Creative as a Service: What Is It & Do I Need It?

Struggling with last-minute graphics or copy for your social media campaign? Or is your in-house team lacking specific skills, such as animation design or video production and editing? 

You’re not alone.

In our fast-paced world the need for high-quality creative delivered fast is greater than ever. And whether you rely on outsourcing to freelancers, or have an in-house creative team, bottlenecks are bound to happen.

In this article, we’ll present a cost-effective, flexible and fast solution for all your creative projects: creative as a service. 

What is creative as a service (CaaS)?

Creative as a Service (CaaS) is a business model where companies provide creative work—like graphic design, video production, content creation, branding, etc.—on a subscription or on-demand basis, rather than traditional project-based or hourly billing.

But is this a good idea in the long-term? And what kinds of creative solutions do these companies offer? 

Creative as a service: costs & capabilities

Costs

Here’s the good news! Creative as a service companies charge much less than traditional creative agencies, and often even skilled freelancers.

While it’s impossible to give you a definitive list of prices for all creative as a service options, here are some ballpark estimates that you can work with.

• Design as a service: Some of the best on-demand design companies usually have subscriptions ranging from $500 to $2,000. At ManyPixels our rates start at just $599 and include all design types. 
• Content writing: Although there are few solutions that offer content writing, alone these services are typically very affordable, and range from $200 to about $5000 a month.
• Creative as a service: If you want a full range of services, from developing a marketing strategy to devising, running and monitoring your campaigns, be prepared to pay a slightly higher price. Of course, it’s still usually more affordable than a traditional marketing and design agency. Monthly rates for this type of service usually range between $3,000 and $8,000. 

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Creative services

There’s a big world of creative as a service companies out there. So, if you’re wondering what kind of creative projects you can get, the short answer is: virtually anything.

Still, not all companies offer all creative services. Some offer the range of creative services, from branding to SEO. Others focus on delivering high-quality design services, such as ad graphics, social media, and more. 

Design

Design-as-a-service companies are probably the best known and most common type of the CaaS model. 

Typically, these companies offer the full range of graphic design services, which includes logos and branding, illustration, marketing design, print design, website design, motion graphics, and in some cases video editing. 

Your projects are assigned to the designer with the most suitable skills and background, and usually there’s a professional project manager in the mix to ensure the workflow is smooth. 

If you want to know more about how we work at ManyPixels, click below. 

Web design and development

Although technically it falls under the umbrella of graphic design, unlimited web design services can be a little more difficult and expensive to come by.

Of course, plenty of services offer all design services, including web design. However, you might find that in some cases this option requires a slightly higher payment. 

Web development might or may not be part of the package deal, and there could be certain limitations (e.g. some companies will only work in an existing website builder, such as Webflow). 

Copywriting 

With the rise of AI tools, you might not think you need a professional copywriter. Until you do. 

Truth is that no matter how short, ad or website copy has a tremendous impact on the success of your business.

So, it really pays to hire a professional that will craft compelling copy that’s also a good match for your brand. On that note, it pays to remember that creative-as-a-service companies usually offer less personalization, than say traditional marketing agencies.

They handle multiple clients at once, so the focus is usually on quality and speed. However, with quality briefings, and an established brand voice, you can certainly get high-quality results at a great price.

SEO and content marketing

While copywriting is usually done on an ad-hoc basis, SEO content writing is a process that takes time and effort.

This is where a creative as a service subscription makes a lot of sense. One flat monthly fee can give you access to high-quality content regularly, which will help you boost your site’s authority and get better search engine rankings. 

Email marketing and campaigns

Even with the rise of social media and digital advertising, email marketing still has one of the highest ROI, and is definitely worth investing time and effort in.

Whether you need help with catchy subject lines, well-crafted body text, or the design of email banners, creative as a service companies can be a great choice. These professionals also know how to set up and use your email marketing tools, and create email systems that you can benefit from later. 

Reasons to use creative as a service

Now that you know what kind of services you can get, it’s fair to ask: why purchase a creative-as-a-service subscription? 

Flexible scaling, fixed pricing

Why is creative as a service the best way to outsource your creative needs? Simply put, it combines the best of everything.

Just like working with freelancers, you have full control over when and how you pay. With no-commitment contracts, you’re usually able to pause or cancel your subscription as you want. 

On the other hand, you know that you always have a reliable service on hand, with a whole team at your disposal. This is just like working with a design agency, you won’t have to worry about unexpected delays or sick leave - there’s always a team member standing by to take over.

Versatile talent for versatile tasks

Whether you just wish to outsource design or content writing, or the whole marketing package, this is your chance to diversify your marketing efforts and get the best person for each task. 

If you have clients of your own, you can expand your own offer without going over budget. 

Lower costs

Considering that traditional marketing agencies charge several thousands of dollars for a single project, the cost of creative as a service subscription is significantly lower.

On the other hand, while freelancers tend to be a cost-effective solution for one-off projects. However, if you need creative regularly, paying per project (and often extra for additional revisions) means costs rack up quickly. 

Outsourcing design is essential

We hope this answers any dilemmas about the CaaS model and why you should consider it for your business.

While other solutions (content writing, marketing automation, insights) are still relatively affordable to outsource or even do in house, design is always a big investment.

Moreover, unlike content writing and social media management, one person can never handle all design tasks. The skills a UI/UX designer has are vastly different, than say, an experienced designer. 

So, investing in a graphic design subscription is one of the smartest moves you can make to help your business grow.

At ManyPixels we have over 6 years of experience, and hundreds of thousands of design projects under our belt. Unlike many other companies, our most affordable plan ($599 a month also includes unlimited web designs services).

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Our higher tier plans are designed for busy marketing and creative teams looking to solve bottlenecks and get high-quality designs with lighting-fast turnaround.

Have any questions? We’d love to help you find the best solution for your business. Book a free 1:1 consultation and we’ll be happy to answer any questions.