With more than 50 million freelancers in India alone, the freelancing trade has seen a sharp spike since the pandemic hit the world. Ranging from a freelance designer to virtual assistants, there is an ocean full of freelancers on third-party platforms. However, there are a few criteria that you need to follow to hire a specific professional. I Abhinav Sharma, a UI/UX professional, will talk about how, why hiring a freelance UI designer can turn out to be a good idea.

Being an active participant in the freelance designer trade, I’ve some important insights for those who are still following the orthodox methods in terms of recruiting employees—the reason being the authenticity of the person that the company is hiring.

However, if you ask the right questions and set the correct expectations, you will find it easier to hire a UI designer virtually. I’ve been working as a freelance UI/UX designer and I am proud that all of the clients are happy with my work. Moreover, I get many repeat clients, which means they are finding it easier to deal with freelancers rather than having to hire another in-house staff.

Read on and evaluate for yourself if hiring a freelance designer is a good idea.

Things to Keep in Mind While Hiring A Designer

What You Want to Build (Type of Designer)

It is one of the essential steps to follow to hire a UI designer.
Also, you must be aware that the complicated the project, the more will be the cost. It will further make it easier for you to create a list of the best UI professionals who have expertise in that specific area.

Budget (Charges of a Freelance UI/UX Designer)

Since you will hire a freelance designer, it’s vital to know how much to hire a UI UX designer is. As opposed to in-house professionals, the cost incurred to employ a freelancer is always low.
The cost of any freelancing trade is either calculated hourly or is a fixed price. The average hours to create a static website by a UI/UX designer is 20 hours. Hence, you can either determine an hourly rate or keep a fixed budget.
Based on the freelance designer experience, the hourly rate starts from $30 for beginners and can go up to $70/hour as well. The factors depend on the UI/UX designer’s experience, the type of work you want them to do, and the freelancer’s location.

Curating The A-List (Top 10 Freelance Designers)

While many third-party freelance platforms feature UI/UX designers, most of us like to work independently. To create a list with the best UI designers, you may search on LinkedIn or Fiverr.
Since the freelance business does not involve hiring within the boundaries of one’s city of residence, you can choose the best depending on your budget and requirement.
If you don’t want to spend your time searching for one, you can sign-up as a client on a third-party platform. Some such vendors are Toptal, Upwork, Envato Studio, and many more. On such platforms, you can post a job with the project description and some basic questions. Freelance designers who deal in that area will send you job requests. Based on their profile, stats, and answers, you can easily select up to 10 UI/UX designers for the final interview.

Asking the Right Questions (Over the Phone/Video Interview/Chat)

Once you have a list of quality professionals, the answer to ‘how to hire a UI designer’ becomes quite easy. The last step involved is to ask the below questions. Then you evaluate which professional is the best one for you.

1. What’s the difference between a UX designer, UX researcher, or Visual designer?
2. Can you tell me the process you follow to complete a project successfully?
3. What tools do you use as a UI/UX designer?
4. Which app or website design do you like most? And why?
5. How do you fix a project that a client is not satisfied with?
6. Do you have some past work samples or a personal website?

Chalk out the pros and cons of every freelance designer that you interview based on their answers. The one with the greatest number of pros, and least cons, wins.

Final Words

I have appeared for traditional interviews. After every interview, I would have many regrets coz I was never able to display my full potential in such recruitment processes. Freelancing eliminates such flaws because you can display every aspect of your skill to the person who hires you.
Also, it reduces the company cost in terms of infrastructure, recruitment expenses, and inventory.
See how hiring a freelance designer is a win-win for both parties. But this is just my perspective. You can decide for yourself if the above process seems better or not. After all, it’s your money and time; you can spend it in whichever way you want to!