Hi,

I’ve been using Paypal to process my credit card orders since 2001 and overall, it’s a pretty good service.

… In fact, I would argue that Paypal is essential for just about any e-commerce site since it is used by so many merchants and most importantly, just ordinary people.

Paypal’s main advantages are:

• Easy to set up.
• Can accept several types of electronic payments: credit card, e-checks and Paypal.
• Since Paypal is so well known, it will put your clients at ease. You’d be surprised at how nervous people still are of buying products online!

(more…)

Hi,

I’ve been a advocate of website templates in commercial web design for years now, because it saves the designer a lot of time and in saves the clients a good chunk of cash.

… There are occasions where from-scratch custom design makes sense, but for most web design projects, templates are a great solution - especially with a little customization to make it look unique.

How to use Templates in the Web Design BUSINESS process?

I was recently asked by a web designer how I would show clients the templates that are out there? Do you send them to a template site (free or commercial) or do you do something else?

(more…)

Hi,

In this session of the Business of Web Design, I go over what you need to have in a typical web design contract.

There are important elements that you must include to avoid problems down the road, things like:

- Payment terms.
- Delivery dates.
- Project specifics: how many pages, functionality etc.

… and a whole lot more.

Check it out: Writing Web Design Contracts.

Thanks,

Stefan Mischook

www.killersites.com
www.killerphp.com

I’m very busy with things (video games, movies etc …) so it is not uncommon for me to outsource some programming work these days.

Side note: I have to tell you, as an old-school web nerd who likes code, it was really hard at first to let go and let others do the work. Fortunately, it’s getting easier with every project!

Anyway, I do have my assistants here at killersites.com, who by the way, are a tremendous help. Nonetheless, sometimes I get outside help for whatever reasons.

Crazy quotes from Java nerds

I decided recently that I wanted to contribute back to an open source project that I have used in the past … by throwing the people involved in that project, some work. I also agreed to release the additions/modifications back to the community.

Anyway …

The modifications I wanted were relatively simple - a couple of filters, some rearranging of the UI etc ..

So I get back the quote for this project. I want to mention that I could do it myself in say two days - and my Java skills are rusty! The point is, this was not a big project.

… And yet in the quote, we had a project manager budgeted in and crazy time devoted to testing. For example:

For a button that took the user to a screen/view that already existed … just a button: 8 hrs of testing!

??

Now we all know that Java guys love to over engineer, but this is crazy! When will Java nerds learn that you don’t need an aircraft carrier to move a rocking chair.

Stefan Mischook

www.killersites.com

Hi,

The following session answers a common question that has been put to me many times:

What hardware and software do you need to run a web design business? Do you need to upgrade to ‘industrial strength’ tools?

I also touch on a few other things that I know many of you will find interesting.

You can listen to the latest Business of Web Design podcast in the killersites.com magazine.

Thanks,

Stefan Mischook

www.killersites.com