Setting up a new web business - Web designer needed - please

mummymoments

Hi,

Having first of all posted in DFW forum have been told may get a better response from this board so hees hoping.

I am trying really hard to clear off my remaining debt and at the same time start a business which I can run from home to provide me with an income (all be it a small one) in the years to come as having just had our second baby and with a husband who works away a lot or does funny shifts going out to work with a "proper job" just is'nt an option.

I have come up with an idea for a website but need to know roughly how much it will cost me to set up, design, host etc. If there are any web designers out there who are looking for some extra cash to go towards there debts or paying off mortgage etc then please contact me as I would prefer to pay a likeminded moneysaver than not. Even a reccommendation of a good designer who is reasonable would be appreciated.

The site I want will involve people paying me a set amount each month in return for their own online shop under my website address. Not sure if that makes sense but if you think you might be able to quote me a price then please PM me or post on here and I'll provide further details for you.

Ta v much you talented bunch of people.

martindow

I don't want to pour cold water on your idea but you do need to be down to earth in starting any business. I've no idea whether your business idea is realistic. Do you have potential clients who have expressed an interest? What advantage is there for people to host sites with you rather than setting up their own site?

Enthusiasm is essential for setting up a business but so is realism. A web site is not an automatic route to riches.

I'm not intending to be negative here but am asking you to take a long hard look before you sink too much money into your idea. I hope that that you can make it a success and wish you all the best.

BWZN93

I was about to say, the idea sounds a bit like ebay shops to me - have you fully researched the idea to make sure you can compete with such massive competition? What will you do differently? Have you done a full and thorough business plan?? This should be done whether or not you are looking for finance from a bank. Its a business and you will need it to guide you otherwise the business is operating without a gameplan.

I myself am in the research stages of setting up an internet company too and every day it becomes more complex - ive been working on it for 4 months and am only just now at a stage where I can ask for quotes on a site. I know what I am looking for and how it will work, and am finalising things like legalities etc. So far, the only cost has been my time and effort in reasearching the whole thing (oh, and for my domain which is currently parked). In all honesty, my site wont be live till late October. It just as complex (if not more!) than a bricks and mortar business!

Jo x

mummymoments

Hi All,

Thanks for your words of wisdom. I have been researching the idea for the last 9 months and already have approx 20 people who are interested in having a shop via my hosting site (I got these really without even trying) and my research shows that there really are people out there who would like to use (both via buying and selling) a site like mine will be so hopefully I can make it a success.

I know that I will be in direct competition with the likes of Ebay but two of my big selling points I think (and a lot of the people who I asked during my research agree) will be the low, one off monthly fee to sell as many items as you like and the specialist market targeted.

I know its not going to make me a millionaire but as I have worked hard to pay off so much of my debts I really want to give it a try and I'm bursting with enthusiasm so hopefully it will one day pay dividends.

Thanks again for all your kind words and good meaning but don't worry I'm not going into this with my eyes shut. And hey if it does all go pete tong then its only money and I'll still have my two beautiful children at the end of the day. Thats the way I'm looking at it and if I don't have a go then I'll never know.

Thanks again - is there any website designers out there who are interested in giving me a quote?

BWZN93

Hi!

Im glad you have done the research first (fancy giving me a few tips - this interweb malarkey is mighty confusing at times!).

Im currently asking for quotes on elance.com and freelancewebmarket.com as there are a load of professionals and individuals on there working on all ends of the price range for projects and if you write in all your specifics then you should get some accurate prices. Im not sure if there are any web designers on MSE but asking on the tech board aswell might throw a few up!

Aside from that, good luck with the project and I hope it works for you!

Jo x

MORPH3US

OP,

I have dabbled with web design in the past but it sounds to me like you want some kind of shopping cart option for your site which I have never done before..

If you can be more specific then I may be able to help, but it you do want shopping carts and online payment systems then I won't be able to help and in my experience it will be expensive to get such a site up and running...

I can put you in contact with loads of designers who can help, but these people run their own business and so aren't cheap because they have their own bills to pay, unlike someone who does it in their back bedroom in their spare time, cash in hand etc...

Let me know!

M

choosewisely

I've got experience of ecommerce systems, shopping carts, online applications and databases and the technical side (rather than the graphic design side) of website development. I'm snowed under with work at the moment (and as a full time self-employed developer need to charge realistic rates unlike the spare time back bedroom guys!) but can give you advice for nothing!

To get a quote for your site you're going to need to nail down a technical specification of what you want otherwise you could find you either don't get the website that you want or there's a nasty surprise when the invoice arrives!

If you haven't already I'd think about how you want the site to work in detail - how will users use the site, how will your customers use the site, what features will it need etc. The smallest detail in your head can mean a days extra work for a developer so figuring out how you want it to work in as fine detail as you can will help you get an accurate quotation from a developer.

Any more questions feel free to ask!

BWZN93

Choosewisely - Im currently looking at an online business too and have been writing down a heck of a lot in terms of how I want my site to work. If I was to present my ideas to a developer, how is this best done? I mean, im working page by page in bullet point format on what should happen and what should be visible - but im no good on techincal stuff and wouldnt know how to precisely verbalise what im trying to acheive in a techie way, would that be a problem?

It is going to need a lot of features so im aware the bill isnt going to be the most pleasant thing ever, but I need to make this as understandable as possible to ensure an accurate quote! Is it also worth me getting the design ideas ready now too to show a developer?

Morph3us - I noticed the info in your signature and I could probably do with some advice actually. At the moment im reading through an online business for dummies book and it has become clear to me that my business idea is probably a very good one, however, its going to take some work and im going to need the advice of businesslink!

However, before I approach them, I want to have some solid work already done to show and tell - in order to get the advice I need and to be sure im heading in the right direction. That said, Im probably not looking at needing finance for the venture as it should be possible to fund the set up from my salary and im hoping to have the business live by the end of October.

Is it worth just going to see an advisor with the idea and what ive done so far (quite basic in all honesty!) to get some opinions? I think im confusing myself with the sheer amount of info im trying to take in and could do with an impartial person to guide me on what I should be doing as an urgent priority over things that could wait a bit, as well as looking practically at the idea to point out the pitfalls I havent yet noticed!

Also, business plans - im aware they need to be in place for finance applications but I think I should do one anyway, using it as a blueprint. Am I correct? And, where is the best place to get a business planning tool?


OP - Sorry to hijack your thread!


Jo x

save-a-lot

Hi

The affiliate network buy.at have already done this idea...

see http://www.buy.at/fundraising/works.php?type=charities&REFERER=

and then http://www.buy.at/poppyappeal to view what their shops look like. These are a large network and have plenty of money to develop such sites. You could of course create an affiliate site - you could produce an affiliate site that is based on price tapestry...

see, http://www.pricetapestry.com/node/14 for sites running this. Basically you can become an affiliate of a number of sites and use their datafeeds, then allow users to search and compare deals at your site. All of which you earn a commission for.

PM me if you want any more details.

MORPH3US

jw1096, I will PM you some info...

M

Laurence1234

Hi did you manage to get all the info you need? if not drop me a message

Laurence