Get a Start with Valuable Computer Programming Skills for Website Development, and Maintenance

LEARN TO IMPROVE YOUR SKILLS IN WEB DEVELOPMENT

When it comes to web development, people might think that a web developer would only need to improve their technical and artistic skills in order to become successful. They seem to forget that a good web developer will also need to develop communication skills, as well as some marketing and project management skills. Below are some of the areas that a web developer should focus on in order to be competitive in the market.

Coding skills

It is vital for a web developer as well as a web designer to start up their career by learning coding techniques. Keeping up-to-date with new developments and technologies in the web development industry is very important. The industry has experienced an exponential growth over the past years, and any person deciding to join the web development industry should be prepared for the fact that there are always more things to learn.

Graphics and Design

Successful and popular websites contain extensive amounts of design, and require significant design skills. In many cases they are the work of a team of professionals, rather than just one person. However, when you start up your career as a web developer, you might still be required to learn some design skills to complement your code and enhance the visual impact of your work. With a little bit of practice and some experience, you should be able to use design tools such as Photoshop and Illustrator to enhance the quality of your design.

Communications Skills

It is crucial that a web developer maintains good communication with their clients. Most clients are generally not educated on the web development and web design processes and the decisions that are involved.  The web developer will need to ensure the client’s needs and requests are thoroughly discussed in order to avoid disappointment at later stages if the work doesn’t meet the initial client’s requirements.  It is always a good idea to put down in writing what a client requests – just in case there is any dispute further down the line.

Project Management

As in many other occupations, project management is also very important for a web developer and a web designer. If the project is small, then a single person might be able to complete it on their own. However, as projects grow in size and complexity, they would require a significant project management effort.

Marketing

A great number of web developers start their careers as freelancers, as opposed to being employed in companies. One of the biggest challenges facing freelancers is their ability to secure new projects. For this reason, it is very important for the web developer to learn how to market their skills. 

A good marketing strategy consists of extensive research into what is currently being used in the web development market, getting up to speed with all the latest technologies, and being able to demonstrate to the potential employer or clients that they will be getting value for money and a high quality end product. Being able to present a portfolio of previous successful projects can be a very useful asset when pitching to new clients.

Search Engine Optimisation

Search engine optimisation is a very important aspect of developing websites.  You can create the most wonderful website in history – but if no-one can find it, then it’s not going to be successful.  There are a range of techniques that a web designer/developer can deploy in order to improve a websites ranking by a search engine, for example, setting appropriate meta data, making good use of appropriate keywords throughout the page etc.  How search engines rank web pages is a very closely kept secret to prevent abuse, however, there are certain things which can be done to help improve a websites ranking. Our staff have been working with web programming and site optimisation since 1993. The truths about what to do, and how to do it, are constantly changing, and when you study this course, you are studying with tutors who are constantly working on adapting our sites to those changes -you access their experience.