Maintenance - In house vs. Outsourced       Keeping a site current requires, regular updates to the site (HTML), quality assurance (not currently performed), graphic production, and occasional software development. Greater quality could also be brought to the site by devoting time to online copy editing-currently there is a direct print to web content transfer. To fulfill these requirements internally, three employees would be needed: two full-time and one part-time.     Estimated costs for necessary skill sets: Project Manager / Copywriter: $80,000/year HTML Developer/Graphic Designer: $60,000/year Software Developer: $40,000/year - part time rate Total annual unburdened staff costs are $180,000, with limited skill set flexibility. Outsourcing maintenance can result in a 10-30% cost reduction, depending on the size of the site. Outsourcing is less expensive and offers flexibility-interaction design, rich media, and database development can be brought in under the same contract for no incremental costs. Outsourcing also reduces downtime costs: if hours are not being used, you are not billed, as opposed to the fixed costs of salaried employees. See Also:       Case Studies        Free White Paper   In a survey conducted by the Outsource Institute, 55% reported improved company focus, 54% of respondents reported reduced operating costs, and 38% reported that resources were freed for other purposes. Need some tips and techniques on maintaining your large website?   Download our free white paper "Taming very large web sites."         © 1996-2006 Onlinefocus, Inc. | Contact Us | A UCI Web Group Company. All rights reserved.