What Does a Web Developer Do (and How Do I Become One)?

Customer returns for purchases jumped by 16.6 percent as e-commerce sales began to take off at the end of 2021! When sales are high, inevitably, product return is too.

E-commerce has become big business and the internet has fast become one of the most important ways to connect, shop, and communicate. Businesses will often see a lot of traffic from search engines as well as from social media. This is why becoming a web developer is so attractive to many people.

There is a demand for those who have advanced knowledge of how websites work. If you’re wondering what does a web developer do, here is a closer look at what the job entails.

What Does a Web Developer Do?

Web developers have an amazing job of creating websites and ensuring that they are performing at optimum conditions.

It is their job to make sure that a website is appealing to its target audience. This means that it should be visually beautiful to look at, and easy to navigate for its visitors. 

This is extremely important because poor website design can affect what is known as a bounce rate. Bounce rate refers to how long a person stays on a website before leaving. 

Bounce rates tell Google how valuable your site is to the users. When users leave very quickly it can affect your search engine ranking. 

One way to prevent this from happening is by having a website that presents information concisely and clearly. It is a web developer’s job to make sure that websites grab visitors’ attention immediately. 

The Different Types of Web Developers

There are different types of web developers. Namely, back-end web developers, front-end web developers, full-stack web developers, and webmasters.

Back-end web developers help to create the structure of the website itself. They’re the ones who write the code for the website and make sure that the code is working as it should.

Front-end web developers are the ones who make the website as visually appealing as possible. A front-end web developer will design the layout of each page on the website. They make a website visually appealing by incorporating graphics into the layout.

Full Stack web developers are those developers who can do both the work that a back-end and a front-end developer does. These developers have advanced knowledge since they have so many skills.

Finally, there are webmasters, these website managers have the job of keeping websites updated at all times. Their job is to make sure that links and other applications on a web page are working properly.

The Tasks of Web developers

Depending on the company or agency that a web developer works with they may be assigned different tasks. However, there are some common tasks that most web developers are usually asked to perform.

For example, they may be asked to design user interfaces for a company’s website. They may also be asked to create navigation menus for them. 

Navigation menus are important on all websites but they are especially important on e-commerce websites. People need to be able to freely navigate through the products that they are considering.

As a web developer, you may be asked to write new coding for a website or to add new features to it. You may also need to add pictures and videos to websites regularly to keep them updated.

If a user navigates the website and reports having issues you will usually be asked to investigate and correct the problem.

The good thing about becoming a web developer is that it is a gateway to much more than web development. Many web developers often branch out into computer programming or graphic design if they have an interest.

How to Become a Web Developer

If you find the idea of becoming a web developer appealing then you are probably wondering how you can go about becoming one. To become a successful web developer you will need to get some training. Many web developers earn associate’s or bachelor’s degrees in website design. Some even have degrees in computer science. 

There are also several courses available that you can take to prepare yourself for becoming our web developer and many web developers don’t get formal training. 

This means that they do not go to college specifically to study how to become a web developer. Instead what they do is that they take courses that teach them programming languages such as JavaScript and CSS.

They usually start by creating personal websites to put their knowledge to work. The good thing about becoming a web developer in this way is that you do not necessarily have to go to classes physically. There are web design courses available online that you can take at your own pace.

While you are trying to earn your credentials you can start working on projects, this will help you to develop a portfolio. This means that once you have finished your formal training you will be able to attract clients or get a job with a company.

Begin Your Journey

If you were wondering what does a web developer do, you now have a clearer picture of what their daily tasks entail. If the idea is appealing to you then you need to make sure that you learn coding and programming.

These are the foundations of web design. You also need to decide if you want to be a front-end web developer, back-end web developer, or full-stack web developer. 

Whichever one you choose there are courses available to you so you can make your dreams a reality. If you would like more career tips please take a look at the career section of the website.