Hi everyone, I have two hair salons, I want a booking system and a simple website. The quotes I got from agencies seemed really high, honestly, while the quotes from freelancers were almost a third of that.
The difference made me suspicious, why is there such a gap, is the cheap option bad, or are agencies overcharging? I really don't understand.
I'd really appreciate it if anyone who knows about this could help.
I'm a freelancer and I'm gonna speak against my own interests, that's the norm on this forum.
The difference comes from three places. First, in an agency, three people do the work I do: designer, developer, project manager. I do all three, but I'm not as good as the specialists in an agency at any of them.
Second, if the agency gets sick, work doesn't stop; if I get sick, it does. Think of part of the extra you pay as an insurance premium.
Third, the agency has an office, accounting, sales. All of that is on your invoice.
Honest answer for your job: a booking system and a simple site is something one person can comfortably handle. Freelance makes sense. But ask this: "what happens if I can't reach you in a year?" If there's no answer, don't look at that price.
I run a small agency, I'd like to add one more item to Batuhan's list: who will maintain it?
The real cost of a cheap quote isn't in the first invoice, it shows up in the second year. The site is built, the person disappears, nobody can touch it, you get it redone from scratch. When you've had it redone twice, the cheap quote becomes the expensive one.
But let me also say this: it doesn't have to be an agency. A single person who can maintain it, is reachable, and works properly does the same job. What you should look for isn't agency vs freelance, but whether it's sustainable.
Neşe, here's what happened with us, I've worked a lot with hair and beauty salons, here's a practical suggestion for you:
Don't have a booking system built from scratch. There are ready-made solutions for this that work for a small monthly fee. The cost of building from scratch equals five or six years of that subscription, and you'd also be responsible for its maintenance.
Allocate your budget to the site and visibility. Connect bookings to a ready-made system, just add a "book now" button to the site. I do this for most of my clients, and they're happy with it.
Thanks a lot really, that never crossed my mind, I looked into ready-made systems and even tried one out.
Now I'll just get quotes for the site, the budget makes way more sense too, glad I posted here.
Good outcome, but let me leave a warning, because a lot of people fall for this trap.
You switched to a ready-made system, good. Your customer list is sitting there now. If you want to leave, can you export that list? Check today. If you can't, the system that looks cheap ends up being the most expensive.
Let me clarify the technical side. The real issue isn't the number, but what it's based on.
If you post the result here, it will help others too.
There's a common mistake people make when doing this. The answer varies greatly by industry; there is no one-size-fits-all rule.
The answer above hits the nail on the head. Code without setup documentation isn't yours, even if you have it.
Trying to do this alone is the most expensive way. If I were you, I'd go this route.
Correct. Weekly written progress reports are much more useful than asking for dates.
This is my opinion, I'm not claiming it's absolute truth.
Doki · Phishing awareness training · 2023
exactly, and not many people know this... i mean the harder it is to reverse a decision the slower you should make it.
of course it varies if your situaiton is different.
Looking at it as a process, the picture changes. Code without setup documentation isn't yours even if you have it.
When making a decision, first look at what data you have on hand. Good luck with that.
Doki · Log management setup · 2026
I agree, and I'd like to emphasize that. Everyone rushing into budget gets stuck at the same point.
Mistakes made on the budget side are usually reversible but expensive. Correct me if I'm wrong.
I was thinking the same thing. Code without setup documentation isn't yours, even if you have it.
Proven by experience.
I went through the same thing. When you try to change everything at once, nothing settles.
Of course, it varies if your situation is different.
i disagree with you on this point. honestly taking notes for two weeks yields better results than a six-month estimate.
people defend habits, not processes. resitance comes from there and if you post the result here it will help others too.
You're right, I've been down that road too. Access credentials should be opened in the company's name, not personal accounts.
I'm also curious if anyone does it differently.