Developing for customers

Jim Kernsey

Hi

I'm thinking of doing a couple of websites for small local companies, they are only going to be brochure sites, probably all LAMP using something like mamboserver.

I haven't done anything like this before (commercially), truth is I’m finding it hard to get a suitable job as I’m off on holidays in 4 weeks. So I thought a few nixers would fill the gap.

I know a few of you here do this all the time. I was just wondering what were the pro's and con's??

Basically I'm selling brochure sites to companies that aren't computer literate and I’ll manage the content. Typically this involves changing of opening hours / change of products i.e. winter / summer collection etc.

A big concern of mine is my limited graphical capabilities, i.e. I’m not a graphical designer, and do you think this will be an issue?

I know this post is a little vague, but I’m basically hoping that people that do this the whole time will share some of their experience of this with me.

Thanks

JK

mneylon

I don't want to be negative, but what happens to the clients when you go on holidays in 4 weeks?

hostyle

blacknight wrote:

I don't want to be negative, but what happens to the clients when you go on holidays in 4 weeks?

I steal them.

Jim Kernsey

blacknight wrote:

I don't want to be negative, but what happens to the clients when you go on holidays in 4 weeks?

Well I'd hope that the sites would be up and running by then, any maintenance issues can be dealt with by a friend of mine.

Ianaldo

You should make sure you have an administrative section, connected to a database, where you can edit text for products and add products, and everytme you update you add it to the database, and on the page with the products on the client side, it takes these values from the database and displays them on the page, personally i think coldfusion is the best with this, so long as you have dreamweaver. Also with Coldfusion and Dreamweaver, design issues shouldn't be to much!

mneylon

Why would he want to use CFML and Dreamweaver when he has already stated that he wants to use Mambo, which already offers the kind of functionality that he requires?

leftofcentre

You can do things on the cheap, eg www.monstertemplates.com

I never use templates, but lets face it if you are only getting a few hundred for each site, you are not going to get a professional designer for that money.

If you get a good system, and you can turn the sites out quickly, then you could make some good cash.

Ianaldo

blacknight wrote:

Why would he want to use CFML and Dreamweaver when he has already stated that he wants to use Mambo

Ooops, missed that one, sorry