Venturing Completely Through Web Designing: Is Web Design Best Self-Taught?

Web design has undoubtedly become very popular nowadays. It is especially promoted because of the ongoing migration and expansion of people and businesses online as the virtual setting has increased its serviceability because of the huge restrictions from the global pandemic. This also means that as there is a wider reach nowadays with the influx of internet users from every part of the world, companies and businesses would have to create that digital impact to gather potential clients and customers. This is where web designers are most seeked after.

With the competition in the web design industry and the growing demand, deciding to be part is one of the common choices. However, the million dollar question for this situation is: Can web design be self taught?

The answer is yes.

It might require quite a journey to uphold the skills and qualities a good web designer should have, but it is not impossible for one to teach themselves of these skills and be qualified. Beginners would have to learn coding, basic programming, and graphic editing right from the start but it is not something that would not guarantee a pot of gold by the end. There are a lot of resources that are available for learning and will surely help in developing the skills of a good web designer, so do not shy away from trying out and exploring these resources.

One can also follow these steps provided by Bravo Writes):

1. Learn by doing

However the method that an aspiring designer would want to take in achieving their goal, always try to keep learning. There are available courses for this and would surely help you get motivated, but there is also no problem getting a hold of the basics by yourself. The first thing to learn would be the basics of HTML tags and CSS classes as these are the basic programming languages needed to be a web designer. If you have mastered those, you can decide to proceed to others such as JavaScript.

2. Re-watch a course

One should always be well-versed into the web and its importance. It is the core of the very work they are getting themselves in, and as it progresses, the environment around it progresses too. So be very particular with remembering the significance of the job and the platform and in order to do this, re-watching courses is usually a good way to go. It could also further extend the understanding for coding and programming.

3. Sell your services

One might not have the best set of skills once they have acquired them from the start, but it should not deter them from starting somewhere. However big or small a skill or product is, there should be a place made for them to start and slowly build their services and credibility around it.

Major freelancing platforms are the easiest place to start your career. It might not provide as much of an income, but that is not the main focus when starting with any job or profession. What is more than promising is to have the learning experience and knowledge on how to navigate around the people that aspiring web designers are going to be around with more as they go further into their budding career.

Once you’ve got the hang of it, you will be more experienced not just in your skills, but also with handling everything that goes on once you receive your income. This includes managing your finances, managing yourself, and also including your skills.

Hard work is required to continue through with this work right from the start, but it will always give good results at the end of the day. It also depends on the person and how they would manage themselves, but efforts would not be fruitless if it is really given. Following this would be the basic requirement in skills and qualities of a web designer that could surely be achieved through a beginner’s perspective.

Important Qualities and Skills of a Web Designer

In being a great and reliable web designer, there are specific qualities and skills that should be ardently observed to ensure a great outcome. Listed below are the qualities a good designer needs to have:

• Ability to handle criticism – In the position of being a web designer, they might be in control of the designs that they would put out as choices, but at the end of the day, they have clients that they are making those for. Web designers should have the ability to bounce back from the criticism that is sent their way and still push through with the same mindset as the first day.

• Adaptable – Similar to taking criticisms, clients might want to either try a different design or have specific changes to the design. Adaptability to those kinds of changes, and not just with work but also with people and situations, is more than appreciated to ensure a smooth sailing working environment.

• Creative – This is already a given when taking the work of being a web designer, however, it must be reiterated as a lot of ideas that are suitable for specific companies or brand concepts are very much needed. Better client satisfaction would happen if their brand or digital products would be placed in a uniquely appealing perspective from their target audience.

• Customer oriented – Being customer oriented is necessary for any job, yet as being a web designer requires communication with the client’s demands and preferences, there should be a placement of priority over the client. Not only should a good web designer take what the client wants, but they should also be involved in designing what looks and what would work better regarding the target audience. This would ensure optimal user experience.

• Detail oriented – Producing digital products and designing websites are not as easy as other people might think. Every aspect of it should have its own significance. That is what a web designer should always pay attention to. Every button, text, and navigation should have their purpose. Even the font or color of a website sometimes would have its relevance to the company or brand it is representing. Designers should always know where to place everything and its purpose.

• Original – The most important thing of all is originality. Design could always be copied, it is the truth. However, what sets a good web designer apart is the ability to be the copied instead of the copier; not only for their credibility, but also for the client’s advantage to the market as well as their satisfaction.

While these qualities are a lot to uphold all at once, some claim that you do not always have to be qualified in order to become a good designer. Just make sure that you have these three specific skills that would make you achieve your work and connect to your client flawlessly:

• Creativity and graphics design: This is the most important thing to have when it comes to being a web designer, or literally just a designer in general. A web designer’s creativity is what sets them apart from their competition and it is also the core of their work. There should be actual knowledge on how to also market this creativity and graphic skills in order to adapt to the needs of the clients.

• Technical aptitude: There should be proper knowledge in coding in order to be a successful web designer, whether it be using HTML, JavaScript, or other coding methods. There should also be an understanding regarding the heavy part of website-building such as the server-side technologies (Net, PHP, etc.) as the designer would be curating the website design around it. Proficiency in using graphic-editing softwares is also a necessity in building a strong profile and maintaining it through work.

• People Skills: As it was heavily emphasized on the qualities, being a web designer meant having to work directly or indirectly with clients. It may be a challenge but some people do really need the guidance to find their own wants for the work they would want you to achieve or they have trouble in communication. Having to work around and through the people is an excellent skill in order to figure out their preferences and become efficient.

A good web designer provides good assistance towards the company or the people they work with rather than cause more problems. This has made them very important in the age of virtual dependency and the continuous propagation of businesses and their online presence.

Read more: Web Designer and Web Developer: A Conclusive and Insightful Comparison