I've been approached to create an eCommerce website for a pharmacy to sell medicinal products. I'm fresh out of college and have very little experience in web development. I've done some research on platforms like Shopify, WooCommerce, and Magento for building eCommerce sites. Given my limited skill set, should I attempt this project myself, or would it be better to let a professional handle it?
5 Answers
Setting up a basic Shopify site isn’t too tricky if you’re willing to learn. If it’s just about selling products without too many regulations, it could be a good experience. But if there's any need for user registration or collecting sensitive data, I'd advise stepping back; the risks are too high here.
If it’s for a real pharmacy, my vote is definitely to let someone experienced handle it. You don’t want your first project to dive into payment processing and all those medical compliance issues. Maybe try smaller projects first before tackling something this big!
If you’ve got minimal experience with web development, I really wouldn’t recommend trying to take this on yourself. There are so many details involved—especially with something as serious as a pharmacy—that you wouldn't be ready for as a beginner. By the way, how did you end up with this project offer? That part's intriguing!
A family friend heard I’m a computer science major and thought I might be able to handle it.
Honestly, I think you’re probably not ready for this yet. Even with a degree in CS, there are a lot of legal implications when it comes to handling pharmacy transactions. They might have unrealistic expectations about how much effort this will take.
As a recent grad, you could give it a shot, but I suggest using a managed platform like Shopify instead of trying to build everything from scratch. It will make the process a lot smoother for you.
I totally agree! I worked on a similar project once and it took a whole team to manage it. There are lots of complexities—legal issues, payment processing, and more. It's definitely not for a solo developer, especially for a pharmacy.