You have a big launch approaching, and decided to partner up with external contractors to make it happen.

Should your vendor work per-project or per-hour? Our findings: none of the above.

We have been designing and executing digital products and experiences for launching and brand re-positioning for a couple of years — and tested both models against a third option across real launches.

• Project-based gives the illusion of control — a fixed scope that can't survive an unforeseen pivot.
• Per-hour gives you a body in the room, but no direction means paid hours quietly disappear.
• Sprint-based is different: shorter security up front, but continuous access to senior people at the moments that decide the outcome — plus the weekly or bi-weekly rituals that keep everyone honest about what's actually moving.

The takeaway, after a lot of testing: sprint-based wins because it gets you results early and kills the anxiety that builds around a single big milestone.If your next launch can't afford a single point of failure, you should orchestrate your vendors on a per-sprint basis.