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Online marketplace for services -- any suggestions?

by florestan
9 replies
Hi all,

I am planning an online marketplace for professional services (along the lines of Fiverr but for a specific niche market).

I found several web developers who could build a custom web app for me but of course at a steep price. I was wondering if there are any feasible alternatives to a completely custom built app. Perhaps using a content management system like Joomla, Drupal or WP or an open source marketplace software. Any suggestions?

Can anyone point me in the right direction? Thanks!
#marketplace #online #services #suggestions #web development
  • Profile picture of the author robomedia
    It's A LOT of custom work.
    Do you have at least project specifications on paper or just a vision in your head?
    Nobody sane will work on such project in Joomla or WP. It needs custom programming/database job.
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  • Profile picture of the author florestan
    Hi robomedia,

    Thanks for your reply. I do have detailed product specifications but your point is well taken.
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  • Profile picture of the author Joe Ray
    You mentioned Fiverr in your post. Fiver and most of the similar online platforms are most likely not going to provide you what you need.

    To build a custom app, you will probably need real developers. But, real developers are not cheap.

    You said you found several developers but they are too expensive. What country are they from?
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    • Profile picture of the author florestan
      Originally Posted by Joe Ray View Post

      You mentioned Fiverr in your post. Fiver and most of the similar online platforms are most likely not going to provide you what you need.

      To build a custom app, you will probably need real developers. But, real developers are not cheap.

      You said you found several developers but they are too expensive. What country are they from?
      Hi, I appreciate your feedback, Joe Ray. I understand that I need high quality developers. I was just wondering if there is a pre-existing (open source) e-commerce/marketplace solutions they could use as a foundation. But it seems like there isn't.

      I'm from Austria and the U.S.
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      • Profile picture of the author Joe Ray
        Originally Posted by florestan View Post

        Hi, I appreciate your feedback, Joe Ray. I understand that I need high quality developers. I was just wondering if there is a pre-existing (open source) e-commerce/marketplace solutions they could use as a foundation. But it seems like there isn't.

        I'm from Austria and the U.S.
        In Europe and the US developers will be expensive. There are a couple of other countries where you can find reliable developers that are just as good but for about half of the price.

        I work with some very good developers in Taiwan for example. They are great and not expensive.
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  • Profile picture of the author riztechpro
    This is a big project bro, so you will have to invest a lot. You will ruin your idea looking for a cheap developer.
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  • Profile picture of the author teresarothaar
    Yeah, if you looked on Upwork, you could probably find someone willing to do this for a bargain-basement rate.

    That said, you'd be better off taking that money and buying groceries with it. At least then, you'd have the groceries to eat. If you hand it to a bargain-basement "developer," you're going to end up with a site that doesn't work -- and it will cost you even more to fix something that's broken than it would to just pay to have it done right the first time.

    If I were you, I'd wait until I had enough money to pay someone to do this properly. Alternatively, you could try to learn to do it yourself, but I don't know how much coding you know. This project sounds quite complex, and your learning curve could be 90 degrees.
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    • Profile picture of the author florestan
      Originally Posted by teresarothaar View Post

      Yeah, if you looked on Upwork, you could probably find someone willing to do this for a bargain-basement rate.

      That said, you'd be better off taking that money and buying groceries with it. At least then, you'd have the groceries to eat. If you hand it to a bargain-basement "developer," you're going to end up with a site that doesn't work -- and it will cost you even more to fix something that's broken than it would to just pay to have it done right the first time.

      If I were you, I'd wait until I had enough money to pay someone to do this properly. Alternatively, you could try to learn to do it yourself, but I don't know how much coding you know. This project sounds quite complex, and your learning curve could be 90 degrees.
      Thanks for your reply! You know, I wasn't really looking for a bargain basement developer. I just wondered if there are any "pre-fab modules" (is that what you call it?) that an experienced developer could use as a foundation instead of building this web app from scratch. From the replies I received so far, I suppose there aren't...
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  • Profile picture of the author professorrosado
    Is the app really needed to make your platform at least moderately successful?

    I would just use WP for the site and install a simple WP plugin to make the app from the website itself - not a true app, but you really do not need one to make your site successful. There are other low cost app makers out on the market as well.

    Use that money to build and promote your website and create income from your website so you can then afford a custom app. If the website cannot produce enough for that, how will the app help you to?
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