Picking a developer when you're non-tech. Frustrating!
So I have spent the last few months learning about web app development, programming in general and fleshing out my ideas for a SaaS product. I've realized that the time it will take me to learn enough and execute isn't practical. So I have been working on a document that lays out the ideas, wireframe ideas etc. I've provided this to a quite a few people now and I'm stuck with how to proceed.
I've had a variety of prices that go from 1x to 3x of each other, a variety of stacks recommended, and time lines to develop. It's been great to learn and get this feedback. However I'm now not sure how to take the next step.
I don't want to just pick the cheapest or the most expensive, but how does a non-technical founder go about selecting the right developer? I'm starting to think that I almost need a technical advisor to help me navigate the early part of my project.
Have any of you ever done or tried a technical advisor? How did you select them?
I'm excited to take the next step and get things going on development, but I'm having a hard time deciding what is that next right step I guess.
Thanks for reading my long winded rant, and thank you in advance for any tips or advice you may have.
You want a report in Russian, but you don't read Russian. You hire someone to write it for you, but you can't read Russian, so how do you know if it's any good?
Hannibal's Law:
To outsource development with no risk of getting burnt, you need to be able to build the project yourself.
Edit: I should clarify, that what I mean is to outsource you need to be able to read and understand code. In otherwords, you can build the thing yourself, but are outsourcing to save time.
absolutely true, that why i learn programing instead hire developer.
To be honest, I don't think that it's possible for someone to learn programming to create his own SaaS. Well, you can spend a couple of years with a great result but I don't think that if what you really want.
It's possible,i was do it. Maybe @CanuckTD can use your product, saas-idea.com
Btw how it works?
Yes, it's possible but you will spend huuuuge amout of time. Is that exactly what you wanted?
SaaS Idea is a template for your SaaS. It will have all the features that SaaS usually has - user authentication, plans management, dashboard etc. Developers can extend it easily.
It's still in progress though and doesn't have all these features - yet. But the idea is to avoid developing all this "boring" stuff and decrease the time and money you spend on it. If you have more questions please check a git hub page https://github.com/SaaS-Idea/saas-boilerplate or drop me email (see my profile).
Well, it's a little bit rash :)
I can't image that I'm going to learn how to build a house if I want a house. I would rather spend my resources for a knowledge of how to find a good builder, and to find it.
Agree is a bit harsh, but the house equivalence is not good. We all know how a good house feels and looks.
The world is full of badly designed houses, it's a sensible analogy. Architecture + Engineering are very similar divisions of labour and process as Product/Design + Dev. This is coming from an architecture grad who worked at an environmental engineering firm before switching to software design.
Of couse, it's not equivalent :) I just exaggerated a little bit.
Building a house would be easier
It's different. Imagine you told your friend to do your homework because you don't know how to do it,but you don't know if their work correct or not.
But If you want hire developer,i think you can use toptal.com
I agree.
great point. massively agree
Honestly, for small projects that might be helpful. But in the case of a larger project it's not. As to your Russian analogy - you hire a third party to inspect the work to see if it's correct. Which is along the idea I proposed about finding a technical advisor.
Is the idea already validated? If not, is it possible to validate without write code? (It is surprisingly possible to do that). The tech stack is irrelevant, the project will change so many times.
I feel it is validated enough for me to be willing to commit capital to the project to hire developers. I have looked at some ideas to build out something as a test, but have not found something that would let me tie enough of it together to say here it is all working.
Everything is about risk management.
Use piecemeal approach, break down your projects into pieces and reward-payment for every milestone piece.
Budget out enough to accept that 80% of your contractors will result in subpar output for the first 2-3 milestones. Cut those off asap and continue with the most optimal candidate.
Thanks, I've been thinking along those lines too. The hard part for me is the main core of the SaaS to start with is a fairly big thing, I'm not sure that breaking it down will be easy, or result in a reliable end result. That said I'm leaning more towards choosing to start with a SaaS in a box like BulletTrain or Spark to at least take care of the basic initial framework.
I have plenty of secrets of my own so no need to steal yours, however if you would like to direct message me on Twitter an "executive summary" of your SaaS product I'd be happy to see if it stirs my developer creativities, or otherwise direct you to another capable developer who might be interested.
My forte is pretty much about scaling Node.js server applications on dedicated, self-hosted, machines or in the "cloud" which is what most decent SaaS products require.
btw. I just read Daniel's comment below and he's mostly right but you might benefit by brainstorming your idea out with a developer that's not in it just for the money to steer you in the right direction.
Thanks Justin, I'll reach out you.
Learning to develop yourself isn't the answer. If it's what you want, though, go for it. But sometimes the most empowering thing to do is to relinquish some control.
Start with the people you know. Ask for recommendations if you can. Personal referrals is how I've gotten most of my freelance clients. Online communities can be a major help as well. Twitter, Reddit... Indie Hackers is probably a really good place to seek out a developer.
Shameless plug: If you end up needing a front-end developer/designer, I could be your guy ;) https://cameronarrington.com
Thanks Cameron, I've been learning some coding, and that is what has allowed me to realize that to get the tech skills I would need to do this myself would likely be a multi-year investment. Even if I could, I really think this project is going to require 2-3 people to make it happen time and functionality wise. I will keep you in mind if I end up needing a front-end dev.
I really appreciate your feedback.
Maybe the process outlined here would work better for you: https://boosterstage.net/ . Basically, they help you build the SaaS, and can help with developers as a service.
Hi Tony, Alex Turnbull of Groove has written about how he started Groove as a non-technical founder.
You can read about it here: https://www.groovehq.com/blog/technical-co-founder
He also has another on what non-technical founders should learn to do: https://www.groovehq.com/blog/non-technical-founder
From what I've seen your options essentially boil down to :
Learn to code and do it yourself
Hire developers you know personally
Hire an agency
Get a technical Co-founder
Thanks Lenny! I'll check those out, and I agree on the 4 options. Those seem to be what I'm finding too.
A few years ago, I was in a similar situation.
I had an idea for a web app so I started interviewing freelance developers and web development agencies. Three months later, I had a contract signed. On the day that work was supposed to begin, they demanded more money.
I walked away and it was the best thing that could have happened.
I started to learn code, and three months later I had developed an mvp. Now, I'm not a developer, but I have learned enough to hack things together and build simple apps.
So I understand your frustration.
I don’t know your story and how far you’ve come in validating your ideas, but I appreciate that it’s not practical to start learning code when it’s not something you’re interested in doing. You just want to get going. I understand.
My suggestion would be to try and build as much as possible by yourself using all the awesome tools that are available to you that don’t require any code.
Perhaps set up a landing page using Carrd by @ajlkn with a payment form to see if you can get paying customers. Or how about having a look at newCo.app by @bentossell. Lots of tutorials on how to build different apps with no code. It doesn’t matter if you can’t build out the backend, start by doing things manually.
My answer won’t solve your core issue of how to find a developer, but it might help you in your search. If you can show a working prototype and traction, it will make things easier.
One last suggestion, think long and hard before you outsource the technology. Expect paperwork, high costs, undiversifiable risk, unforeseen delays and quality control issues, and a working relationship where you are dependent on the availability and goodwill of your developer until you find someone else to takeover. This doesn’t have to be the case, but it is a scenario to consider.
I would focus on building a prototype, and then I would try and find someone that would be willing to work with you and be a part of your SaaS.
Hope that helps.
Great points Daniel. I will look into some of those ideas.
So this is sort of what development firms are for: I work for one as a consultant. You have an idea, but can't build it. You hire a development firm, they act as project managers, and hire out people like me to build your product. They also provide some infrastructure for handling bug tickets and feature requests, and possibly other features.
This can get pretty expensive, as everyone working on your project gets paid by the hour, and every meeting, phone call, quick text question, all gets charged for. This option is really for people with a bit of investment backing, or at least a small war chest of personal money: these sorts of firms don't really take equity.
Brainstorming here: would you pay a one time fee for someone to interview developers for you, and give you a quality rating or something?
Hi Tommy, Thanks for that.. Your idea of someone to interview developers is a good one, and something I've been thinking about with my idea of "Tech Advisor". I think a quality ranking and also feedback on what is good/weak about there input.
Tony, I've sent you email with some ideas.
Thank you!
Without the budget Hard to say but I like the milestone idea that was suggested and def wouldn’t cheap out bc more than likely it won’t be built. Also you could hire one of those coding consultant teams like infinite red to build ur app.
I have done the full cycle on four comercial SaaS products. I have lessons learned, as well as built off shore teams for engineering, marketing and campaign execution.
Thats cool, so what in your experience do you think you would do differently on new projects? What has helped you succeed with your projects?
I often spend time giving free career advice and technical advice(example:- what is the best tech for this kind of problem etc). If you want a high level overview, what to use? where to find? how to select? etc contact me.
Start small and go from there. You can always hire someone else.
Trust what you see not what you hear.
You should always ask for portfolios of working projects related to what you want to build. A freelance developer with a working SaaS portfolio and recommendations to demonstrate his work will be pricey but trustable.
It's like hiring an architect to build a house. If you want a modern monochrome villa but you do not know architecture. You should look for a trustable architect with experience and recommendation in those kinds of house.
I'd caution you to avoid "non-tech" as a label. It's not an identity, it doesn't suggest various strengths or unrelated weaknesses. It's just a skill you don't have at this time.
I ran two non-technical businesses earlier in my career and then became technical so I could build a tech business later. I'd strongly suggest either redoubling your efforts to gain the basic skills relevant to your business OR shifting your focus towards building a non-technical business.
Unless your product is extremly simple or can be built with off-the-shelf stuff, you will not be able to learn the skills needed in under a year. You also cannot pick a good developer without knowing what good development is. You need referrals - you need someone to recommend a developer to you that they trust. In the meantime, if you post the prices and tech stacks proposed, we could give you a general opinion.
By prices to do you mean the price quotes I am receiving from Dev Co's?
If you're trying to build something in the ____ space, you should know a little something in the ____ space.
My personal .02: learning to code has been a game-changer. You don't necessarily have to build yourself, but know the language and how to talk and what to expect so that you're on the same planet with anyone you collaborate with to build something in the tech space.
If you want hire developer,i think you can use toptal.com