Meta: If you want to be a web designer, but you do not know where to start, this guide is for you.
“If your business is offline, it means your business is going to run out of business.” Bill Gates said that more than two decades ago. Today there are over 644 million active websites online (according to Netcraft) and web designers are becoming a major part of any company’s marketing strategy. All of this makes web designers more in demand.
Below you will find a step-by-step guide to help you understand the important information and skills you will need to build a successful web design business.
6 Best Steps To Becoming A Web Designer
1. Learn web design theory
When it comes to learning a new discipline, it is important to learn the basics first. Well-designed websites follow the strict rules of the UX design – they have good usability and good visual appeal. A good UX design will keep visitors staying on your site while bad ones will take them elsewhere. Web design is a constantly evolving field, so be prepared to learn something new all the time.
2. Learn how to write code
It will be difficult to work in the web design industry without knowing any programming language. Of course, it is possible to create a website using website builders like Wix or squarespace. But you will struggle to know web opportunities if you only work with domain developers. Being able to create code will give you many benefits. For example, you will be able to make a very accurate idea of whether your design is technically feasible.
You need to have the required skills in HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) and CSS (Cascading Style Spreadsheets). HTML sets the layout and content of a page, while CSS defines style options. I recommend W3schools tutorials: HTML tutorials and CSS tutorials.
It’s also fun to learn JavaScript – one of the most required programming languages. It will be much easier to create improvements to websites using JavaScript. Larger study forums offer free JavaScript courses. See the introduction of JavaScript courses with Codecademy and Udacity.
Another Thoughtful Read: Why You Should Hire .NET Developers?
3. Find the right tools
Across the industry, mastering key tools is the first step toward success. You cannot expect to be a successful web designer without knowing the tools of the industry.
But since web design is a broad discipline, web designers need to be familiar with different design features such as:
Image design: Despite the fact that image design and web design are two separate fields, web designers often need to get into image design to solve a particular design problem. Therefore, it is important to learn to use an image editor like Adobe Photoshop. The most common task that web designers do for image editors is to edit images – resize or crop images to fit right in certain spaces or to compress images to best fit web views. Here is an excellent Photoshop by Tutorials.ws tutorial
Prototyping: Prototyping is the foundation of web design. When webmasters have strong prototyping skills, they do not have to wait for the final web design to validate their ideas; instead, they can validate their design decisions within minutes. Check out AppVerticals Dallas mobile app development company, provides outstanding prototypes.
Coding: Like I said, web designers need to understand how to write code. Get yourself a great code editor like Sublime or Atom.
Web designers also need to get acquainted with the popular CMS (Content Management System) – software used to create and manage digital web content. CMS makes content management process much easier for site owners. Although there are dozens of different CMSs available on the market today, there are three leading CMS – WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal. Having a working knowledge of one (or all) programs is essential. You can start with simple tasks like introducing small changes to site design and move on to more advanced tasks like creating a website template or creating a plugin.
4. Learn the basic rules of SEO
Part of being a much needed web designer is being able to do more than just design. Websites should be organized in a way that makes them friendly not only to users but also to the search engine bots. SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is a site development process that aims to create a better online visibility of a website. Web designers should focus on improving the “natural” (or “living”) by improving site performance, using it for multiple forums and focusing on content – making it relevant and important to a targeted audience. Such activities can help increase site rankings with search engines. Read the Comprehensive Guide for Beginners in SEO and the 15 Rules of Online Search Results to find out more about the topic of SEO.
5. Develop a habit of checking your design regularly
The web design process requires evaluation and analysis of the completed work. Designers should check the website to make sure the pages are loading quickly and the site is accessible to both desktop and mobile users (responsive design). Today it is very easy to check that out. You can use tools like Google Pagespeed Insights.
6. Improve your communication skills
Web design is rarely a one-man show. Whether you work in a large design department or in a small design studio, working together is inevitable. Web designers should always contact customers, developers or other designers. That is why web designers should learn to present their work in the best possible way.
Conclusion
Becoming a web designer is not as difficult as it seems, but it takes time and effort. Many of the skills mentioned in this guide will not be readily available by reading books or completing online courses. They need a lot of practice. Therefore, practice it a lot and be patient. Remember that Rome was not built in one day.
It is also important to have a passion for your work. Even if you are looking for your first job, focus on the experience, not just the money. Take problems and design challenges as learning opportunities. If you have any query you can contact Appverticals Dallas mobile app development company.
If you follow these tips, one day you will find yourself making world-class websites.
