Web Design Skills
From LoveToKnow Web-Design
These days it seems like everyone claims that they have the web design skills to take care of anyone's site needs. Gone are the days when knowledge of simple HTML and an email address were all that someone needed for a web presence. Now the internet is a much more complex place, and it's not even a question of which web design skills you need – it's which set of skills do you need to acquire to remain valuable?
Various Types of Web Design Skills
Web designers fall into different categories, much like medical practitioners. Just as you wouldn't go to an orthopedist if you were pregnant, there are certain types of designers that are right for certain types of businesses, and some that are not. Below are some examples of types of web designers and their requisite skills:
General Practitioner
This is the swiss army knife of designers, a jack or jane-of-all-trades who does his or her best to stay on top of the general trends in web design. This person needs to be adaptable to a clients needs, able to identify what parts of a site fall within their expertise and what types need to be outsourced to other, more specialized web designers. They also need to be able to assimilate new information and new skills quickly and easily, and should now how to use them where appropriate.
The general web designer is the kind of person who designs simple "presence" websites, without a lot of back-end programming needs or high-pressure deadlines. Often these web designers are freelancers, working on various projects for different companies and smaller clients.
Coding Ninja
With the advent of CSS, Ajax, Flash, and other types of code-based interface design technologies, the ability to read and write code makes up a special set of web design skills. This person has the ability to look at a client's needs and understand how a web program could meet them, whether it be in PHP, ASP, Ruby, or some other language. Also known as a web developer, coding ninjas often work in teams in a design firm, collaborating with graphic artists, user interface consultants and database specialists to create larger-scale websites such as those that retail firms would use.
The best way to develop the skills of a coder is to first learn a language using one of the many tutorials on the web, and then follow that up with significant contribution to some open-source project that is asking for the help of any and all coders. This is one of the few areas left in web design where someone can develop a solid resumé without actually having any clients; all you need is the time and willingness to share your knowledge and skills.
Social Media Maven
In the Web 2.0 world, words like "media," "twitter," "Facebook," "MySpace," and "blogging" have become buzzwords. Even people who don't understand what the words mean know that they have some significance. The social media maven has the skills required to turn the web into the most efficient and vast party line in existence, using networks of personal connections to spread ideas throughout the world. More than simply understanding technologies, the social media maven understands that communication is not enough; the new web requires relationships in order to establish "trust marketing" for their clients. Trust marketing basically means one thing: a person is more likely to buy something recommended to them by someone they have a relationship with than someone trying to sell them something.
A social media maven's web design skills lie somewhere between the coder and the generalist – they have a solid grasp of the coding methods and principles behind the various social networks, but more than that, they are masters of the marketing techniques necessary to integrate these networks into a client's website using various widgets and other tools.
Always Changing
It's almost a truism that by the time someone has mastered a set of web design skills, those skills have become obsolete, replaced by the next big thing. However, staying flexible and applying past methods of learning to new ideas will keep all web designers growing their skillsets, no matter how much the internet changes.
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