Here are five reasons why you should consider going outside for design services.

Once you have indoor plumbing, why would you ever use an outhouse? Sometimes hiring a design consultant may feel like this. I used to run an inhouse department and kept everything inside with a few important exceptions. Here are five reasons why you should consider going outside for design services:

1. Capacity: Once or twice a year you may get overloaded and need a reliable resource who is pre-vetted to help out when things get crazy. I found it was better to meet with potential partners when I wasn't too busy. When I waited until I was busy I wouldn't do as good a job qualifying the designer consultant.

2. Specialty: Sometimes you need to get a new project done that requires a specialist like an animated video, signage or an exhibition design. The inhouse learning curve may be too long for specialty projects. An outside designer can provide expertise and personal attention along with fresh ideas.

3. Flexibility: Outside designers can cut through the red tape and get things done faster, whether it’s print, video or a digital project. A new project may come up that your inhouse team just doesn’t have the bandwidth to handle. The outside design solution can get the work done without upsetting your internal workflow.

4. Credibility: You know what they say, “no prophet is accepted in their hometown.” Outside design consultants come with a built-in authority that is hard to get when you work inside an organization. You can use an outside perspective to introduce new approaches and tackle the more difficult branding challenges.

5. Quality: One of the hard things about working inhouse is that you can get into a rut of doing the same old thing. Consistency is really important, but so is keeping and gaining the attention of your audience. We are often brought in to refresh templates, create a new campaign or find a novel way to design a publication or promotion. The “outsider" perspective comes in handy when you want to step up your game.

If any of these scenarios sound familiar, then let’s meet so you have a resource ready for the future.