Regardless of whether you’re just taking your first steps in the labor market or you want to take your career in another, more prospective direction, there are quite a few things you need to learn before you can complete with the professionals. The vast majority of the learning material is available for free on the Internet, however, you will need to invest a lot of your time and effort into studying web design, if you’re really serious about making it in this field. Miracle solutions do not exist in the real world. Theory can turn you in the right direction, but you will have to take the right steps by yourself in order to truly comprehend how to do the job of a web designer correctly. Unless you’re planning on relying on a guide by Web Monkey Online or another web-related blog every single time you’re having trouble with a WordPress function or formatting. If you’re serious about becoming a web designer and want to know how to get started, follow the steps outlined below in order to learn the skills you will need to land your first gig.
Learn How To Code
Despite all of the negative connotations that the phrase “learn to code” has garnered in recent years, there is no going around it in the world of web design, especially if you’re aiming to make the big bucks.
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The reason behind it is the fact that in order to have complete creative control over the project you’re currently working on, you can not rely on builders such as Wix and Squarespace, or even WordPress (which allows the most freedom out of the three). They place limitations on what you can do with a site and narrow down the aesthetics to the formats and outlines provided by the developers. If you want to be completely in charge of the design process, you should learn at least two programming languages that are commonly used with modern websites. The first of these is HTML, which allows you to organize the structure and content on a site. The other one is CSS. It stands for Cascading Style Sheets and is responsible for the styling. Some experts will also point towards JavaScript as a must-learn language in 2020. You should focus on HTML and CSS first, before you move on to bigger things, though. There will be no use for your JavaScript skills if you’re HTML illiterate.
Stay Up to Date With New Developments
The internet is constantly changing and redesigning itself. Today’s novelties are tomorrow’s antiquities, which is why it is so fundamentally important to keep in touch with recent developments in the world of web design, programming, and online trends. You might get away with outdated techniques at first, but soon enough you’ll find yourself struggling to get clients because you’ve missed the release of some new software or the emergence of a revolutionary trend. It might also be a good idea to get involved in the web design community — there are plenty of online communities, where you can exchange tips and experiences with fellow designers. They’re also amazing platforms to meet some more experienced professionals and get valuable advice from them. Finally, you should scour your local news feeds and announcements for web design events and conferences that are happening near you. It is a booming industry, and such get-togethers happen more often than you would think. Seminars from esteemed designers and up-and-coming entrepreneurs can open your mind up to new ideas and perspectives. Not to mention the networking opportunities you’ll most definitely come across during these events!
Bottom Line
Merely learning to code and keeping up to date with web design news and trends will not instantly make you a web designer. You’ll need a lot of practice and knowledge about the best software for various activities related to web design, such as image processing or search engine optimization rules. It takes hard work and a lot of time, but if you get started with the two aspects of the job outlined in this article, you might just save yourself a lot of effort in the later stages of your journey towards a career in web design.
