What Skills Should Web Designers Have?
Web Designers should have a strong visual design foundation, including spatial awareness, typography, the grid system, and color theory. Web Designers need a high-level understanding of user experience research and planning. They must be proficient in design software like Sketch and Adobe Photoshop. Web Designers should at least understand basic CSS and HTML, but not all positions require hand-coding websites from scratch. JavaScript is often not required, but it can give Web Designers a leg up against the competition. Many web design positions require knowledge of these technical skills, not full proficiency.
Web Designers also need soft skills like time management, communication, research, and client management. For Web Designers working for a company, teamwork is an essential soft skill. Self-employed Web Designers will need digital marketing skills to grow their careers.
Learn the Skills You Need to Become a Web Designer
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Web Design
Web design is the process of creating the look and feel of a website. This includes web page layout, content production, copywriting, graphic design, typography, user-flow, and some coding. Web design can be done using tools like a code editor, templates, and photoshop.
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Photoshop
Photoshop is a software application created by Adobe for image editing and photo retouching on Windows or macOS computers. Photoshop can be used to manipulate and retouch photos. It can also be used to create compositions, collages, design comprehensives, and more.
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Sketch
Sketch is a design platform used to create, share, and collaborate prototypes and wireframes.
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Adobe XD
XD is an Adobe application that facilitates user experience design for web and mobile applications. XD stands for Experience Design.
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Visual Design
Visual design is a set of strategic best practices used to improve a design or product's aesthetic appeal and usability through the selection of appropriate images, typography, use of space, hierarchy, color, and layout.
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Front-End Web Development
Front end web development manages the part of the website that a user sees and interacts with in their browser. Front End Developers design, analyze code, write code, and debug the client-side of an application or website.
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Illustrator
Illustrator is a computer program for design developed by Adobe. Illustrator is used by designers to create and edit vector graphics. It can be used for print, web, applications, videos, animations, and more.
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Design Theory
Design theory is a non-standardized framework of theoretical approaches to understanding and practicing design principles and knowledge. Design theory is used to research, imagine, develop, and manipulate designs over the lifecycle of a project. The most common approach to design theory involves five steps including empathize, define, ideate, prototype, and test to make the development of products and services more efficient by establishing a target end-user from the start and testing along the way.