Episode 027 - Guest Kurt Elster on Better Collaboration Building for Merchants

Episode 027 - Guest Kurt Elster on Better Collaboration Building for Merchants

In this conversation, Karl Meisterheim, Taylor Page, and Kurt Elster discuss the challenges and strategies of collaboration in the Shopify development space, particularly focusing on working with clients and other developers.

Kurt shares his entrepreneurial journey, the origins of EtherCycle, and the importance of effective communication and documentation in development teams. The discussion also touches on the significance of partnerships, risk-taking in entrepreneurship, and the necessity of adhering to best practices in Shopify development.

Kurt also discusses the importance of streamlined communication in client relationships, the challenges of managing multiple points of contact, and the difficult but sometimes necessary decision to fire clients. They explore the criteria for determining when a client relationship is no longer beneficial and share personal experiences with client management.

The discussion also touches on the selection of themes for development projects, recent updates in Shopify, and personal projects.

Timestamps

00:00 Introduction

00:20 Kurt Elster's Origin Story

03:22 The Evolution of EtherCycle

06:26 Partnership Dynamics in Business

09:12 Client Collaboration Challenges

12:14 Effective Communication Strategies

14:58 Project Management Tools and Techniques

17:59 Documentation Best Practices

21:00 Navigating Existing Codebases

23:58 Screencasts and Client Education

26:54 Team Collaboration and Role Clarity

32:16 Navigating Tooling and Build Processes

34:26 Dealing with Client Communication Challenges

41:40 The Art of Firing Clients

47:42 Funny Client Stories and Experiences

50:40 Theme Selection and Development Strategies

54:28 Shopify Updates and Change Log

57:56 Personal Updates and Picks of the Week

 

Connect with Kurt Elster:

Resources

Clickup: https://clickup.com/

Shopify Theme Store: https://themes.shopify.com/

Alan Weiss (author): https://www.amazon.com/stores/Alan-We...

Dev Changelog https://shopify.dev/changelog

Shopify CLI is now easier to install and faster for Liquid theme development: https://shopify.dev/changelog/shopify...

New Full-Funnel Theme Install Parameters and Now Firing E-Commerce Events on the Theme Listing Page: https://shopify.dev/changelog/new-ful...

New Full-Funnel App Install Parameters and Now Firing E-Commerce Events on the App Listing Page: https://shopify.dev/changelog/new-ful...

Post-purchase offers limit is increased: https://shopify.dev/changelog/post-pu... Product Feed webhooks now support per-market inventory: https://shopify.dev/changelog/product...

Picks of the Week

Karl: https://www.udio.com/

Kurt: https://www.do3d.com/, https://us.store.bambulab.com/product...

Taylor: https://tally.so/

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