These days it seems like everyone can design a website; with do-it-yourself type website builders, the tools to create a page and put it online have become increasingly simplified. But even with all of these tools available, the average Joe may not have the skills it takes to make a custom and robust standalone website. With two designers here at Web Strategies, we offer multiple perspectives from differing learning experiences. Today we’ll look at what it takes to become a web designer and share our developers’ backgrounds in the trade.
Understanding the basics
What are the basics, you ask? Front-end designers like the members of our team know the basic programming languages of HTML, CSS, and the occasional JavaScript. We also understand the basics of the DOM (Document Object Model) and how the browser interacts with the code mentioned above to serve up data to you, the user. Because we work with WordPress, we understand how that code interacts with the server and the database to help us build websites.
Color Theory and Typography
Web designers also have good design and visual knowledge as well. This gives us the best insight when it comes to creating engaging pages that display the client’s content clearly. We have the client and end-user in mind when designing web pages so that it is readable and accessible to all visitors. Knowing when to use certain colors and provide enough contrast within the site to help pull the eye through the site and make it easier for the end-user to navigate.
Mobile Responsiveness
Understanding browser and device responsiveness is a key component in web design. We know how to target specific browser sizes for optimizing the largest of screens down to the smallest, all while keeping font sizes readable and content organized. These customizations are specific and dialed in for each site we build; knowing which elements need to be changed in order to have the correct effect.
Troubleshooting
Perhaps one of the biggest parts of becoming a web designer is troubleshooting problems that arise during the build process. Having all of this technical knowledge is really handy when it comes to solving problems. We know what signs to look for and how to search through different elements to find clues and address the issue. Knowing the pieces of the puzzle helps us fix different elements for our clients, whether technically or creatively.
Keri and Emily both completed undergraduate degrees in the field of design and development and are experts at understanding the client’s vision and turning them into websites that function well and are visually beautiful. We provide fully customized websites as a full-service web design company and guide you through the entire process so that you don’t have to become an expert to get a great website.