[consulting] Contracted Help (As Needed Basis)

[Kevin Davison]

Christian, I definitely agree. The fact that we can choose our projects is exactly why I'm still in business after three years.

I saw a few sites that had this "rating" system, and perhaps a Yelp-style review site would be helpful. However, there's potential for a lot of abuse, just like Yelp has experienced. Abuse from "flaming" as well as corruption where pooling occurs and businesses rate each other unfairly.

A certification process sounds ideal. I think Lullabot and other companies could spearhead that plan, but ultimately it should be part of the Drupal organization IMHO.

And what we're talking about is credibility. Drupal.org profiles start to do this, with "I attended DrupalCon," and other affiliations you can add. You can buy an organization badge and stick it on your site. LOL!

Frankly, anyone can get certified if they study the right things. It's the credibility you get from client relationships that's most valuable. Sure, you can build an awesome Drupal site, but is the client still happy, and do they feel comfortable using it because you met their personal needs?

Lastly, I believe the primary importance is to get involved in the Drupal community. Get to know who's contributing to the stuff you use, and contribute whatever you can as well. This isn't just about software, of course.


On May 28, 2010, at 12:32 PM, Christian Pearce wrote:

> 
> ----- "Kevin Davison" <kevin at quevin.com> wrote: 
> > With 3,000 Drupalers at DrupalCon SF recently, it's only a matter of time before there are more Drupal professionals than there are now. But this also means that it may be that much harder to actually find good help.
> 
> I am sure this has been talked to death at some point, but each time I try to win business I attempt to qualify the customer first.  I just don't go after EVERYTHING.  For example I know if they say Freelancer they are not looking for me as a company.  Freelancer usually translates to, we don't have a big budget and we don't have the concerns of working with a freelancer.  Or since we have a lot of systems and development experience i have won business because of that expertise.
> 
> I am wondering if we can make it easier for the customer to "find good help."
> 
> Maybe a site like this exists already.  But we could build a drupal site were our former customers rate us?  We can talk about the how we differentiate ourselves among the professionals.  For example I have done a lot of consulting where I create build processes for shops to generate drupal websites for there customers, etc.
> 
> Let's face it there are going to be the shops like advomatic, lullabot and development seed that are going to win business cause the are the cream of the crop.  And sure there are regional super stars in Metro areas as well.  But for middle of the road shops we need to use our other areas of expertise to stand out from the fold when attempting to win business.
> 
> Can we create a site similar to what Acquia did on their partner page?  I know we can.  But the question is should we, or do people consider it taking away their competitive advantage?
> 
> -- 
> xforty technologies
> Christian Pearce
> 888-231-9331 x1119
> http://xforty.com
> 
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