543454 Wanted: Genius Web Developer / Designer

In Progress Posted Jan 3, 2012 Paid on delivery
In Progress Paid on delivery

Highly Skilled Open Source Front and Back-End Developer/Designer to build and maintain a bespoke recovery e-course within an untapped niche area..

High, my name is Julian and I'm looking for someone to build me an amazing website. You'll need to be honest, up front, open-minded and reliable. You will also need to be interested in becoming an active partner in a business, as I have no funds to pay you. This may be an instant put off for many, but please read through the brief before you make your mind up, as you may find what I'm offering quite an attractive proposition. I do, however, have a confirmed (family) investor for all other business start-up costs.

Your Location: London Area – preferably within 6-8 miles of Camberwell, S.E. London, as I'm a cyclist.

Job Requirements & Key Areas of Responsibility

You should be able to demonstrate an expert knowledge in open source web designing/ developing, MySQL/PHP and be able to create cross-browser, and cross-platform web pages.

I'm looking for someone who can provide samples of Custom Options, Panel Work and Plugins. So please, only reference sites you have built from scratch and not sites that are templates. You should also have expert knowledge of Javascript, Flash, CMS and Functionality/Usability, Web Planning, Testing, Hosting and Internet Security for both our financial concerns and those aspects governed by The Data Protection Act 1998. Copywriting, SEO/SEM and Adwords knowledge would also be helpful, though not essential by any means

You will be expected to:

1. Work closely with me.

2. Always do the work yourself and never via another sub-contractor, friend or associate.

3. Be available via Skype and email during regular business hours and to respond in a timely manner.

4. Be honest in your opinions and responses and bring up any issues asap.

5. Inform me asap if any unexpected circumstance prevents you from working.

General 5 Year Plan

This project is the first of three to be realised over a 3-5 year period. Another is an Ethical Products and Services Shopping Portal, and one a charitable foundation funded by the two e-ventures.

Pricing & Competition

The e-course will have an annual subscription set in the region of £49. This substantially undercuts the only two direct commercial online competitors who are charging in excess of £40 per month for a minimum term of 6 months. One of those monetizes on average a thousand hits per month with a conversion rate of 5-7% based on unique monthly global visits of 20k+. I confirmed this figure by monitoring internal traffic through their forum user stats and comparing them to data from Alexa and Compete and the like.

I believe these competitors are out-pricing themselves and not just within western markets, but especially within the rapidly growing middle classes of the developing world where this service is just as needed.

Marketing

I've identified a 5 stage Marketing Strategy starting with a number of free organic options. I've monitored the effectiveness of a few of these on competitor blogs, or tested a couple myself over the past 17 months. One strategy in particular is showing very interesting visitor activity.

Phases 2, 3, 4 and 5 will see an increase in costs, albeit gradual, starting with a Google Adwords campaign. CPC rates for many keywords and keyword phrases increased sharply from an average cost of 5p back in the summer of 2010 going up as high as £7.00 for certain keyword phrases a year later, and largely staying the same till today, though not in all cases. Yes, I felt gutted when I saw this change, but there is still a number of “exact” searches which show “low” to “- “(zero) competitor interest, and low to “–“ CPC rates, with low yet respectable “average global/local monthly search” numbers.

This shows there's still a good opportunity to get on the Adwords ladder at minimal expense, allowing us to receive comparatively instant traffic without having to wait or rely on the longer organic route.

There are also a number of other proven marketing strategies the competitors don't employ, such as translations to mention one, and because of this I believe that there's a lot of room to increase both traffic volume and therefore sales conversions.

More of these details including aspects of the course content won't be revealed until we've shown we can work together.

The E-course - Design Features And Functionality

I've been working directly on the content of the e-course for the past 17 months, and I am now approaching that time I'll need to work with a developer to look at ways of integrating the course content into a visually stimulating and functional system which the student finds easy to navigate through. I believe a great design could inspire people and make them look forward to exploring the site, as well as helping them to explore challenging personal issues.

We'll be looking to create an ultra modern website which appeals across the ages, genders and cultures. The design and functionality also needs to bring to life what would otherwise be a relatively static site - despite my best efforts to create as interactive and engaging assignments as possible.

The site will need to be visually stimulating and inviting, whilst evoking a strong sense of authority. It's also important that the design technology instils a feeling of familiarity so people feel comfortable, secure and motivated to attend.

I am inspired by the simplicity and sleekness of Apple icons (I know, who isn't), so I love the idea of moving, bouncing navigational buttons which light-up or change colours as though breathing with a pulse.

Students also need to be guided through the program without being able to veer off course until they've finished round 1. The course is essentially an on going self-monitoring program where after initial completion the student then focuses on what has been most effective for them. Features would include: a Personal Dashboard/filing system where all saved work is held. They will also need the option of printing/downloading coursework and certain charts, tables and calendars.

As part of the self-monitoring system there will be a sliding self-scoring feature which they can return to at any point to re-score themselves to see how they have progressed.

There will also be a peer to peer support forum, but I would like a bespoke one to support the notion that we are different to other services and to hide the user stats which reveal important company information.

Finally, the site content will also need to be secure insofar as people not being able to just sign-up, copy the content and then ask for a refund, although I am concerned that doing this will negatively affect SEO as spiders might not be able to read content. There is more, but again, I'm not willing to discuss these until further down the road.

Designs I Like

The example I like the most is actually that of the main competitor. In many ways it's exactly how I had envisioned my own, but again, I won't reveal them till later in the process. Until then, the following links are to give you a vague idea of what appeals to me in one way or the other. They're by no means what I'm looking for in an end product, although the choice themes “slider” is a piece of work I really admire.

1. [url removed, login to view] – Clean Stylish and a unique way of turning pages

2. [url removed, login to view] Clean and stylish

3. [url removed, login to view] - The three buttons are particularly interesting with their modern crisp metallic look. I also like the icons.

4. [url removed, login to view] - Apple Menu: very nice

Application Requirements & Contact Details

If you're interested in the position, please send:

1. CV – or good personal write-up

2. Written references

3. Links to portfolios

4. Personal Photo

5. Contact Details including address, email and telephone number to:

For A Photo Of Me Visit: [url removed, login to view]

Application Process

All in all I'm a pretty informal person, so the following is more of a guide than the rule as to how this will go.

Stage 1

Send your application in. Process will close at February 29th 2012. I will acknowledge receipt of your application asap and whether or not you have made it to Stage 2 which will take place from Monday 2nd April 2012. This may be earlier if you stand out.

Please give a brief insight as to why you think you're right for the role, what you'll bring to the team and the long-term growth and health of a business I totally believe in. I'd also like to know a little about you and especially if you haven't got a formal CV, so mention your personal qualities, hopes, aspirations and values. I'm going to be particularly interested to hear what you would expect of me.

Stage 2

You'll be invited for an informal meet and get to know each other a bit and discuss the project. I'd expect you to have some basic ideas as to your plan for the website too.

Stage 3

You will be asked to draw up a more detailed plan, which you'll present to me in person. If all goes well enough we can start looking into personal agreements in more detail.

Odd Jobs Website Design

Project ID: #2289396

About the project

Remote project Active Jul 11, 2012