Rob Clarkson: Skills

PHP & MySQL

The majority of the websites I create are coded in PHP, as this is my language of choice. I use MySQL for the database as the two technologies go hand-in-hand.

Database Design

I am experienced at developing MySQL databases from concept through to completion.

XHTML & CSS

I aim at making the code I create valid XHTML Strict and valid CSS. I also do my best to make my code accessible to all.

Browsers & Accessibility

The code I create is always tested in the five major browsers (Firefox, Opera, Netscape, Safari and IE), and aims to be as accessible as possible through the use of accesskeys, alt tags and the like.

Search Engine Friendly URLs

Search engine friendly URLs can be achieved by using Apache's mod_rewrite capabilities to dynamically alter the server's .htaccess file.

This changes URLs from:
product.php?id=123
To a more search engine friendly:
african-reed-frogs.html

Exotic Pets is one of the sites I've worked on that uses Apache's mod-rewrite. (mod-rewerite is not used on this website as my server is a Lynx server, not Apache).

E-commerce Systems

I have developed a very powerful e-commerce system that allows our clients to manage their website and receive orders online.

All of our e-commerce websites (a selection of which can been seen in my portfolio) include the following:

An administration area where the client can add, edit and update information about their products.
An online shopping cart that visitors can add products to.
A payment facility - either Protx, PayPal, SecPay or WorldPay.
An order tracking system where customers can view the status of their order.

However, the shopping cart that I have produced can do a lot more than what's listed above. Extra features include:

Back in stock notifications - automatically emails a customer when a product they enquired about is back in stock.
Tell a friend facility - where visitors can email a specific page to a friend.
Recently viewed items - remembers what products the visitor has recently looked at.
Sale and discount systems - allowing the client to set offers on products for a defined length of time.
Froogle - enables the client to list their products on Froogle, Google's shopping comparison site.
Google sitemap - creates a dynamic sitemap that helps Google index their website.
Product/article review systems - allows a registered user to comment on a product or article.

Website Points

A website points system has been developed whereby a customer makes a purchase, and is rewarded with a client-defined amount of points. The customer can then redeem these points against their next purchase. This small reward encourages repeat visits and purchases.

Affiliate & Referral Systems

I have developed separate affiliate and referral systems that allow customers to make money from the client's website.

Customers link to the website with their affiliate or referral ID and if a visitor clicks through and buys a product, the affiliate/referrer is rewarded with a set amount of points.

I have also developed a system that allows the affiliate/referrer to dynamically include the client's products on their own website. The example below is from Exotic Pets:

Mexican Red Knee Tarantula
Brachypelma smithii
The Mexican Red Knee Tarantula is native to Mexico and may be found in neighbouring countries. This species is a must in everyone's collection!
• Buy from Exotic-Pets.co.uk