Magento is a widely used E-commerce platform, probably the 3rd most used globally after Shopify and WooCommerce. It is an open source platform which is used by 12% of the global ecommerce sites (Source). Magento offers features distinct from other ecommerce platforms such as a high level of customizability and scalability, SEO friendliness, advanced level security, product types, automation and more. This comes with a price though. Magento is relatively complex to work on. A fair level of coding expertise and experienced is required to deal with it.
With Magento 1 stopping its support and the fast increasing Magento customers, you may require a professional Magento 2 developer to either do the migration or kick start your business. Finding a Magento 2 developer is not as easy as it seems. You need to do some research to find the best one who can fully understand your requirements, implement it as you desire, and make it easy for you to maintain it.
Top 5 Things to Consider While Hiring a Magento 2 Developer
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What do you Really Need?
It’s a lot easier and time saving to get a project ready once fulfilling all your business requirements than to keep making changes in the future. For this to happen, you have to be 100% clear about your current and future business requirements. Ask yourself the following questions before you start looking for a Magento 2 developer.
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Do you need a front-end developer, back-end developer or both?
In simplest words, front-end development means how things look. It deals with the aesthetics like images, content, structure etc. Front-end languages are HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Back-end development, on the other hand, means how things work. It deals with the logic & data. Back-end languages are PHP, Java, Python, etc.
You, as the owner, have to decide what type of a developer you need. If you are developing a project from scratch, you may need both.
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Do you need a Dedicated Developer or Part-time Developer?
Decide whether you need a full time or part time developer depending upon the size, urgency, and budget of the project. If you are building your project from scratch, if it is big in size or if you need constant changes/optimizations, you might want to go for a dedicated developer.
Also, be very clear on the amount of money you are willing to pay. A word of advice here: never compromise on the quality to save a few bucks. Your website is the foundation of your business and investing generously but mindfully will surely pay off.
Once you are crystal clear on what you want, hiring a developer will be easy. Following are the things you should look out for while hiring a Magento 2 developer.
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Magento 2 Certifications
Magento certified developers by offering different exams like Magento 2 certified professional developer, Magento 2 certified professional developer plus, Magento 2 certified associate developer, etc. Developers who have one of these certifications have 1.5+ years of experience and worked on multiple Magento projects. They have proven their development expertise and are safe to hand over your project to.
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Portfolio
Certification alone does not qualify a developer for your project. Check their past work and see what types of projects they have delivered and with how much efficiency. It will also give you an idea of their level of professionalism in work. You can then relate your project to their experience and skill sets.
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Reviews & Ratings
Checking reviews of any developer/agency is the first thing you want to do. Almost everybody does it before buying something or hiring someone and it is actually worth the time. It is an authentic way to gauge a developer’s competency. See what other clients are saying about the developer or agency and their work. You can check reviews on their social media accounts, the platforms they have worked on, or third party reviews sites. Remember, some reviews are fake so hold yourself from falling for them.
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Other Skills & Requirements
Are Magento 2 certifications, vast work portfolio, and positive reviews are not enough? They are not. The following skills and characteristics are as important in a good Magento 2 developer as the above technical ones.
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Industry Knowledge
A good Magento 2 developer should be updated about the latest industry trends and best practices. This gives them an edge over those who still use old techniques.
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Communication
Your developer should have good communication skills to effectively present what they have done in response to your requirements. It will make coordination easier and keep you and the developer on the same page.
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Creativity
Can the developer think out of the box? This question is so important in hiring one. If he has the mind to come up with new ideas and problem solving methods, it will go a long way in making your e-commerce store stand out. After all, you want your store to be different from the competitors, and for the better.
The above considerations will help you hire a Magento 2 developer that will deliver the project meeting all the requirements and make the collaboration a good experience for you.
