How to Outsource Web Development Wisely

The opportunity to outsource web development; either to a local software development team or a web development company overseas is a dilemma for both startups and larger companies when building websites or other web products. It is not easy to outsource web development. You should conduct a great screening process to find the proper vendor. As soon as everything is settled, you may benefit from the many advantages of web outsourcing.

3 Simple Steps to Outsource Web Development

Now you do understand the benefits of outsourcing web development than hiring a freelancer or a local team. The only thing is to arrange the website outsourcing process efficiently and in the right way. This 3-step process will help you to make your experience successful and maximize your outcome.

1. Finalize Business Goals Before Web Development Outsourcing

After you have a finalized concept and understand the goals you would like to achieve and the project needs, you address a web outsourcing team.

As the implementation of a web project can be different from the application of different methodologies as well as technological stacks, the first step in web outsourcing is to do the following:

• Create a general description of your digital web project
• List the objectives related to your web project (e.g. business goals, tech requirements, tech stack you want to apply, etc.)
• Build a list of questions for the pre-screening process for website outsourcing teams
• Understand the budget for your web project

2. Find the Proper Web Development Outsourcing Vendor

As soon as you have done an analysis and have defined what you need from a  business and a technical perspective, the next step is to choose your website outsourcing vendor. Before that, you can check platforms like Clutch.co, GoodFirms, Manifest, etc. where only the top offshore development teams are listed. The following information will help you to evaluate a potential vendor to outsource web development:

• Web development outsourcing company’s portfolio and experience
• Tech specialization and capabilities
• Web development company reviews
• Company accounts on platforms like GitHub for web development; to outsource web design you can check out Behance and Dribbble

After that, you can develop the list of potential companies you are interested in and start contacting them. During interviews you should pay attention to the following criteria:

• Communication process (e.g level of English, formality, cultural aspect, ways the information is presented)
• Information regarding the internal software development processes (methodologies used, quality assurance and bug fixing processes, ongoing support process, etc.)
• Request deliverables like code samples, design samples, CVs, etc.
• Get recommendations from clients in your country and check references
• Check whether or not the company has a local representative

It is necessary to get as many details as possible before hiring a web development outsourcing team. It is worth mentioning that you should do not schedule all your calls at once because the process may take some time and you will be overwhelmed with information.

If you take notes and create a Google doc filled with the gathered info it will help you to make a better decision.

As a general recommendation, don’t select the first company you like just because they are telling you what you would like to hear. An experienced offshore software development agency asks lots of project-related questions before giving their technical solution for making a successful final web product. It makes sense to sign an NDA, at this stage.

The final thing to outsource web development services is signing the contract, negotiating the payment process, and covering organization-related questions.

3. Arrange Efficient Communication During Web Development Outsourcing

The most important point involved in web development outsourcing is communication. Take into consideration time zone differences, work schedules, and holidays to fit both parties.

In great web development outsourcing companies, the Project Manager is allocated to control all the work done on your project and report to you regularly with the updates. Don’t hesitate to provide comments and ask questions.

In the beginning, it is recommended that you hold meetings daily in order to set the process on the right track. According to the Scrum software development framework, at the beginning of each development sprint, the team plans the scope of work (planning meeting). Then the team meets up every day to synchronize progress across all areas (daily meeting). At the end of each sprint, the team demonstrates the progress to the client or product owner and shows the result of the sprint (demo meeting). Then, feedback is gathered, the sprint results are discussed, and improvements to the process are made (retrospective meeting).

Sprints continue until the team delivers the final product for release. In some cases, when Scrum is not suitable for the team, the Kanban approach is used with custom processes and meeting schedule.

Don’t forget that web development outsourcing rarely leads to the desired results without proper communication.

Here is a small infographic that gives you a general outlook on the whole process that will help you to outsource web development wisely.