Hello everyone! This is going to be quite a bit of reading, but I know you’ll get a better understanding of who I am and what I want to do when you’re done.
I am currently searching for a web developer experienced in building social networks, dating websites, classified websites, ecommerce websites, etc.
About the Project
I am looking to build a Social classifieds website. What is a “Social classifieds website?” Imagine the following websites all combined into one. www.yelp.com (Reviews), www.craigslist.com (Classifieds), www.facebook.com (Social), www.monster.com (Jobs) and www.eventective.com (Request For Proposal Feature). I want users on my site to be able to buy/sell/advertise/review: goods, businesses, jobs, and even events. The website would be primarily based on profiles and the specific content the user inputs (example: goods/services). I know there are many websites that might seem similar to what I want to do, but I assure you that my unique ideas and features will make my website stand out from the rest. The content of my website will be based on user participation, much like classifieds, so there will be little information preloaded
Why do I want to build this website?
Simple, I WANT TO HELP PEOPLE! For as long as I remember I have always been the person to go out of my way to help those in need. I never ask for anything in return because my philosophy is, “Don’t do something because you expect anything back, do it because you want to.” I never had a real talent for anything, but always had a passion for business. For the longest time now I have been trying to think about what I could do that can both help people (most important) and lead me to a comfortable life. Yeah, like everyone, I want to be financially stable. But like I said before, helping people comes first. I initially thought of this project to assist struggling businesses get connected with potential buyers and for students at the local universities to have a place to resell their unwanted goods for extra cash. During the last few years many small businesses have been struggling financially. They needed a way to increase business, but many didn’t know where to start. The internet is a key form of advertisement but most websites charge an arm and a leg to do it. This causes small businesses to be left out and for big businesses to succeed even more. With this website I hope to create a new sense of urgency for the community to understand the value of buying/selling pre-used goods and to show the benefits of supporting their local businesses. These practices can eventually help reduce waste and keep small businesses in business.
Key features needed:
1. As I mentioned earlier the website will consist mainly of profiles and user inputed content
2. Users must have access to the “backend” of their profile (Example: The area where you see your friend’s activities and news feed on facebook/myspace)
3. A way where users can be automatically be notified on new posts.
4. Private messaging, add friends, flagging posts, ratings, reviews, etc
5. Way for me to manage accounts, profiles, etc
I am still unsure on how the website will be built so I’ll let you decide. I am not interested in open CMS platforms like drupal/joomla/elgg
Conclusion
At the moment I have a basic web hosting plan, all major domain names purchased, most of the layout planned out and even a marketing strategy. I also have people that can help me with some graphic designing and basic coding! I really hope that this long post made sense to you and gave you a better understanding of what my goal is. I’m sure this long post also weeded out the ones that wouldn’t be fit working with me either…so it all works out. I know my budget isn’t nearly enough to what most large companies charge, but I am hoping I can find an experienced developer who is genuinely interested in what I want to do and willing to consider. I want the developer and myself to get along well so that we can have a long term relationship. My actual budget is 2,000, but it helps, I am also willing to share generated revenue from the site if you decide on assisting further. I am very exciting on starting this project so I hope you are too! Thanks again and hope to hear from you soon
