unrealistic deadlines
In order to get the best quality, a project must not be rushed. Many tend to depend on the talent of the designers within a short span of time, which not only places the designer under tremendous stress but also would force them to offer their services without the perfection they are known for.
A reasonable amount of time must be given to the designer after carefully calculating the average time a regular employee would take to conduct the very same task.
6. Not involving the freelancer in the project
For privacy reasons, many freelancers are not given all the details of the plan being undertaken. This may compromise the quality of the overall task. Outsourced designers are professionals and their ideas and initiatives may also help the holistic project even better.
Making an outsourcer feel as involved and important in the project gives them a better push to work harder as well as gives them room to grow their skills. This in turn builds trust with the outsourcers, creating a long-term relationship with them.
7. Lack of communication between hirer and outsourcer
Many of the companies hiring an outsourcer to work for them are under the impression that when the task is provided to the designer, they’ll handle the rest of it on their own. The designers may also have queries in the middle of working on the project which on answering can help better the result and in turn impress the client as well.
Constant communication between the client and the outsourcer throughout the time the project is being worked on is mandatory. This communication helps avoid confusion and helps save time from making some massive changes at the end.
8. Improper or no outsourcing strategy
Though the outsourcers may not be a part of the company, it is important to include them as a part of the project. Many tend to skip out on this factor which results in a lack of cooperation between the outsourcer and the employees of the company.
For this reason, before the outsourcer is hired, one must prepare the employees of the firm as well as come up with a strategy on how to make this collaborative effort work. This includes looking into factors such as the size of the team, future development plan, and so on.
9. Not describing the details of the job properly
Many times, in order to lower the risk, many clients do not disclose their expectations from their project in the right manner. This means that they provide vague expectations and details that make it hard for the client to work with.
Thus, the client hiring the outsourcer must have all the description details ready in such a way that the outsourcer isn’t in doubt while working on it.
10. No standards of quality
Many companies do not look into how the performance standards will be measured. This causes issues to arise later on.
Standards such as level of diligence and testing the outsourcer by requesting their samples from time to time are ways one can measure quality.
Conclusion
Hiring an outsourcer can be quite risky, but with time it builds a good connection and gets the job done.
We hope the above-mentioned mistakes help you avoid them the next time you outsource a graphic design project.
