What Do Web Developers do?


Posted May 30, 2019 by webdigitalnz

Are you planning on hiring a web developer but are thinking of choosing a web designer instead? Not sure which of the two can help with your website and your business?

 
Are you planning on hiring a web developer but are thinking of choosing a web designer instead? Not sure which of the two can help with your website and your business?
Find out which of these two services you would really need. And may be you could come to the conclusion that you’ll need both of them after all.
For you to have an idea what web developers do, you need to understand first what is web development.

What is web development?

Web development refers to activities on developing the functionalities within the website. Although every website design is unique and websites are built according to their purpose, there are 3 basic components that web developers consider when building a website. These basic components deal in conducting the interaction between the user and the website.

The Client side or Front-end

This refers to the devices and browsers we use to access websites on the internet. Examples of these devices are PCs, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. Browsers such as Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, and Mozilla Firefox also fall in this category.
One important role for web developers Auckland and in other parts of the world is making sure a website functions exactly the same way no matter what browser you use.

The Server side or Back-end

A server is a remote computer running opposite from the front-end or client side. This is where the codes for the website are created and found as well as the database.

The Database

Typically, when internet users register on a website, they are usually required to provide their personal information. This collection of information from users within a website is called a database.
The moment you successfully identify these basic components, it will be easy for you to understand where web development is tied into this whole process of creating a website.


The difference between Web Designer and Web Developer:

What’s the difference between web design and web development?
Web development and website design each involve a different skill set. Also, there are many jobs available for both design and development separately as well as both of them together.
Web design involves creating what the website should look like and how it should work. While web development involves building that design and bringing it to life as a functioning website.
Let's go into a little more detail on each of these two different roles of website creation.

Web Design

Designing a website involves taking a brief and the information that a client or company wants to be displayed on a website. The web designer then works out the best structure for it.
Web designers think a lot about the user's journey through the site. And then arrange the information in a way that users can see the right content at the right time during their journey.
Moreover, web designers also think a lot about making that information really easy to consume by the users. This part of the design process is called user experience or UX.
In addition, web designers are also responsible for the visual look and feel of the site. This is called the user interface or UI.
What a website looks like is really important. Web designers have to make sure that the web design ties in with the company's brand. They make the information from the website easy to read and consumed by the users.
Just like with graphic design, web designers think about typography, colour, positive-negative space, and other design principles.
There are much different softwares out there that web designers use to design a website. But none of these softwares is going to do the hard work. They're all just tools for web designers to get their ideas down and create a visual file or mock-up to hand to a developer.
Web designers call it a mock-up because it visually looks like a website but it doesn't function as one yet.

Web Development

Once the design is completed, that's generally when the web development process starts.
As stated earlier, this involves taking that mock-up website and bringing it to life through written codes. And so the mock-up becomes a live website that web developers put on the internet for people to use.
The base of a website is created using HTML or HyperText Markup Language, which organises the structure of the site in code. And then CSS or Cascading Style Sheets is used to ‘style’ the HTML to make it match the colours and shapes of the design that the web designer created.
There are many different programming languages but not every web developer has to know them all. In general, most web developers only have a few programming languages that they specialize in. HTML and CSS are the basic programming languages that they start with.
Developers are responsible not only for making sure that the website functions properly and matches the design. They also make sure that the code is written cleanly so webpages can load really quickly for the user.
And usually, developers will use a text editor like Sublime or Brackets to write and edit their code. Hopefully, from that explanation, you can see what we mean by this being two different skill sets.
Designers need more of an understanding of design principles and creativity to come up with the layout that is unique and answers the client's brief.
Developers focus more on logic-based thinking and an understanding of how code and technology works.

How to choose the right web designer for your business.

We all know that web design is important when it comes to conversion. But if you don't have the coding ability or design finesse, you might be looking for a professional to help you out.

If you’re on a hunt for a web designer, always keep these 5 Cs in mind.

Cost

The first C on our list is cost, and this is probably the most important to you, your website, and your business. Figure out exactly how much you're paying and how you'll be paying for it.
Are you paying for an entire website design? Or are you paying for pieces of that design? And, of course, always remember what's within your budget. And even more importantly, you should always get what you pay for.
Sometimes the cheapest alternative may not be the best bang for your buck in the long term.

Communication

Secondly, take a look at the communication process that you'll have between you and your designer.
Below is a list of questions to guide you for better communication with your chosen web designer:
Do they prefer to communicate over email?
Will you have weekly phone calls?
Will you be dealing with an account manager? and
What is the revision process like?
Get these aspects figured out ahead of time. That way you know what to expect when it comes to talking to your designer.

Client examples

Third, take a look at client examples from your designer. You'll definitely want to take a look at similar websites that are related to your industry. The point here is to get a feel of what they can do and use that as an inspiration for your own project.

Comfortable

Number four on our list is to figure out how comfortable your designer is with whatever business and platform you use.
Regardless of the platform you're using, make sure that your designer has experience designing for it. That way, whenever the design is implemented, everything works as intended and you don't have to worry about functionality.

Credibility

Finally, number five on our list is credibility. It's really tempting, and honestly, really easy for you to go on a Craigslist or just hire a college student to do the work for you. But you may get started and never hear from him or her again.
So go online and check out customer reviews and most importantly, go with your gut. If it feels right, they're probably the best designer for your website and your business.

How to choose the right web developer for your business.

Choosing a web developer is an important step for any business because of how essential having the right website has become in recent years. Here are 3 tips for choosing the right web developer for your business.

Tip 1: Check the existing clients' sites
If the web development service you're considering has offered you a list of existing clients then visit these websites. Ask yourself if the sites are professional. Try to look at the appearance and check if it’s easy to navigate. Also, check out how they rank in the search engines.

Tip 2: Ask for advice

Show your current website to the web developer and ask what he or she would do to make it more aesthetically pleasing and to make it ranked higher and be easier to navigate.
The developer should be able to clearly explain the more complex ideas. This will help you to know what to expect from the developer you choose.

Tip 3: Check references

A qualified web developer should provide a list of references, be sure to check them out. Call the references listed and ask about their experiences working with the web developer you're considering. Ask about their work.
Also, ask about their demeanour and how easy they are to get along with since you'll be working closely with whomever you choose to develop your website.

Summary

Every website has its purpose and web developers use the basic components to guide them during the development stage. Web designers use their creativity in designing websites, while web developers use their coding ability to develop functioning websites for internet users.

Thinking of getting both the services of a web designer and web developer? We are web developers Auckland, NZ that specialises in website design and web development.
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Last Updated May 30, 2019