Learn how long you can expect a full eCommerce website project can take to develop-from prototype to production.

When you work with a full-service eCommerce development company to manage the production of your new website project, make sure you understand the overall timeline and phases before breaking ground.

Your chosen eCommerce provider should present a timeline unique to your project. The phases/length may differ, but the concepts should be similar.

eCommerce Development Timeline

Whether your working on a single website, or a cluster of complex software applications, take the upfront time to standardize the method to control the source code, and task schedule. You will be grateful for this when your lead developer quits, or you hire some new team members.

A version control system (VCS) is basically a running log of all the source code changes within your website. It allows a developer or designer to quickly analyze source code changes and enables them to revert, modify, or delete changes with simplicity.

A VCS will play a critical role in the development of your project when you have various team members, or iterations to your source code. For example, let’s say you have two developers; a lead developer and a entry-level developer. The entry level developer can make changes to the source code, and the lead developer can quickly verify these changes to ensure they are coded properly. The software creates a full account of all changes to all files, and identifies where the changes were made, by who, and when. The lead developer can then accept the changes and push them to the live source code base, or reject the changes and push them back to the entry-level developer to fix.

The real benefit in using this system is it does not require a high level server administrator or developer to manage or use. Anyone on your team can access the source code changes, verify schedule and tasks, and gain some insight into the project from a basic web browser. This is a powerful tool for a project manager or webmaster.

Version Control Software
There are many parts to a version control system. It starts with the actual technology used for managing the source code. A few of the different software applications that are responsible for managing changes are; CVS, Subversion, Git, Mercurial, Bazaar, the list goes on…See a great break down of the different systems at http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2008/09/18/the-top-7-open-source-version-control-systems/

Interface Tools
A VCS is the under-the-hood system installed on your server which is responsible for logging all changes to the source code. The next part of the equation is the interface you used to communicate with the VCS. For example, when you upload files to your server, you probably use some sort of FTP client to transfer the files. Much like an FTP client, the VCS interface tool allows you to easily commit, revert, and access the source code base. These tools make accessing the VCS extremely simple for your designers, project managers, developers, etc…

Project/Task Management Software
The project and task management software is the system that makes the changes easily accessible and available for tracking, documentation, and communication. For instance, a project manager can access the entire project from his web browser to verify tasks, bugs, and time logs of his team members. With this information, decisions can be made to prioritize and escalate tasks. This system is the engine behind the management of the project.

Key benefits of using these systems:

• One centralized location to manage all of your projects with ease
• Your projects will be fully documented with the changes and why those changes were made and by who
• Backups of all changes are stored within the VCS, and in the case of errant code, can quickly be restored
• Bug tracking and resolution made easy and efficient
• Task scheduling and resource allocation is tied in directly with work accomplished (source code changes)
• Time tracking per task, project, etc..

So hopefully you now understand the importance of these systems and are ready to take the next step. I am going to outline the systems I use, and why. There are dozens of different configurations, however, I have found that for small teams, with limited Linux experience benefit from the configuration below.

Choose Your VCS
First off, I used Subversion (about 5 years ago). At the time, our code changes were only rolled out to the development server every 12 hours. Eventually, we were able to roll out the changes every 5 minutes, and then were finally able to roll out changes with a post-commit hook (which means someone needed to trigger the system to activate the changes). This was not efficient for our designers who were working on browser compatibility and advanced CSS/HTML code. It killed their productivity because every little tweak they made required 30-60 seconds of extra time to implement. Added up throughout the day, and we lost a lot of time.

Subversion is much slower to roll out changes, as it stores all the projects in a centralize repository. So, whenever you query the system it needs to run through the entire source code base of all your projects to implement the change. If you have a lot of projects/source code, this could cause some major delays.

Anyway, we moved on to a few other systems that were better than Subversion but too hard to use from a Windows system. That is, the interface tools were quirky and difficult to work with.

We finally tested and implemented the Mercurial VCS, which is fast, powerful, and has some great interface tools. It is also very easy to use, and scales well for larger projects.

Benefits of Mercurial VCS:

• Ease of use
• Commits/changes are made instantly (good for designers!)
• The interface tools are well adapted for Windows and non-technical people
• Easy to setup and minimal amount of upkeep/maintenance
• Decentralized system, which stores each project within its own repository
• Advanced tools for branching, tagging and merging source code (for more technical teams)

Choose Your Interface Tool
So if you are using Mercurial, and your on Windows, I recommend using TortoiseHg which is stable and easy to use. It is a shell extension which shows up in your Explorer context menu:

The one downside to Mercurial is that there are no plug-ins for Dreamweaver, which means your designers (if they use Dreamweaver) will have to manually commit files to the repository-they cannot do so through Dreamweaver.

Choose Your Project/Task Management Software
I have used various project management systems; two of my favorites are Trac and Redmine. I first started with Trac, which has some powerful tools, but is limited when it comes to managing multiple projects and source code repositories. That is, they don’t have stable tools to quickly access all your projects, users, and project materials. My server administrator recommended Redmine, which has nearly all the tools of Trac, and then some.

Benefits of Redmine:

• Quick and easy management of multiple projects
• Comprehensive user management/restriction system
• Feature rich (per project wiki’s, defect tracking, time logs, news, document/file repository, threaded bulletin board for team communication)
• Per project and overall activity log
• Customizable fields for defect tracking (severity, priority, status, etc…)
• Excellent search feature
• Excellent usability
• Calendar and Gannt view features

Calendar feature

Gannt feature

Redmine is a very stable and versatile system that is easy to use and extremely flexible. Try out their demo at http://demo.redmine.org/

This system enables the project manager to see the under-the-hood changes to the project, as they happen. It creates a repository of all communications, and assignment of tasks, as well as establishing a library of notes on the project, which can be saved indefinitely.

Start assigning workload to your team through Redmine, and see how easy it use to use and manage your projects.

Manage Incoming Email

1. Create a “ToDo” email folder under your Inbox

   

2. Go to Tools -> Options -> Other Tab -> Reading Pane (third section down), then deselect the checkboxes “Mark items as…” and “Mark item as read”:
   
   

This will help to create a better workflow for when you read and reply to email. I noticed that when I read an email, and it becomes “read”, it sometimes gets lost with new incoming email. Now, all my messages in my Inbox are either “read” and have been processed or new, and need to be reviewed.

Check your email sporadically throughout the day. Move email that is not mission critical to the “ToDo” folder and set time aside at the end of the day to reply and/or schedule tasks to follow up. For email that is mission critical, respond right away, which causes the email to become “read” and is processed.

Quick notes:
- For those emails that can be replied to right away (or are mission critical), send a reply. This will mark the email as read.
- For those that are not mission critical, move to the “Todo” folder and check at the end of the day, or when you have some down time.
- For those that require more time, reply to the sender letting them know that you will get back to them. Then create a task and schedule yourself out to complete this task when it is due, or when your schedule allows.

I also have a “Pending” folder for those emails that have no due date, and will be processed when an opportunity presents itself (3-6 months). I review this folder every few weeks and schedule out tasks to complete items as needed.

Manage Outgoing Email
When you send email that requires a response, utilize the Follow Up feature located on each email:

Before sending the email, click Follow Up  -> Custom, and set the reminder to when a reply is needed:

Now, when the due date arrives, you will get the Reminder alert (as long as you have Outlook open). Use this to track important emails, task deadlines, and basic communications between clients, staff and friends!

Use  my tried and true process below to cherry pick the most expirenced provider at the lowest cost. Learn how to filter out the amateurs so you can negotiate with experienced professionals. From owners to webmasters, this outline will prepare you with the information you need to start outsourcing your next project!

While there are many resources to locate and communicate with providers, I am focusing on a specific website where I have had an extremely positive expirence with. Feel free to apply these methods to other sites that serve the same purpose.

Why Outsource
The single most powerful benefit of the Internet is the speed of communication. With email, we are able to communicate with people all over the world in seconds. This allows us to work with individuals who charge less, but are able to complete the project to spec, within budget, and on time. I’ve worked with providers from India, Europe, Asia, and Africa, and found that with clear instructions, you are able to get your projected completed for a fraction of the cost you would pay within the US or a more developed country. Many of the providers also have specializations that give them exceptional prowess in areas you may need help with. The top three benefits being:

1. Cost – as stated, you will pay a low hourly or per project fee-usually $2-$10 an hour (depending on the task).
2. Speed - within hours, you will have dozens of providers bidding on your project ready to execute-many can start work immediately.
3. Variety- with outsourcing, you open up the possibilities of getting multiple bids from providers with different levels of experience and skills; you would have otherwise not found locally.

I have found that nearly all projects that I undertake can be preformed by external contractors. The projects that don’t qualify are those that are very complex, that require more business planning and evaluation, or projects that cannot be easily defined in the written word.

What to Watch Out For
Outsourcing comes with some of its own inherent problems. Although, we will be able to avoid many of these problems by following the process below, there is always the chance for miscommunication, malicious intents, and bad synergy. Become more familiar with the potential pitfalls, and you can learn to side step many of them.

1. Language - when working with foreign providers, where English is not their primary language, you will encounter communication barriers. Specifically when you have very complex tasks that require long and tedious work flows/explanations. I have found that investing the extra time to provide screenshots and very direct instructions tends to eliminate 80% of miscommunication.

 

2. Communicating - typically, most of the communications will occur via email, instant messenger, or VOIP. When working with providers in different time zones, sometimes a dozen hours ahead, it can be difficult to develop and coordinate a team environment. Usually, the providers work during their business hours, while you are off soundly sleeping. This is obviously a major issue if you are launching the project, or have mission critical tasks that need to be performed.

 

3. Completion- it is extremely important to define when the project is considered complete. With my process, I define the timeline, as well as penalties for if the project timeline is not met.

 

4. Experience - when posting a project, you will probably receive dozens of bids. It is important to choose the best provider, not necessarily the cheapest. I always require a simple trial project to test their skills. Most serious providers will agree to one.

 

5. Security- when you begin the project, you will need to supply your software, server access information, proprietary data, etc…Its important to cover your bases when opening up your systems to outsourced providers-there is always the chance that they will mistakenly overwrite files, delete information, etc…

Get Started – How It Works
I primarily use one service, which has served me well for the last 3 years. Having posted dozens of projects, I have never been swindled or take advantage of. In fact, I have had fairly positive experiences with nearly every provider I have worked with. I build relationships with many of the providers and send work their way on a regular basis.

The site I choose to post projects on is called getafreelancer.com (or more recently, freelancer.com)-we call it GAF for short. The way the system works is that you sign up for an account, which is free. You then have access to post a project to their database of providers. A $5 refundable project fee is taken for each project posted. This is to ensure you are serious about hiring a provider, and is partially refunded upon project cancellation or project completion. If you decide to cancel the project, you get your $5 back. If you choose a provider and complete the project, you get charged a small percentage (3% or so) of the project bid amount. To learn more about their fee’s check out https://www.getafreelancer.com/faq/view.php

Define Your Project
There are a few key points to mention within your post. Many employers write one or two lines of text which is ambiguous and bound for disaster. The more clearly you define what you expect, the greater your chances of success. This template is best used for smaller scope projects that do not require exhaustive explanations. For larger scope projects, more time is needed to prep the project. I will use a recently completed project as an example.

1. Start by explaining what the project is about. I include a couple of sentences to define the project:
   I am looking for unique articles to be written on health care products. I would like to start with twenty articles. Part of the research process will be to find sites with information on the products. My goal is for you to write the articles from research based upon these sites and the reviews customers left on these sites (for each product respectively).

 

2. Breakdown the work to be done for the project, step by step:
   Each product article is to be broken down into these sections:
   - Features – what is the draw to this product.
   - Materials – what is it made of.
   - Options – what sizes, color, etc… does the product come in.
   - Add-On’s – what can be used with it, or does it need to function.
   - Issues – what are potential issues with this product; taken from reviews on other sites.
   - Directions – how does it work, include links to user manuals from manufacturers sites.
   - Final Thoughts – overall consensus on the product.
   - Prices of products-based upon websites that sell the products.

 

3. List out your requirements that must be met for the project:
   Requirements:
   - Must be written in EXCELLENT English.
   - Must have correct spelling, punctuation and grammar.
   - 100% unique, and must pass Copyscape.
   - I will own the full copyright of articles, and you may not reuse articles.
   - Articles to be 500 words each.
   - I am after QUALITY – not quantity.
   - Keyword to be used in the title and up to 4-5 times in the article.

 

4. Define the timeline of the project, when it will be completed and the consequences if the project is not completed on time. I have only had one instance where the project timeline was extended, and we were able to agree to a reduction in price due to the missed deadline.
   All articles must be completed and posted to GAF PM within 2 weeks of project winner acceptance, as per the timeline below:
   First 10 articles – 1 week from acceptance date
   Final 10 articles – 2 weeks from acceptance date
   If this timeline is not met, than the employer will have the option of cancelling the project and re-posting for another provider to bid on. All deposits will be refunded to employer. Alternatively, employer may negotiate a reduced rate with provider to compensate for the overrun.

 

5. Finally, add in requirements for the bid, and explicit instructions in the bidding process. I have found that you will weed out 90% of providers this way-many of which didnt bother to read your project description:
   In your opening bid, simply say “I am interested”. Then make a PM with the following details. I will delete all bids who do not meet this requirement.
   1. How much money to complete the project.
   2. A 150 word sample article for the product “Skin Care Lotion XYZ” meeting the writing requirements above.

Communicate with Providers
Out of all the bids you receive, only a handful will be legitimate. Carefully review their bids and choose a few that look promising. I create a PM (private message) to each one asking them a few pointed questions on the project; how they accept payment, if they will accept full payment when project is complete, reconfirm the deadline of the project, and finally, if they do not meet the deadline, do they agree to cancel the project so I can choose another provider.

I have found that those providers who stick with you to the end, and follow through with professional and detailed answers, will nearly always complete the project on time, to spec, and within budget! To get started, pick a small project that is less than $100 and work through these steps to find a provider.