Digital Marketing Company vs Freelancer? Which is Better

The Rundown Between A Digital Marketing Company vs Freelancer

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In this age of technology making our lives easier, it’s almost always dumb for a company not to put the magic of technology to good use. Your people and your entire company might be swamped with the default jobs they have going on, so it might be an extra load when handling social media marketing and whatnot for your company and/or business.

It would be a great idea to play your cards right by hiring experts in the field and not succumb to mediocrity when it comes to echoing your business, especially online. There are many complexities and intricacies that go with the craft, so it’s best to be able to get people with these skills on board your team.

Virtual assistance are now a need for your company as they would help run your company through the internet. The internet is a powerful tool to forward your organization, company, and/or cause because this age of marketing and business largely revolves around how you look like on the internet, and their first impression of your business, organization, or cause, might also be sprung from the internet.

Digital Marketing Company vs Freelancer: How Do I Choose?

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First, to know which you should choose, you should be able to know what you need on your team. Some managers prefer to train their own staff, while other business owners don’t want any part of the training process. This usually depends on how much time you’re willing to invest in your virtual assistant, whether he/she may be in freelance, or from a company.

Are you dreading having to reply to every Direct Message on social media, or even emails from your Gmail? Are you tired of having to schedule posts on social media, or even have a hard time thinking about a catchy caption to draw in new customers?

Are you full of having to do content to maximize your search engine optimization?

Well I guess it’s time you invest on a virtual assistant.

Virtual assistant companies hire employees who are assigned to different clients, and you usually talk to a project manager. On the other hand, freelancers are usually self-employed and work solo. You work directly with them without an intermediate company. These are just a few factors to take into consideration when looking for the best virtual assistant for your business. Which virtual assistant do you think your company would need?

Both can be loads of help for your business as they can handle the extra workload you need for your business. They can also take on tasks that require skills you may not have in your roster of employees.

When you’re at a crossroads and do not know whether you should go for freelancers or virtual assistance services from agencies, it’s best to look at the pros and cons of each.

As virtual assistants are fast becoming an essential service, especially for busy smaller businesses that don’t have the capacity to employ someone full time, and yet are in need of an extra set of hands to run the business.

For virtual assistance services from agencies, you get to work with a pool of people with varying talents and skills. Since you’re working with a whole team and not only one person, you get immediate access to tasks as diverse as accounting and blog writing.

Moreover, it is said that it is generally seen how employees from agencies are more committed to their clients as they are under the wings of their employers, having more accountability.

Virtual assistance service providers more often than not have people on the job around the clock. Since they have so many teams handling numerous projects, they cover all the work as fast as possible.

Digital Marketing Company vs Freelancer: Choosing An Agency

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One of the best things about hiring through an agency is that they will have a virtual assistant on standby ready to do numerous tasks for you. This saves you the time from going on endless searches for virtual assistants. The agency does the scouting and hiring for you. You simply need to put in the request through the agency and the virtual assistant comes to you.

For business owners who need simplicity, ease, and accessibility, agencies are a great way to hire virtual assistants.

Moreover, your burden of having to communicate with customers and investors would be out of your hands, as virtual assistance services also help in the communication flow of the business. On top of that, they can arrange your schedule, plus, keep in charge of your bookkeeping! Ain’t that such a big help?

Another pro would be that in the case where your regular one is not keeping well or has gone missing in action, companies generally have enough hands for a replacement. In case of a freelancer, if such happens, you would have to work extra hard yourself to bridge the gap to finish the work, or even have to ask your assistant to train someone to function as a backup.

If you’re still not convinced, most virtual assistance services go the extra mile by also helping you in investor scouting, competitor research, content writing, social media management, and website maintenance!

When starting on the outsourcing, with a little doubt up your head, virtual assistance companies provide “free trials” as most agencies are into “personal assistance” wherein they give some kind of trial period for the client. The companies do this to ensure that the client gets to judge the services, without committing to any capital upfront.

However, while all good things make us feel giddy, virtual assistance services also has its downside. As the virtual assistance company takes charge of the pool of employees to assist you, you cannot choose who you’d like to be assigned to you.

With this, there may be a risk of you not liking the outcome because you aren’t able to review their portfolio, or even their work ethics as you are not able to get to know them.

If you’re a manager who takes joy in training and meeting virtual assistants first, and having full control over the hiring aspect of a virtual assistant, hiring through an agency might not be an ideal choice for you.

Digital Marketing Company vs Freelancer: Hiring Freelancers

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While you may be on the verge of going for virtual assistance services, you still have the option for hiring freelancers. It’s actually known as a trend these days to hire freelancers to do your work when it comes to marketing and other virtual assistance.

A freelancer is a broad category for someone who offers a service or works by the hour, day, week or per project.  As one is self-employed freelancers normally work for a variety of clients or companies. Freelancers can operate remotely or can choose to work on-site depending on the type of service and the job requirements.

Freelance virtual assistants can be found through online platforms such as Guru or Upwork, though some virtual assistants will also have their own websites. Keep in mind that independent virtual assistants who have their own websites are generally more expensive because they need to cover their taxes and the cost of running their business.

Initially, there is not much difference between a freelancer and a virtual assistant. As a  virtual assistant is a broad category within the freelancing world, freelancers are those who provide professional administrative, technical, or creative assistance to clients remotely. Virtual assistant services can vary from general administrative tasks to highly specialized services and they all tend to work in a freelancing capacity.

The biggest pro you can get from freelancers is that you can negotiate your availability needs in advance with them as they do not have as tight a schedule as the virtual assistance services company. Moreover, these freelancers can also work from your office, so you get time work with them personally.

With freelancers, there is no problem when it comes to having full control over who you work with. You can select whoever you want as a freelance virtual assistant.  You can interview them yourself and if needed, train them on your own.

Having a freelancer as a virtual assistant is especially useful if you need an external person to help you with a project that requires a certain skill set. Plus, if you’re one who tends to micromanage, you can be with the freelancer in every step of the way, judging their outputs one by one.

Moreover, when you take into consideration the cost versus quality aspect, it can be disputed, based on experiences by many businesses, that digital marketing agencies come off as expensive as they have a roster of very many skill sets. Compared to freelancers, they are pretty much cheaper than the companies.

However, when it comes to scalability, in the case of freelancers, there is not enough scope for such as you would not be able to go beyond a single individual’s capacity. And even if you want to expand beyond the present capacity, you would have to start your recruitment process from the start.

READ ALSO: Digital Marketing Comparison: 360 Company vs. Freelancers vs. Specialized Agency

Freelancers most often than not can get your job done immediately, based on their availability. As companies have fixed schedules, you may not be able to bug them during weekends and holidays because those times aren’t part of their pay. At this point, having an on-call freelancer to get your job done is a smart choice.

Hiring a freelancer is best when you only need one type of skill for a job done as compared to a variety of such to help in your business.

However, recently outsourcing to a freelancer has become a trend since the prices are low, but in real scenarios majority of the clients are dissatisfied with the freelancer’s efforts and get the same work redone by the agencies.

While it is a happy choice for your company’s wallet to rely on a freelancer to do your virtual assistance jobs, you might realize that in the long run that the smart choice would be one that gives you a wide pool of experts rather than just one person to do a truckload of tasks.

With these pros and cons narrowed down, you may now have an idea which type of virtual assistance you may need for your organization or business. These virtual assistants help make your jobs easier and also creates a more efficient workspace for all of your tasks to do.

‍Some helpful things to think about before making your decision between Digital Marketing Company vs Freelancer

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If you’re still skeptical about having to invest on virtual assistants whether it be from an agency or individual freelancers, you need to put in mind that the benefits are endless. You are actually hiring those who are experts in their craft, especially in digital marketing, which should be an important part in your business as it provides you with the audience you need.

Putting in the extra budget for these factors in your business might actually go a long way for you, especially when you’re just starting to establish your brand image on the internet.

At this age of everything being on the internet, it is important to keep a pretty face online. Virtual assistants do just that, and on top of that, free you of all the little, yet necessary actions in building up the brand image you aspire to have.

You might be missing out if your brand, organization, or company is not on the internet yet! So it is best to cover all your grounds and create a lasting impression for your future customers through the power of the internet.

Business can only be as booming if you constantly get with the tide. Technology is a best friend you’d love to have along the way.