question Developing domain sales website

[Name Trader]

I'm in contact with a developer about designing my domain sales website. He is saying that he is proposing Drupal or WordPress. I'm kinda balking at both, because my experiences with CMS's, although not comprehensive, have not been all that good (with me being the developer). What does anyone think here about using Drupal or WordPress to develop a domain sales website? Will the CMS overhead crush the workings of the website? What are the pros and cons of each option?

He has also suggested using code-igniter when I said wouldn't a PHP5/CSS3/MySQL solution be better. However the cost would be about twice as much.

It's my intention to develop a quality website. So what other options are available to me with regards to the development platform, which might also be a better solution?

 

[Beezy]

Definitely use a CMS. I would go with Wordpress because of ease of use and development.

You don't need to know PHP to use wordpress beyond manipulating the loop and very basic syntax for calling built in functions...and you can get help with all of that.

 

[Name Trader]

With WordPress, he is not proposing on using an available theme, but developing it from scratch, using Twitter Bootstrap to build their own theme. I have no idea what that means. Does it make any sense to you?

 

[Beezy]

It does. Twitter Bootstrap is a CSS Framework.

It basically gives you an adjustable grid system that adapts to the width of a screen, some build in font styles and buttons, etc.

So for example, this forum would use a 10 width column next to a 2 width column for the sidebar.

Then on mobile (grab the edge of the browser window and drag it inwards), you'll see that it switches to two 12-width columns and the sidebar falls underneath the full width content column.

That's the basics of a grid system and how Twitter Bootstrap works.

Not sure you need something entirely from scratch, though. Especially after seeing what some other domainers have done with off the shelf themes with just some minor tweaks. It really depends on your needs and design though.

 

[iowadawg]

My thoughts?
Over thinking and over designing seems to be the problem here.
Wordpress is so darn easy.
Scads of themes out there that will work great for what you want.

 

[Kiln Media]

If you build the site on Wordpress at least you will be able to easily update and tweak the sites without having extensive coding knowledge. I really dont see any advantage to doing it any other way - for this type of site Wordpress will function very well. Best of luck.

 

[iowadawg]

I was going to connect you with this thread, but see you posted in it so you can keep up with the developer.
For others, check this out:
https://www.namepros.com/threads/creating-a-domain-portfolio-grid-script.846852/

 

[Name Trader]

My thoughts?
Over thinking and over designing seems to be the problem here.
Wordpress is so darn easy.
Scads of themes out there that will work great for what you want.

Personally, for me, I find WP initimidating and complex. Whenever I'm trying to do anything in WP, it usually gets abandoned before completion. But I won't be developing this. So it's slightly different.

I have not found any, even half-decent themes or plugins. I've just been searching themeforest for over an hour, and nothing of much use there. So I'd appreciate where you find these scads of themes which work as a domain sales website in wordpress.

 

[Kiln Media]

Check out this WP plug-in that is made for listing domains codecanyon.net/item/my-domain-list-plugin/full_screen_preview/231592

 

[iowadawg]

Old thread, but still....
https://www.namepros.com/threads/selling-domain-names-via-wordpress-site.788977/

 

[Name Trader]

@iowadawg - Thanks for that link. I remembered that thread and I'd been looking for it. From that link...

1) MyDomainList - looks amateurish, no categories
2) SellMyPlugin - no longersupported, may not work with latest WP.
3) MyDomainListPlugin - same as 1)
4) Domena - Basically a For Sale template, not a Domains For Sale system

So. Hardly a plethora, and nothing suitable for a professional Domain Sales Website.

My own PHP/CSS/MySQL DNSPortfolio.com (not wordpress) is the bare minimum I'm wanting. You can see it in action at www.comdots.com/portfolio/. You cannot find anything like that in WP, afaik. I want a professional looking Domains For Sale website, like HugeDomains, for example.

Does anybody have any decent suggestions?

 

[Beezy]

I love how this site looks: http://mediaplow.com/

And you can see what themes and plugins someone is using with sites like this: http://www.wpthemedetector.com/

 

[DomainVP]

Stub, you are getting jerked around; as many developers do to their clients.

A Php/MySQL solution is what you would be looking for; and 'bootstrap' is just a fancy way to describe a specific set of tools making a website responsive.

Wordpress is great for end users (and developers) that can't afford custom GUI and have next to no idea how to manipulate code.

When I built out my domain sales page It took about 2 weeks of coding for a completely custom job with jquery bells and whistles.

If you look at huge domains, they have opted to skip the 'mobile friendly' bootstrap route. Many sites do.

PM me and we can discuss.

 

[Kate]

I am not sure a CMS is the best way to go. If the developer is proposing Drupal or WordPress, it's probably because he's most experienced with those CMS.

Dedicated web applications already exist for the purpose of listing domains. If you can't find one suitable (or tweakable) for your purpose, maybe you should consider custom development. At least you'll have something tailored to your requirements, and that is quite unique. I don't think it must be expensive.

Sure, you can build plugins for WordPress. But sometimes, the ergonomics are poor.

A standard WordPress install must also be updated on a regular basis, because vulnerabilities are always found. That being said, the CMS cores are rather mature. The problem often comes from third party plugins, because everybody can code. But not everybody knows how to write secure code...

Whatever you do, choose your developer wisely.

 

[vivaldi]

I see no need to pay him to develop a new theme, there are tons of good ones out there for $55. Would also go with CMS without a doubt, there is lesser need to reinvent the wheel.

Using CMS:
+ Easy
+ A lot of options
+ Will be updated for a long long time
+ Can be customized
- More exposed to brute force attempts etc. (however use the right tools and it will stop most)
- Lesser known plugins might stop in development.

Whatever you do, take a look on what the developer have done before. Talk with at least a few developers. There are a lot of clowns out there.

Never ever skip a mobile friendly version regardless of choice of platform.

 

[Name Trader]

I love how this site looks: http://mediaplow.com/

And you can see what themes and plugins someone is using with sites like this: http://www.wpthemedetector.com/

For me it's a bit of a jumble between domains being sold locally and domains being sold on BrandBucket. And again, no categories.

 

[skypreet]

not sure why your developer is giving too hype about bootstrap..it's just a stylesheet framework. Almost all the premium wordpress themes nowadays use bootstrap as css framework..

 

[Name Trader]

I am not sure a CMS is the best way to go. If the developer is proposing Drupal or WordPress, it's probably because he's most experienced with those CMS.

Dedicated web applications already exist for the purpose of listing domains. If you can't find one suitable (or tweakable) for your purpose, maybe you should consider custom development. At least you'll have something tailored to your requirements, and that is quite unique. I don't think it must be expensive.

Sure, you can build plugins for WordPress. But sometimes, the ergonomics are poor.

A standard WordPress install must also be updated on a regular basis, because vulnerabilities are always found. That being said, the CMS cores are rather mature. The problem often comes from third party plugins, because everybody can code. But not everybody knows how to write secure code...

Whatever you do, choose your developer wisely.

Of course I see the advantages of using a CMS, but I too am not convinced that CMS is the best way to go.

Could you please refer me to a few of the most reputable dedicated applications for listing domains. It's because I cannot find any applications that I am considering custom development (from scratch). When you say you think it shouldn't necessarily be expensive, what cost value would you say isn't necessarily expensive.

Choosing a developer is key. I've actually followed other advice on this forum of choosing somebody local to me. But I'm beginning to think that was a bad choice. Do you have any suggestions of developers who are experienced in this kind of work, who also don't charge an arm and a leg. But I'm not being a cheap charlie over this. I'm prepared to pay for quality work. But like anything, funds are not limitless

 

[Name Trader]

I see no need to pay him to develop a new theme, there are tons of good ones out there for $55. Would also go with CMS without a doubt, there is lesser need to reinvent the wheel.

Whatever you do, take a look on what the developer have done before. Talk with at least a few developers. There are a lot of clowns out there.

Never ever skip a mobile friendly version regardless of choice of platform.

My developer said he never uses themes, but instead writes his own. I agree there are loads (probably a confusingly large number) of excellent themes, but I have never, ever seen an even half decent Domains For Sale theme/plugin. They are all poorly amateurish. By a factor of at least 5-10 times.

I agree with you about being responsive is of utmost importance. Not only because that part of the market is growing so fast, but also if Google starts penalizing non-responsive websites.

 

[carob]

Define your requirements first. What info do you want to store and display, and how?
The site needs to be built around the data and functionality you want.

The theme comes later - it really is superficial, readily changeable skin. Doubt you need a custom one, but maybe some tweaking to output your listings prettily.

I think we had most of the CMS stuff discussed in an earlier thread https://www.namepros.com/threads/wh...pment-at-reasonable-cost.825913/#post-4657882

 

[Name Trader]

@carob - That was a good thread started about 9 months ago, and I'm still trying to find a developer for my website Mind you I have been busy with my domaining (mostly) as well as my personal life. I haven't seen any WordPress (or any other CMS for that matter) with any credible Domains For Sale website. If you know of any at all, I'd appreciate you pointing them out to me. This, and the fact that all professional Domains For Sale websites I know are written in PHP/CSS/MySQL, plus the fact I'm wary of the CMS overhead and personally have a true fear/misunderstanding of how WP and other CMS's work, that I "feel" like a PHP/CSS/MySQL solution, is going to be a better solution. However I may be wrong. I also understand this may be forgoing a heck of a load of overhead, which I may or may not require.

 

[Electric-Shadow]

WordPress is what I use on my site, given you can easily customize it to a much greater extent than Drupal.

There's also plenty of options when it comes to listing and selling your names via wp which you can customize to suit your purpose. Most are free or negligible in cost.

 

[DNVantage]

@stub

I have developement/qa background (not so much now due to lack of time ) plus I also outsource some of my projects, so my 2 cents.....

* Go with a known, established CMS because more popular the software is, more easy it is to find a dev to write a theme/plugin for cheap and later, more easy for another developer to step in to fix bugs or add features. Custom solutions from scratch need more investment to write and even more to fix bugs or add features. Consider what will happen a year or two down the line.

* If you don't mind a semi-custom solution and if you are not in hurry, consider waiting for Drupal 8, which is a major upgrade. It offers a ready to use platform for semi-custom solutions. Drupal release progress is slow, so expect around 6 months or more before Drupal 8 is released. Wordpress is a good option but Drupal 8 is lot more flexible. This will mean less development cost compared to full custom project, as Drupal 8 has required infrastructure in place for small website apps. I am holding off some of my projects for Drupal 8 to save on cost.

* Not recommending full fledged custom solution over wordpress or drupal for a small project like DN sales website but if you want to go with a custom solution, consider node.js (nodejs frameworks) or python (django) for backend and Bootstrap3 one of most popular css framework for UI front end, plus one of new but established front end MV* frameworks like React (from Facebook) or Angular.js (from Google), there are quite a few good MV* frameworks so you want to go with what your dev is comfortable. codeigniter.com is one of lighter server side php framework, there are tons, if you go with php, you want one of php frameworks. No matter which development language you choose, you will want a framework. PHP is more well known as it has been around longer but node.js and python have been around long enough and are now the new established languages and IMO, offer more savings down the line.

If you are going with wordpress/drupal, an existing theme/plugin will be lot cheaper, plus less headache in long term. Once you know what works or does not with a ready made solution, you can ask a dev to build something similar. Dev's like having a working idea to base their solution on.

Hope that helps. Feel free to ask me any question you have on this, here or PM.

 

[carob]

The guts of this is still what info you want to store and display and how to manage it. What fields do you want to store and display and how do you want to let users search/find on the site? By price, category, keyword, tag, age, extension, pattern, length? What info do you want to harvest from/about visitors?

Do they just contact you to make an enquiry or do they click to buy, and if so, how/where do they buy?

How will you enter/update/manage this stuff? One by one? Upload spreadsheet? Control panel on website?

 

[Name Trader]

@carob - I have answers to all those questions. Where do I go from there?