Web development has become a lot easier over the years. Like a lot of other programming jobs, you do not need a college degree to become a web developer. Just a few HTML and CSS lessons are all it takes these days to build a fully functional website.
The availability of Content Management Systems – CMS – makes it a lot easier to build websites. A CMS like WordPress can help you build a website even when you do not have any coding knowledge. Thus, getting into website development, and providing web development services as a freelancer is pretty easy these days.
That’s why it is so easy to find freelance web developers these days. They also offer their services at cheaper prices compared to top web development companies. Despite all that, people still prefer going to a web development company, preferably experienced ones. Why is that? Let us find out.
More Skilled Web Developers
Website development companies hire developers based on their skills as well as experience. A freelance web designer usually does a 3-month-long online course on web development and then jumps into the market straight away. However, 3 months are never enough to fully grasp professional web designing. With their limited skills, they fail to provide quality service to their clients.
A top web development company, on the other hand, works with skilled personnel only. Basic knowledge of HTML and CSS might be enough for freelancers to jump into the job market. However, these agencies work only with the best in the field. And the best part is that they have different teams that handle different sides of the operation.
For instance, a web development company might have two teams of developers – one handling the front end, the other back end. Break those teams down, and you have developers skilled at specific things. Suppose one of those teams takes up the scripting side of things. That means they will handle JavaScript and other relevant frameworks like Node JS or React. It could be that one of the other teams is going to work with databases. That team will only focus on database frameworks like Laravel, Django, Ruby on Rails, etc.
Such type of teamwork not only ensures good quality, but also improves efficiency. Hence, whereas a freelancer might take a month to build a website with such configurations, an agency will take 2 weeks at max.
When you think about it, there is just too much technical knowledge involved here. One or two freelance developers can never manage them all. However, with a full-stack development team, web development companies can manage them all with ease.
Maintaining W3C and Other Web Development Standards
A person learning web development online only gets to learn the basics. At best, they equip themselves with some good design knowledge. They might even learn a few different frameworks as well. However, they hardly ever learn about W3C standards and web development standards in general.
It is not like the website will not run without developers maintaining these standards. However, a web development company still ensures these standards, just to meet industry requirements.
It is better to maintain these standards especially when you are looking to get ads on your website. Besides, the standards can also improve your website’s search engine rankings, ensure cross-device accessibility, and make it adaptable to future web technologies.
Adequate Market Research
The best web development companies always research their clients’ competitors and their websites. They also go through multiple other websites to seek inspiration. After that, they will show you the probable samples, help you choose the right one, and then get to work.
The research starts with a simple look at the website. Then the developers will attempt to take a closer look at the frameworks and coding style. Naturally, they will use the developer tools available on their browsers to inspect the target website. There, they can check the console to understand how the code works, what frameworks they are using, etc. The “inspect element” option on Chrome and Opera, or the Debugger on Firefox are very useful for this purpose. Sometimes, developers might even download the front-end part of the website using a copier tool like HTTrack.
Freelancers will not do any sort of research. They will get you to believe that whatever design they choose is the best one out there. Some of them might not even consider your suggestions. So why go down that road if you cannot have your say at all?
Better Collection and Utilization of Resources
Most freelance web developers use free tools and resources to build websites. Some of them even opt for pirated themes when working with a CMS. That is not only bad for the website’s quality, but it is also illegal. And even with adequate resources, many of them do not know how to use those resources. That is because they did not learn about them in their online web development courses.
A professional web development firm, however, ensures the best practices. From providing premium themes and resources to integrating them properly, they manage to do it all.
Besides, they are also willing to provide you with a dedicated support team after they deliver the project. So whenever you are facing any problem, you can reach out to their support team.
The same is not possible for freelance developers. They hardly have time to manage more than one project. They cannot afford to spare more time for providing support. Even if they do decide to provide customer support, they will fail to do it on-demand. That means a client might have to wait for days before getting help from the freelancer.
Therefore, it is easy to see why website development companies are still better than freelancers. They might cost you a bit more, but it is all worth it, given the quality of service they provide and the dedication they show.