Finding a place to hire an ecommerce designer or developer is a little trickier than it might initially seem. You have the option to go with job boards, expert communities or cheap labor sites.
I'm not about to directly recommend places like Upwork and Freelancer.com. Although I've had a few logos designed by people on Fiverr, we're talking about constructing and managing your ecommerce website. These are some of the more complex forms of websites out there, so it's not recommended considering you can find somewhat affordable designers and developers who are known to do a great job.
I'm not saying the folks on Fiverr, and elsewhere, aren't any good, but spending pennies on a job should be reserved for quick website fixes and maybe some smaller design projects.
The point is, you're better off looking at communities or lists where the ecommerce designers and developers are vetted and approved. This way you're more likely to find local talent that's going to take the time to treat you as a regular client.
Shopify Experts
How Much You Can Expect To Pay: Huge Range (Chicago has projects from $500 to $10,000)
If you've decided to go with Shopify, or if you're trying to edit your previously developed Shopify store, the prudent choice is to go with the Shopify Experts community. These are vetted professionals, and you can find a few options that are more affordable if on a budget.
Not only that, but they offer expert developers, designers, marketers and photographers. Oh yea, and they have people just for setting up Shopify websites. My favorite part is that Shopify has segregated the listings by location. This way, you can connect with a company or individual in your area.
WooCommerce Experts
How Much You Can Expect To Pay: From $50 to $200 per hour
The WooCommerce Experts page is recommended for those familiar with WordPress. That said, the entire WooCommerce community is spread all over the world, so you're probably going to have a tougher time locating someone in your area. Overall, the hourly rates are pretty reasonable, and some of the designers and developers even offer full project rates so the clock isn't always ticking.
You can filter by designer or developer. They even have some filters to locate developers who specifically work on store management and Sensei products. Each freelancer or company is tagged with the WooCommerce products they're familiar with. So, you could target only the folks who are comfortable with membership sites.
Bigcommerce Partners
How Much You Can Expect To Pay: Depends on the Job (Many don't list pricing until you talk with them)
It seems like the Bigcommerce experts are a little more expensive than other platforms, but it's hard to tell. You can filter based on the rates that each company charges, but I selected the $0-500 filter and pretty much saw the same results as the $45,000 plus filter. Therefore, I would assume that many of the developers and designers are flexible, giving you the services you specify.
Squarespace Specialists
How Much You Can Expect To Pay: Around $50 to $200 per hour
Since Squarespace is one of my favorite places to find incredible designs, it makes sense that the expert portfolios look wonderful. I like that the $50 per hour option is there, but keep in mind that some of the developers can get pretty pricey. You have the ability to filter by price, and they have a wide variety of categories based on the types of services you require.
For example, you can find freelancers and companies that focus only on setting up Squarespace for beginners. This way, you can work on your products and receive a complete website without having to construct it yourself. Design, coding and photography are other categories on the Squarespace Specialists page, or opt for a full service company that does all of the work for you. Just remember that that's going to cost you a pretty penny.
Volusion Experts
How Much You Can Expect To Pay: Some experts charge less than $500 per job. Others are more than $5,000.
If Volusion is your ecommerce platform of choice, they have a few experts to choose from. It's probably the worst selection (in terms of quantity) of designers and developers on this list, but the portfolios look beautiful.
Volusion rates the experts as well, giving you an idea of which have more experience than others. Finally, they tag all of the freelancers and companies so that you know if they complete niche tasks like site translation, search refinement, custom SQL or store migrations.
Smashing Magazine Jobs
How Much You Can Expect To Pay: $75 for freelance listing. $225 for full-time listing. Then you must pay the actual designer.
Going for a job board is a way to get a more fruitful collection of submissions, allowing you to sift through the applications and see if you can find a great deal. You're more likely to get some crappy submissions this way, but a little extra work can land you a valuable partner. Smashing Jobs is the best job board when focusing your search on technology experts. It has everything from designers to programmers, both freelance and full-time.
Indeed
How Much You Can Expect To Pay: Free or Sponsored PPC for listing + whatever you pay the designer you hire.
Indeed sounds like a cliche job board to share in this article, but I did it for two reasons: 1. So many job boards come and go, but Indeed has always been consistent. 2. You're more likely to find a candidate that knows what they're doing as opposed to a place like Freelancer.com.
For One-off Jobs
Yes, sometimes you don't need anything more than a freelancer to adjust your shopping cart design or to make a fancy logo for you. In that case, go with one of the bidding or cheap labor sites. The only site I'd recommend avoiding is Freelancer.com, because it's insanely cluttered nowadays and you might have a seizure with all the popups and chat boxes.
Anyway, these are some great options for quick design or development work:
In Conclusion
The freelancing options for ecommerce development and design are plentiful. Just make sure you're looking at the right sites. If you have any additional questions about where to hire the best ecommerce developers, designers, marketers and photographers, let us know in the comments below.
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