Projects and partners

Hiring a developer or agency for a research-only store

Compare proposals on five written points: the change each one names, who keeps the WordPress and payment accounts, which checkout and payment extension the work supports, who maintains the store after launch, and how you will accept the result. Compare prices only between proposals that cover comparable scope, and ask what each quote assumes: who supplies the logo and product images, which features are included, whether the checkout is hosted or embedded, whether products or orders must move, how many revision rounds are included, and what timing the price depends on. Prism does build and checkout work too, and its proposals should answer the same points. The payment provider still decides whether any account is available.

For: An owner of a research-only peptide business comparing proposals for storefront or checkout work.

Updated 2026-10-06

Discuss my store project

Make each proposal name the change

A useful proposal names the pages, theme, plugins, and checkout type it will change. WooCommerce records those pieces separately. The system status report lists the active theme, whether WooCommerce support is declared, any template overrides, the active plugins and their versions, and the cart and checkout page addresses. Ask the proposer to start from that report, or from the equivalent list if the store is not on WooCommerce.

'A new website' is not a deliverable. Two proposals can use that phrase while one replaces the checkout page and the other replaces the catalog, theme, and order history. You can compare only the work that is written down. If a proposal does not say what it will leave in place, treat that item as unknown rather than included.

Account access is a role, not a shared password

WordPress gives an Administrator of a single site the capabilities to install and update plugins, switch themes, manage options, and manage users. An Editor can publish content and does not receive those installation capabilities. The business can create a user with the role the work requires. Sharing the owner's password removes that distinction and is not a proposal term to accept.

Stripe's account documentation says to invite team members, with the lowest permission the job needs, rather than sharing the password or a secret API key. Secret and restricted keys are not safe to put in a proposal, an email, or a chat. A proposal can name the role it needs. It should not ask for the key. Access to an account is not ownership of the business, and it is not a processing approval.

Checkout support has to match the checkout you have

WooCommerce stores started after version 8.3 use the Cart and Checkout blocks by default. An extension's compatibility with those blocks is marked on its WooCommerce.com product page. If the only enabled payment gateways are incompatible with the Checkout block, no payment method is available. A proposal that says it supports 'WooCommerce checkout' without naming the block or the classic shortcode, and without naming the payment extension, has not answered the question.

Cart and checkout are documented as a pair. A proposal to change one of them back to the classic shortcode should say whether it will change the other. Compatibility of the extension is not a statement that a provider will process the account.

What moves the price of a build or a checkout job

Two prices are comparable only when they assume the same work. Before comparing numbers, ask each proposer, including Prism, the same questions about what the price assumes.

Assets: who supplies a finished logo and product images, and how missing assets change the scope.
Features: whether order emails, abandoned-cart recovery, shipping tools, customer records, or affiliate tools are included, and which of them the proposer supports at all.
Design: whether the layout is a standard design or bespoke work.
Checkout: whether the quote covers a hosted or an embedded checkout, and what that depends on.
Migration: whether products, customers, or orders have to move from another store, and who owns each of those records.
Revisions: how many revision rounds are included and how additional changes are agreed.
Timing: what delivery period the quote assumes and what a changed deadline would affect.
Payment schedule: what each payment in the written schedule covers.
After launch: who owns and pays for hosting, support, and licenses.
Ask for a written scope that says what is included and what requires a separate agreement.

Separate evidence, maintenance, and acceptance from processing

Evidence of relevant work is a store or a written description the proposer can show you, including what was changed and what was left alone. A claimed approval rate, a logo wall, or a statement that a provider 'accepts this kind of store' is not evidence of the work and is not a provider's decision about your business. Do not ask a proposer to hide the catalog or rename the business so the store looks like something else.

Maintenance is who updates WordPress, WooCommerce, plugins, and the theme after the change, and how long that duty lasts. Acceptance is the check you will perform before the final payment: the system status report matches the proposal, the named checkout shows the named payment method, and a test order is placed because WooCommerce documents test orders as a way to test a checkout. The provider's eligibility decision is not an acceptance test the implementer can pass for you.

You decide which proposal names the work, the access, and the acceptance check you need. The implementer decides what it is willing to contract for. The provider decides processing.

Prism builds research-only stores on WooCommerce, finishes incomplete builds, moves stores, and installs and repairs checkouts. Its build proposals are written scopes that name the pages and features, what you supply, the delivery period, and the included revision rounds, with hosting, support, and license terms stated in writing before you decide. Start dates, supported platforms, and payment arrangements are confirmed in the consultation, and Prism confirms scope, responsibilities, fees, and terms before work begins.

In the consultation request, include the work you need, the platform, whether your logo and product images are ready, the date that matters, and whether you already have proposals to compare. Leave out passwords, API keys, and customer lists.

Proposal comparison sheet

Use the last column for what each written proposal actually says. Compare only proposals you have. Leave a cell blank when a proposal does not answer it. Do not paste credentials into the sheet.

Worksheet entries are not submitted by Prism’s worksheet and are not saved by the site. Use record types, availability, anonymized observations, or match/mismatch results. Do not enter government identifiers, customer names or addresses, customer messages, receipt-access links, card or bank details, passwords, or keys. Send sensitive documents only through the provider’s verified secure channel.

Proposal comparison sheet. The last column is for temporary notes.
Comparison point	What a usable answer names	What does not answer it	What the proposals say
The change to be delivered	The pages, theme, plugins, and checkout type that will change, and the catalog or order history that will stay.	A label such as a new website, a rebuild, or a checkout, with no list of what changes.	The change to be delivered: What the proposals say
WordPress access	The role the implementer will receive, who remains an Administrator, and that the owner's password is not shared.	A request for the owner's login, or a statement that the agency will own the site.	WordPress access: What the proposals say
Payment-account access	The provider and the limited team role requested. For Stripe, that is an invitation with the lowest permission the job needs.	A request for a password, a secret API key, or a restricted key in email or chat.	Payment-account access: What the proposals say
Checkout the work supports	Whether the store uses the Checkout block or the classic shortcode, and the named payment extension's documented compatibility with that checkout.	A general claim that the firm supports WooCommerce, or that compatibility means a provider will approve the account.	Checkout the work supports: What the proposals say
Evidence of comparable work	A store or a written account of what the firm changed and what it left in place, which you can inspect.	An approval rate, a promise that a provider accepts the category, or an unnamed testimonial.	Evidence of comparable work: What the proposals say
Controls that stay with the business	Who can approve product descriptions, policies, and the public business name. The catalog presented to the provider remains the catalog that is offered.	A proposal to hide products, change the descriptor so it disguises the business, or describe a narrower catalog than the site.	Controls that stay with the business: What the proposals say
Maintenance after the change	Who updates WordPress, WooCommerce, the theme, and plugins, for how long, and which of those updates are out of scope.	A statement that the site will be maintained, with no owner and no end date.	Maintenance after the change: What the proposals say
Dependencies the price assumes	The hosting, theme, required extensions, and provider account the price treats as already available.	A single price that does not say what must already be true for that price to hold.	Dependencies the price assumes: What the proposals say
Acceptance before the work is called done	The status-report items, checkout type, visible payment method, and test order you will check before the final payment.	Acceptance defined only as the provider approving an account, or as the implementer's own statement that it works.	Acceptance before the work is called done: What the proposals say

These are temporary notes. Leaving or reloading this page may clear them. Worksheet entries are not sent automatically. If you copy notes into the consultation message and submit the form, Prism receives them as part of your request.

Limits

This comparison does not select a processor, quote a processing fee, or transfer underwriting to the implementer.
Do not send API keys, passwords, or customer lists through the public consultation form.

Related guides

Sources

WordPress roles and capabilities — checked 2026-09-21. A single-site Administrator can install and update plugins, switch themes, manage options, and manage users. An Editor can publish content and does not receive those installation capabilities.
Stripe account setup — checked 2026-09-21. Stripe says not to share the account password or secret API keys, and to invite team members with limited access instead.
Stripe teams — checked 2026-09-21. A Stripe account owner invites team members by email, assigns roles, and is told to grant the lowest permission the job requires.
Stripe API keys — checked 2026-09-21. Secret and restricted API keys are not safe to expose. Stripe says not to share keys over email, chat, or other unencrypted channels.
WooCommerce system status report — checked 2026-09-21. The report lists site addresses, WooCommerce and WordPress versions, active plugins, the theme, WooCommerce support declared by the theme, template overrides, and the cart and checkout pages.
WooCommerce cart and checkout blocks — checked 2026-09-21. Stores started after WooCommerce 8.3 use Cart and Checkout blocks by default. Incompatible gateways may not appear. Classic shortcode rollback applies to both cart and checkout. Compatibility is marked on the extension's product page.
WooCommerce managing orders — checked 2026-09-21. WooCommerce documents test orders as a way to test a checkout flow or integration.
Prism solutions — checked 2026-10-06. Prism's services are card-processing preparation, store builds and migrations, checkout installation and repair, store operations, and website review. A store build is scoped in writing: pages and features, what the merchant supplies, the delivery period, and included revision rounds, with hosting, support, and license terms stated before the merchant decides. The provider decides eligibility and terms. Scope, fees, and terms are agreed before work.
Prism features — checked 2026-09-21. A website review is informational. It is not a legal opinion or a compliance certification, and it does not guarantee approval.
Prism contact — checked 2026-09-21. The inquiry is followed up by email. It does not book an appointment, purchase a service, or submit a processing application.

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