I am contemplating getting a SEO tool coded for my own personal use. I am not a programmer but from what I can understand the project is definately no biggie. What options are out there to outsource this kind of work? Perhaps you've have good experiences with coders right here on DP, which I would love to hear about....
I am a big fan of rentacoder. I like them because your money sits in an escrow account and funds are released to the programmer after the coding is done. If you have problems you can go into arbitration to get a resolutions or if the coder disappears, your money is not lost. I will point out that whatever way you go, make sure you have a well written requirement to give to the developer. This requirement should state what the goals of the application are and outline the different functionality areas. For example, click button(a) which will produce report(a), etc..
rentacoder gets the thumbs-up from me too! Try to build relationships with a particular coder/group of coders and get the project done in chunks and stages to build trust and understanding regarding quality expectations etc. Have fun!
I also recommend Rentacoder. But you really need to think out your software requirements so the programmers will know what is to be expected of them. Then you will need to weed out all the canned responses that you will get once you submit your proposal. It takes some time, but once you do it right you will find some quality people to do your work in your price range. I found a contract employee from Rentacoder. He is graphic artist designer that has won many awards and can do everything from banner ads to full color magazine layouts. He is in Romania and I pay him $500.00 a month when I need a month's worth of work.
I would be concerned about giving someone access to my site that I don't know. What are the security issues?
You don't have to give them access to your site. The only reason I could see is that you want the developer to install their work for you. In that situation, just create a temporary FTP account for them and as soon as you verify the job, delete the account.