How do I find a “techie” to help build a start up website?

Let me tell you how the world looks like from the "tech savvy" person viewpoint - everyone has an idea, they are all looking for a technical partner (that will only get a small part of the company because it's not his/hers idea) and 99.9% of those idea are worthless, and the 0.1% of ideas that are actually worth something are pitched by people that have no idea about the amount of work involved and will be generally unreasonable.

To find a partner you have to either bring money (and lots of it) or prove the idea is valuable and you can be trusted to do the work required to make it a successful product/service.

First you have to define what the service does and doesn’t do – this has to be extremely detailed and it’s best to do that in combination with mockups of the web site (this will help convince the tech partner your idea is doable, that you know what you are talking about and that you are willing to do some work).

You then have to talk to customers and do market research – and what you really want are a few people that say they’ll pay for this if you build it – this proves there’s some market for what you are proposing.

And finally you have to decide what you bring to the table, actually building something is extremely hard work – so you have to bring something equally valuable (your idea is not valuable, at this point in time it’s totally worthless).

So, any programmer that’s worth something is getting pitched crappy idea by unreliable people all the time – so, to “be heard above the noise” you have to prove that your idea is commercially viable and you are willing to work hard to do whatever it takes to make the product/service a success.

Talk to customers. Build mockups. Show a developer you have the ability to think about the problem and create something meaningful. Just because you don't know how to build out a web app doesn't mean you can't think through the problem and at least build out the screens. Going through this process will help you wrap your head around the product. Mock up the absolute bare minimum.

Developers will run from someone who "has an idea" and "just needs a techie to build it now".

I'll make an assumption that you are not bringing money to the table, at least not in amounts that could actually pay for the development of your idea. As such, you need to do two things:

1. Show that you understand your idea, the implications of development and the volume of effort involved, how it will make money;
2. What you are willing to offer for someone to help you make it a reality.

If you low-ball either of the two components, you won't find willing, capable developer who will throw in with you. If you act reasonable, then perhaps you will. There are various lists available for people looking for business partners from both perspectives, so bring your best presentation and see who applies to join you.

If you plan on a launching a substantive product with a rich feature set, stylish user interface and an efficient scalable engine, then you'll be looking at 4 figure fee.

However its very important that you find the right person for the job. Focus on what projects they have worked on, see if they follow web application trends. This is fast moving field, you need to make sure they're in the web development game.

I would suggest attending local web conferences in your area and networking with some developers. This is the best way to get in contact with some really understanding and eager young engineers. Avoid offshoring this project to 'sweatshop' development companies. They may be much cheaper, but you'll get a cheap product in the end.

Also it wouldn't hurt to learn a bit about the various technologies yourself.

I agree with the suggestions. You have also to define what your start-up idea is all about. This has to be something that can be easily understood like building mock-ups. Also, if your looking for a technical partner, you must know what are your qualifications. Like what you want you site to be build on. What technology to use. In this way, you can filter your searches and find the right partner. I hope I contributed a few ideas.

From a techie standpoint too, here's how I translate your statement -- and I am exaggerating here, on purpose, hoping the message hits home.

"I took a shower yesterday and while I was shampooing, a lightning bolt hit me and I had an idea for an app. I am looking for someone to partner with me, someone who will built it because I cannot. The partnership will be based on this: I bring my wonderful shower idea, and the partner works his butt off, for no pay, for a year building a prototype. We split 70/30 because the idea is mine".

I think it's safe to say you won't find anyone who'd be willing to work hard without pay for your idea. How can you prove your idea is more than just idea, but has a real chance to succeed? other people wrote it before me: Presentations, business plan/model, revenue stream outlining, target audience, competitive analysis, mockups, UX design (wireframes) and more. Have you done those?