What a Successful Web Developer Needs to Know and Learn

Can you believe that the first ever website on the internet was launched 30 years ago? It was called the WorldWideWeb (W3) and was published by the British physicist Tim Berners-Lee. The first website is far from the websites we know now, especially in terms of overall website design and functionalities.

In fact, web design agencies aren’t even a thing back then. But hey, we got to start somewhere, right?

Although the first website is not as useful as it was in today’s world, it still paved the way for website development to flourish. In fact, recent data showed that there are 1.88 billion websites published on the internet as of June 2021, and it is continuously rising at a fast pace.

People rely heavily on websites. This is why website development as a whole has become a competitive industry of its own. The best web design companies kept on trying to find ways how to improve their web design service and have an edge over their rivals. That is why they aim to sign the best website developers and designers out there.

With all the sure competition in the web development industry, how can you increase your chances of becoming a successful web developer? In this article, let’s find out.

» FREE TRIAL: Get Started with LoopCV & Send Out 100s of Highly-Targeted Job Applications in <10 Minutes

Become a Successful Web Developer: Things to Know and Learn

There is a lot to learn in the vast field of web development. Making the choice of what to learn with your limited time can be difficult, but it can surely be rewarding. One of the most inventive and challenging things for web developers to do is to write a thousand lines of code and transform that into a beautiful website that users will enjoy.

Here are some things you should know and learn along the way.

1. A Web Development Degree Will Help, But Isn’t Required

No special recipe can turn you into a great web developer, as anyone can learn to code as long as they are passionate and eager to continuously learn the craft. However, it cannot be denied that a degree in Computer Science or IT will help you land jobs in web design agencies and web development companies more often.

If you do not own a degree, the next best thing you can do is to back up your skills with certifications. There are many companies that offer free website training courses that you can find useful. You could also try to earn points on reputable web design and development-related forums such as Stack Overflow.

2. Consider the Web Development Field You Enjoy

Web development consists of a lot of different fields that you could specialize in and there are three main types you can opt for. Their job roles are as follows:

Front-End Web Developers

‌Expert website design agency NYC stated that front-end developers mainly work on the website's visual component. These pages are what visitors see and interact with. They create the actual page layouts, incorporate visuals, and improve the site’s user interface to deliver a better user experience.

If you plan on choosing this career path, it is best to sign a contract with a web design firm to hone your skills.

Back-End Web Developers

The structure of the website is constructed by back-end web developers. They are also the ones who write and test the programming code in general. Back-end devs might also be responsible for controlling access points for other people who need to control the content of a website.

Back-end developers basically work on the processes and functions a website does, most of which are hidden from the users.

Full-Stack Web Developers

Full-stack developers handle both the front-end and back-end development tasks. If you're looking for a full-stack developer, you'll find that these programmers can create an entire website and may work for companies that lack the funding for a large website staff available to large web design agencies or development companies.

3. Take User Feedback Seriously

The majority of the websites published on the internet are intended to be seen by a specific group audience. Whether these websites are meant for e-commerce or as guides, they are nothing without the people that browses the site. Thus, it is important to listen to what they have to say about your site.

As a web developer, it is your duty to give your audience the best user experience as much as possible. If they have complaints about the site’s design or functionality, try to find solutions to work around it. If you are not specializing in user interface, try to outsource services from a reputable web design company to help you out, such as TheNewWorkforce.com.

When working with the eCommerce sector, developers shouldn't also forget ecommerce hosting for security, which is a good addition to better user experience.

Remember, no one would want to visit a site that gave them a bad experience and did nothing to solve their issues.

4. Learning New Technology Never Stops

Change is inevitable and as the world develops, more web development technologies are going to be introduced in the industry. It is a given in any field of technology that all the things you learned and knew can be quickly replaced by an innovation that is more efficient.

To be a successful web developer, you should not restrain yourself from learning new programming languages, frameworks, and libraries. Putting a limit to your programming skills will do you no good in the long run, in a fast-paced industry, you’ll be left out.

5. Patience is necessary for Fixing Code Errors

If anything, patience is what you’ll need in becoming a successful web developer. No matter how profound your skills are, no matter if you are working in the best web design agency, if you lack patience, web development will be a hard career for you.

Why? Simply because web development and programming, in general, require you to encounter new obstacles here and there. Code bugs and errors are something that is very usual in this field. And if you are unlucky, you’d spend five hours trying to fix an error caused by a missing semi-colon.

» FREE TRIAL: Get Started with LoopCV & Send Out 100s of Highly-Targeted Job Applications in <10 Minutes

Conclusion

Website development is not a career path you can have an easy way in. It takes a lot of hard work to learn new languages and technology. The fact that you have to constantly learn can be too much for some.

However, these are key skills you need to have to be a successful web developer.