With millions of people searching on Google for services and products websites have become the modern day “shop window” to any business or company. As a business your website stands at the forefront of your brand and is often the first point of contact between you and potential clients / customers. As a result, it’s become more important than ever to have a website which focusses on maximum lead generation and engages and entices the user so as not to lose out to competitor websites. 

High quality web designers are becoming more and more sought after. But what skills and experience should a great web designer have?

Portfolio – Quality over Quantity

Every web designer will have a portfolio of work but these vary in size and complexity. The thing to look out for is modern design and a focus on simplicity without over complicating design with lots of different elements. Simplistic design is one of the key factors when designing a successful website that engages users. 

Attention to detail

An experienced designer will never leave a job half done, great spacing and alignment should be second nature to an experienced designer. Keep an eye out for stray or overlapping elements when looking through a candidates work as this is a good indication of a rushed or unfinished website.

 A Passion for all things web design

This is an obvious quality but it’s essential. Web design trends and methods are forever changing and it’s important for a web designer to be at the top of their game when it comes to the latest design techniques. A passionate candidate will read design blogs, magazines, work through online tutorials to better their skills and generally immerse themselves in design based media.

The ability to take constructive criticism

A very common trait amongst unexperienced designers is being protective over their work to a point where it can halt productivity. An experienced designer will be able to take on board constructive notes and move forward and adjust their designs accordingly without fuss or causing a scene. 

 An in depth understanding of web development

Web design and web development are two completely different skill sets. Web design focusses on the aesthetics and user interface, while web development refers to the building and coding of a website. A web designer can make a web developers job significantly easier if they have an understanding of web development themselves. It’s easy for a designer to get carried away with their creativity but understanding creative limitations is an extremely good asset for a web designer to have when working as part of a team. A designer with this understanding will know what is possible and not possible for a website to achieve. A great candidate will also be able to guage how much functionality a website should have in relation to project budget.