I know, I know…none of us creative types want anything to do with coding past the very basic HTML/CSS we need to know to get our designs to the developers.Doing development is something for those programming grunts, those code jockeys, those geeks.Why should we enter the trenches of development when it’s so nice up here with the Photoshop brushes, afternoon tea, and MacPros?
Because you’ll be a better designer for it.
Computer – check. Photoshop – check. Lots of free time – check. It seems that this is all that is necessary to call yourself a ‘designer’ these days. I believe that there is far more to a designer than software, computers and free time. Designers should have critical thinking skills, understanding of design principals, knowledge of grid systems, typography and much more.
Close your eyes and picture this scenario. You have just landed a dream contract with a client and you are anxious to start working. You have already consulted with them regarding the subject matter (a logo, a website, a brochure, etc.) and you’ve written up a design brief. It’s time to let your creative juices flow. For goodness sake, this is why the client signed the contract and sent the check. Now, go ahead and "wow" them!
Recently, Smashing Magazine published an article titled, Group Interview: Expert Advice For Students and Young Web Developers. Various well-known web designers, including Chris Spooner, Chris Coyier, and Brian Hoff, shared some of their insights about what aspiring web designers can do to prepare for a successful career in web design.
I make my living from websites -- at first designing for others, and now running my own sites. Over the years I've compiled my very best tips on web design, and I'm sharing that with you here. This is important because it's all too easy to create pages that frustrate your visitors even though that's not what you intended at all. And visitors who are annoyed are likely to click off of it quickly without seeing what you have to offer.
According to a poll I conducted, just over 1 out of 10 people don’t think SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is mandatory as a designer; and what really surprised me is about 24% don’t even know what SEO is! If you’re among the quarter of people who don’t know what SEO is or understand how it can help you, you should really read this article. This is an SEO guide for designers who want to learn about making it easier for websites or blogs to be found by search engines. I’ll explain the common mistakes made by designers and developers. Then I’ll provide some basic tips that you should be practicing to optimize your site for search engines.
Web design is a field that, while saturated, is very likely to keep expanding in the years to come. More businesses are moving online, more major companies and brands are embracing the internet as a business tool, and far more individuals are adapting their one-person businesses to incorporate the internet into their strategy.
Productivity and efficiency are all the rage these days — and for good reason. As a freelance designer, my income greatly depends on my ability to produce quality work, and if I can do that even slightly faster than the other guy, I will not only have happy clients, but returning customers.
This is a compilation of stuff Matt Cutts has said historically, minus some of the more recent stuff here, here, and here. I decided I'd dig backwards and document some of the older stuff. I dated it accordingly.
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