Digital Nomad Jobs: Web Designer

How to become a web designer!

For a successful career as a web designer you will need:

A sound understanding of internet programming and hopefully internet scripting. Working knowledge, or a willingness to learn how to use the main software required. The software favoured by many web designers is Adobe Photoshop and Dreamweaver. Web designers are responsible for the creation of all visual aspects of a website such as concept, layout, structure and design, therefore it is essential that you have a keen interest in design and a strong creative mind – as the designer you will have to take the clients brief and use it to create the site of their dreams! Attention to detail can be crucial in this business as even a small oversight can affect not only the finished design, but also your reputation.

The ability to adapt and learn is also important, as advances in technology and design tools mean that a designer is permanently in a training stage. Research is a great way to help in the development of your own style, keep an eye on other websites, make a note of what you like, dislike and would change, practice making a few sites of your own for things you’re interested in – or maybe redesign existing sites for practice.Belgrade, Serbia

Training/qualifications

Formal qualifications are not a required to become a successful web designer, though you will need some training whether through higher education or self tuition. There are many courses available online, ranging from free courses which may be ideal for absolute beginners looking to start a career as a web designer, to paid courses which will offer more in depth training for the more experienced.

A sound knowledge of HTML is a requirement. Whether you have formal qualifications or not, it’s essential to prepare an online portfolio of websites you have worked on and be able to show experience of working with programs such as Photoshop and Dreamweaver, and programming languages such as JavaScript and CSS as well as others.

Hardware/software

A laptop will be essential, ideally along with a high quality Wacom tablet.  As the software favoured by most designers is Adobe Photoshop and Dreamweaver, it is advisable to check the minimum requirements needed to run these programs and base your choice of computer on this – a large amount of RAM and a fast processor is a mustt. A large, hi-res monitor would be advantageous – but probably too big to fit in your backpack! A high end laptop with a larger screen can be just as good. As always, if traveling the world investing a good quality laptop bag would be an ideal investment to protect your work!

Where to find online work?

Online work as a web designer can be found on a variety of sites including, but not limited to:

www.odesk.com

www.peopleperhour.com

www.freelancer.co.uk

www.projectforhire.com

These are all freelance based job sites – just a few of the many options a budding web designer has to find work online. Www.hongkiat.com offer a comprehensive list of the 50 best websites to find design work which is linked below.

How much can I earn?

Earnings are based on experience and many jobs online will offer a flat rate instead of hourly. It may be an idea to charge less initially to gain the relevant experience, but never under sell yourself!

Starting salaries for web design in the UK are roughly £15,000 and can go up to over £40,000 for specialist designers.

How well does it suit the Digital Nomad lifestyle?

Rather well actually, providing you can equip yourself with a high end laptop and the correct software there really is no problem taking your work with you wherever you wish to go! As long as you have a good internet connection you’ll be living the digital nomad dream.

Useful links

http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/50-freelance-job-sites-for-designers-programmers-best-of/

http://www.mlwebco.com/2011/10/10/web-design-resources-and-useful-links/

http://www.1stwebdesigner.com/design/useful-web-design-tools-daily/

http://www.webdesignerheaven.com/