The Web Design Industry Essay Essays - Communication Design

The Web Design Industry Essay Web design entails creation and maintenance of websites. Creation of a website encompasses different aspects. Such aspects include graphic design, interface design and authoring as well as optimizing the website for the search engine. Web designers must be very creative. They rely on their creativity and technical skills to come up with a website that meets the client's expectations and user friendly. Before they make a design, they visualize its appearance and how it will be used by the target user. One must have training on the web designs to have the necessary technical skills. According to McClelland,et al.(2000), the main responsibilities that fall on the shoulders of a web designer: Meeting with potential clients to discuss on the requirements of the website. Deciding the design layout of the website and how different parts link together. Deciding the text, colours and other background features of the website. Using the web design software to lay out pages, position buttons, links and pictures. Adding multimedia components such as sounds, videos and animations. Testing the website and making any necessary changes. Uploading the created website to the server for online access. Maintaining the website by updating it as required by the client. McClelland,et al.(2000), further notes that there are skills that are essential for a web designer. A web designer is required to have: An understanding of all important programming and scripting languages. Knowledge of the working of the main web design applications. A creative thinking. Good problem-solving skills and logical. Ability to work within deadlines. A thorough understanding of the legal issues surrounding the websites and accessibility. A willingness to learn up to date information to keep up with the changes in the world of technology. Knowledge to work with equipments such as digital photo equipment, video and audio equipments as well as the scanners. Basically, a web designer can work as an employee of a given firm or company on a permanent basis or on a contract basis. Sometimes, web designers work on part time basis as freelance designers. Those employed have an opportunity to climb up the ladder to a position of a website manager. However, freelance web designers have the opportunity to explore different opportunities that come their way because they are not limited to a single client. The average working hours for an employed web designer is 37 to 40 hours in a week. For a self-employed web designer, he or she has room to dictate working hours which are convenient. In the US, the starting salaries for web designers are between $20,000 and $30,000 a year. However, for the experienced designers, the salary is about $37,500 a year (Linton,H. 2000). According to Linton, specialists and senior designers can earn over $40,000 a year. Self-employed web designers set their own rates according to their marketability. This research looks into different career opportunities in the web design industry. Of particular interest are the requirements for these careers. In addition, the responsibilities in each career position will be analyzed. Salary and other benefits associated with the career will be highlighted. Moreover, it will be important highlight the future of each particular career. In particular, five careers will be brought to focus. They include career in advertising agencies, carrier in graphic design studios, a career in e-learning institutions and companies, a career in the printing and publishing houses and a career in a television production house (Wiedemann,J. 2005). A web designer in an advertising agency In an advertising agency, the responsibilities of a web designer are very many. The basic role, though, is to help the company create awareness for the products and services offered to the public. Advertising entails informing the general public of what they can get from a given company. Using websites, it becomes very easy to carry out advertisement. First of all, the internet is used widely and its use is increasing through the use of modern devices such as tablets and mobile phones. When products and services are advertised using websites, one is sure that a wide population is reached. To qualify as a web designer in an advertising agency, one must be able to develop a web page that captures the