Of course, there is no universal answer to this question. And at Codeur.com, we are inevitably inclined to believe that freelancers are a good solution.
But at Codeur.com, we moved from an almost exclusively employee-based structure to one that relies mainly on freelancers. So we've seen both ends of the spectrum and here is our view on the matter.
Advantages of freelancers
1. Experience
When building a startup, the budget is often limited. Unless you raise funds, the solution is often to turn to young employees, who are cheaper and sometimes less averse to risk.
They are dynamic, friendly and have a good web culture. But they also need training and are not always proactive.
The freelancers we work with are experienced, they give us relevant recommendations that save us time and money.
And this without having to hire an experienced full-time employee for a large salary.
2. Productivity
Even with all the energy in the world, young or low-skilled employees are generally less productive than experienced freelancers.
This has an obvious consequence: you will spend less time à manager a freelancer, and they will generally spend less time than a young employee on equivalent tasks.
3. Responsiveness and flexibility
A startup's needs change quickly but employees don't necessarily change at the same pace, nor in the same direction.
Typically, you need back-end developers at first. Then comes the need to improve the site's interface, then the need to do the company promotion…
These are different specialties that a single employee will struggle to master completely. One of the advantages of freelancers is that you can change them and hire a specialist for each need for your startup.
4. Motivation: customer satisfaction
The freelancer lives solely off satisfaction and customer loyalty. A satisfied client can generate new contracts and create positive word-of-mouth to acquire new clients and thus a larger networkThe freelancer therefore makes sure to understand their client's needs as fully as possible. A successful project is the best advertisement they can make of their work.
For example, on Redacteur.com, our trusted freelance writers make it onto some clients' lists of favorite writers and therefore respond more regularly to collaboration requests. Customer satisfaction, loyalty, new projects, increase in revenue !
One can therefore think that a freelancer will place more importance on satisfying their clients than an employee will.
Advantages of employees
Of course, hiring an employee also has its advantages and you should carefully consider the strengths of each profile according to your startup's needs.
1. Involvement
An employee hired on a permanent contract is, most of the time, involved in the company they work for, depending on their position. This results in greater efficiency and stronger involvement in the company decisions. That is why this advantage appears relatively important in your final decision to work with a team of freelancers or employees.
However, this should be tempered: some professionals are passionate about their work and, conversely, for some employees, only the end-of-month paycheck matters.
2. Availability
Whereas a freelancer generally has several clients and is not always available to respond quickly to you, an employee is, for their part, much more available to your company. This is undeniable. This can be seen as a key advantage thanks to the time savings that can be provided by the employee availability, unlike a freelancer.
Despite everything, employees can fall ill on sick leave or resign: their availability is therefore not guaranteed 100% either.
3. Price
Some freelancers can be expensive, that's undeniable. However, a salary also represents a cost, with the many costs associated with them.
Moreover, you must take into account the freelancer's higher productivity: a high hourly rate is quickly offset if productivity is ten times higher, if not more.
So it is interesting, in this respect, to compare the freelancer cost compared to that of an employee, depending on your startup's needs.
Freelancer or employee: which to choose?
Of course, there is no definitive answer: every situation is different, and we would not recommend that everyone raise an army of freelancers.
Besides, even if the freelancer is a source of recommendations and experience, they will first expect you to delegate your work properly explain your project as clearly as possible.
In short, clearly define your own need and Find the freelancer who suits you, so that the work proceeds as smoothly as possible.
