Looking for a new web developer.

[David S.]

I'm looking to replace my web developer/designer and hosting service. I’m trying to set up an e-commerce platform that is apparently complex.

Progress on my website has been at a standstill for over a year, and I can't get a clear answer on whether my requests are impossible, beyond their skill level, or I'm a low priority.

Anybody in the biz interested in helping me move forward? Any recommendations?



Cheers,
David S

[okie john]

PM sent.


Okie John

[jh9]

...I’m trying to set up an e-commerce platform that is apparently complex.

Progress on my website has been at a standstill for over a year, and I can't get a clear answer on whether my requests are impossible, beyond their skill level,

Without knowing what you're trying to accomplish in detail it's hard to say. If what you need is truly complex and beyond the skill level of who you have now then you may want to sit down. Because this is what you're competing with (i.e. full time W2 positions) if you want big guns. If your project really is difficult or complex then it's not at all uncommon to burn through 1 FTE (i.e. a full time dev for a year). Quality time isn't inexpensive, and I don't know anyone freelancing (1099) that's making less than they would make on a W2.

Is there some reason you can't get it done with a facebook page and a shopify.com solution? That would be considerably cheaper. I don't freelance currently, and tend to steer people toward those solutions unless there's a compelling reason to do otherwise.

[David S.]

Without knowing what you're trying to accomplish in detail it's hard to say. If what you need is truly complex and beyond the skill level of who you have now then you may want to sit down. Because this is what you're competing with (i.e. full time W2 positions) if you want big guns. If your project really is difficult or complex then it's not at all uncommon to burn through 1 FTE (i.e. a full time dev for a year). Quality time isn't inexpensive, and I don't know anyone freelancing (1099) that's making less than they would make on a W2.

Is there some reason you can't get it done with a facebook page and a shopify.com solution? That would be considerably cheaper. I don't freelance currently, and tend to steer people toward those solutions unless there's a compelling reason to do otherwise.

I'm trying to add a e-commerce component to the website that supports multiple individual payees.

Several of the instructors that I list on the site choose to use a third party (typically Eventbrite) to sell tickets. I am attempting to offer an alternative service. As far as I can tell, Eventbrite holds the instructor's funds until after the event is complete. So did a couple of small sites back in the day. I'm not interested in doing that. I just want ticket funds to go directly to the instructor's bank account, minus a management fee.

As I understand, it's fairly straightforward to set up an e-commerce site for a single payee. They've had trouble setting the site up to handle a dozen or two individual payees, which is what I want.

A down-line issue that I'm concerned about is what payment processor to use in light of the current Cancel Culture. Shopify and PayPal have discontinued service for firearms related services in the recent past. I expect that to continue and possibly escalate over the few years. Even so, I'll probably start with a common processor like Stripe, but I suspect it needs to be modular enough to change in case that processor decides gun training doesn't meet their community standards, or whatever. I kinda feel crypto currency may eventually factor into this too.

There's some other tertiary projects to work on.

Hope that makes sense.

Cheers,
David S

[Tod-13]

I'm a software developer that also does web and mobile apps.

It sounds like you don't need a web developer -- or at least shouldn't use one. A web developer is a long-term investment -- they will create problems that need to be addressed in the future. Which means, you always need one.

In your shoes, I'd look for someone -- a user or "application analyst" -- who understands and is an expert using existing web commerce applications/systems. Something that you can click a few buttons and flip some toggles to change when you need (and you will). Not something you have to pay a developer to update.

If nothing out there fits your needs, I still wouldn't look for a web developer. They often do niche development, dedicated to web GUI and/or JavaScript. I'd look for a "software developer" that understands ecommerce, who should have the development expertise you need.

[David S.]

It sounds like you don't need a web developer -- or at least shouldn't use one.

I completely understand where you're coming from, which is why I've avoided it til now. The current developer has been tasked with this project for two years now. On the rare occasion I can get hold of them, I'm told progress is being made. But still.

[ER_STL]

Just adding a few extra data points since you're already getting good advice. Properly run web sites/solutions require dedicated resources to keep the site running, enhance it as necessary, respond to issues/incidents, etc. You'll want to take that into consideration if you're not going to have the ability to do that yourself (e.g. Developer John writes the code but you deploy, manage and support it).

Don't forget security, by the way - especially if you're going to come into contact with personal and payment information. If you're going to host and run your own site, you're responsible for its security and all data you manage. Most payment processors will offer a solution that frames their own pages to handle some of that burden for you, but it's still important to understand how it works and what it is for which you'll be responsible.

Hope that helps a little...

[okie john]

Your request is not complex, and I see no reason for this delay other than webology lacking the chops to do the work and the balls to admit it. Based on quick look at their site, I think you’ve asking for more than they can do. As others have said, what you want isn’t difficult to do but you need an ecommerce specialist and yes, security is an issue. You may find yourself on a monthly contract for help-desk type support. Definitely talk through your banking concerns with whoever you choose. Anyone who supports the cannabis industry will have solid insight into how to handle this.

All of that said, I see an issue with the model you propose. If an instructor cancels, then your model could leave you on the hook for make goods.


Okie John

[Sig_Fiend]

As a web developer that works in marketing, I can tell you they're full of a shit. If they can't do it in 2 years, it's because they can't do it period, and are too unethical to decline the work or let you know they're in over their head.

"Web developer" can mean just about anything these days. If you know even a little HTML and CSS, you can throw up some webpages and claim to be a web developer. What you want is someone that's more of an app developer or software developer. Someone that actually understands programming, with a specialty in ecommerce since that's a whole separate ball of wax.

From a dev standpoint, Stripe is great to work with. They're a very leftist organization though, so I can see them becoming a problem in the long run.

These days, in my perfect world scenario and for a relatively small ecommerce site (say under 1K "product" listings), I'd probably attempt an API-driven static site using a modern JS framework. Static site because it opens up nearly every hosting option and can generally allow you to move fast in the future when a host becomes a problem. It makes for very cheap hosting relative to a Wordpress site. Also, security is a big factor. There's only a very few ways to hack a static site, and those are almost entirely on the hosting side, or with JavaScript. For the security conscious and the paranoid, a static site is the way to go for piece of mind. WP is way too hackable. The key here is thinking about how much of a site will truly be dynamic. For most people, their blog posts, product/service pages, etc. are usually 80-90% static, maybe having a simple form for things like blog comments. In cases like that, WP is sort of a ridiculous "kitchen sink" level thing just to get some text and images on page and a form or two.

API-driven (Stripe being an example) for also giving you the freedom to switch out payment processors should those become an issue as well. People are starting to build small ecommerce sites in this way, though it is a bit more of a cutting edge thing. Usually it's with modern static site generators or JavaScript frameworks, such as GatsbyJS or Next.JS. Many devs surrounding newer tech like that tend to be very left leaning, so you may have issues there. Still, you might be able to find a developer that's more conducive to getting this thing done as opposed to dealing with the baggage and industry size that comes along with finding a "Wordpress developer".

[David S.]

I appreciate the info guys.

Can this be done properly on a relatively small scale, or does it require a massive silicone valley budget?