So I’ve decided to publish a ‘development journal’ to describe the learning process I’m experiencing as I build my first Internet project that’s currently being set up in parallel with this blog.
As I wrote yesterday on Day One of stepping out here into cyberspace, the project’s implementation is the result of some arduous exploring of what’s possible and consequently what’s required.
Among the measures of online success, apart from the enjoyment of simply writing, would be readership, as measured in the analytics, and – if there is something of tangible value being offered – then it could be the success of an e-commerce venture, which is the underpinning of the project.
This core blog, howardarfin.com, begins as a candid effort of personal expression. The e-commerce project is an attempt to introduce a more practical if somewhat ambitious endeavour: curation and learning resources in one of the biggest ‘niches’ on the web — social media.
Here’s a list of the project’s components, what I’m calling the machine parts; the nomenclature is inspired by a non-fiction, early tech thriller I read many years ago called The Soul of a New Machine:
* choosing a domain name – done
* selecting a hosting provider – done, same one as this blog: BlueHost
* deciding on a publishing platform – done, an easy decision: WordPress, same as this blog
* site configuration – theme, plugins, widgets, social share buttons, author ranking, etc. – work in progress
* contact email set-up – done for this blog and getting done for the project site
* list-building – need to decide which auto-responder to use
* e-commerce offerings – filtering through a huge inventory of social media learning resources to select quality content for ‘stocking the shelves.’ This is a critical reputational issue for me: to deliver value!
* e-commerce transactions – I’m researching a basic WordPress plugin to keep it as simple as possible
* e-commerce gateway – PayPal, of course, which also includes the major credit card merchant accounts
* service offerings – to differentiate myself in an effort to build ‘authority‘ beyond the provision of helpful social media learning resources, I’m also studying how to produce webinars based on Google HangOuts on Air. More on this later…
There are other bits and pieces such as whether to create a Gravatar, and stocking up on royalty-free and public domain photos and graphics to add visual appeal. I’ll document the various machine parts in my devJournal as they get selected, configured and installed.
Definitely a full plate, if I may be allowed to mix my metaphors between the building of an Internet machine and the pleasure of food.