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31 August 2010
Posted in
Selling and Marketing
What do employers really want when they post a design job that includes web?
Here's an article I posted a while back on the LinkedIn group discussions for Graphic Designer, but I think it bears repeating here. So, feel free to use this however you like as long as you don't use my name when flaming people who make crazy job requests.
I have seen so many posts here from frustrated designers who are trying to survive in this tough market and are feeling that they must learn Dreamweaver or Wordpress or PHP to be competitive.
I think it is important first to differentiate between Web DESIGN and DEVELOPMENT. A web designer is responsible for the organization of content and creation of usability and behaviorally driven design and layout.
A web DEVELOPER is the guy who takes the designs (usually PSD) and slices them up and then reassembles them as HTML, CSS and other scripting languages and technologies.
I have only seen the posts here and not the actual job listings, but as a 15 year veteran of the web DEVELOPMENT industry, I find it hard to believe that an employer would be naive enough to actually think that they will find a person who can do both competently, not to mention great. I have seen, and even done, both to a moderate level, but it was not until I gave up on design that I started to become a GREAT developer.
The reality is that, even while taking classes, it will still take between 2 and 5 years to develop the skills and experience necessary to become a top notch web DEVELOPER. (Did you learn great design overnight?) Dreamweaver is nothing more that a tool for developing, but you will still need to learn the myriad nuances of each technology (HTML/XHTML, CSS, PHP, Joomla, etc etc).
My company (http://www.thedevdepartment.com) specializes in providing back-end development services to designers and we work primarily with small and freelance design shops. We help them understand how to DESIGN for web and create effective sites.
If you are feeling that you need to learn HTML/CSS to be competitive, you should really reconsider. I would say your time (and money) would be better spent learning how to transition your print design skills to web by understanding the basic criteria required by web sites and by finding a good developer who can consult you on this. You don't need to be a developer to sell web design. You need to know two things: 1. how to sell and 2. how to design.
If you are not a freelancer or running a design shop and want to get into the job market, I would advise you request clarification from the employer. Changes are, they don't even know the difference and you will make yourself look far better by bringing up this point than trying to do both jobs and producing mediocre results.
Best of Luck,
Nick Villaume
Founder/CEO
The Dev Department
http://www.thedevdepartment.com
