So You Want to be a Web Developer...
Q: How'd you get into web design?
By my usual method of going anywhere: drifting aimlessly. I'd
been a tech writer/editor for about 15 years and that was a good
career, but by 2001, I was thoroughly ready to try a new one. I just
didn't know where to start.
Then one day, without consulting me, my husband volunteered my
services to build a Web site for a local charitible foundation… pro
bono, naturally. So I had to get busy and learn not only HTML (the
lingua franca of the Internet), but all the other basics,
like how to upload a finished site and where hosting service comes
from and all that stuff.
I was so completely clueless it was comical, but that
experience was a good way to get my feet wet and start building a
portfolio.
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Q: What sort of training is required?
Web design and development is a very broad area with many
different aspects, so it depends on what you want to focus on. You
can actually learn everything you need to know about web development
on the web itself, and you can find most if not all of it for free.
From there it's just a matter of practice making perfect and always
trying to add new technologies to your toolbox. I learned HTML and
some other basics by following online tutorials and then by
reverse-engineering sites to see how they were built. Once I knew
HTML, I drifted into CSS, Javascript, Flash and what-have-you.
Learning the design end of things is a bit different... that goes
more on instinct. You develop an eye over time, but it helps to stay
current on what Web "fashions" are at any given moment. I will say
that it helps to learn the grassroots methods of devolopment,
though. I don't use templates or WYSIWYG design tools like
Dreamweaver. I like to code in NotePad because it gives me more
control over whatever I'm trying to execute.
Q: What’s your favorite aspect of the work?
Best part is the infinite variety of businesses about which I
get to learn something. And of course, my clients. At the risk of
sounding like the world's biggest suck-up, they really are all smart
and unique and interesting, and there’s not a lemon in the bunch. I
like knowing that a site I’ve built is helping them succeed. Another
aspect I like is that I’m always learning something new to keep
abreast of changing web trends and technologies. Don’t always want
to, but always have to. I’m rarely bored.
Q: Least favorite?
I really don't have much to complain about because I think I
have the best job in the world, but I don't like it much when people
contract for a site and then don't take any real interest in its
production. The more a client stays in touch, the better the end
result will be. It also irks me a bit when someone claims to need a
site built yesterday, signs a contract, and then takes weeks to send
me info for it. Much as I'd like to, I really can't build a site out
of thin air.
Q: How many clients, total?
Depends on who you count as a client. Some have me update their
sites weekly; some I rarely hear from again once I've launched their
site. I've built more than one site for several of them... I'd say
roughly 150 clients, give or take five or 10.
Q: How many “normal” v. author/writer clients in your
portfolio?
I've lost count of the number of sites I've built over the
years, but if I remember accurately, my portfolio includes five
published authors and one professional copywriter... again, I've
built more than one for some of them.
Q: What’s a typical work day like for you?
Up when I happen to wake up...coffee with Sunrise
Earth... then the long, grueling commute down the hall and up
the stairs to my office, where I work on whatever I happen to have
on my schedule. A typical day usually includes one or more of the
following: building and/or updating sites, writing copy,
writing/sending e-newsletters, working on marketing campaigns,
talking/emailing with clients, applying SEO to sites, creating
graphics, whatever. Generally work until noonish, when I wander
downstairs in search of something to graze on. At some point every
day I attempt to get some physical exercise for at least an hour to
help keep the synapses firing. Some days I have meetings with
clients, so I’m out of the house. In any event, I usually work til
about 4 or 5 p.m., when I try to shut down for the day.
Q: What are the Top Five DO advice points for anyone
thinking about setting up a web site?
Q: What should a person interested in working with you bring
to the 'initial interview'?
A person should bring questions… lots of questions! All I
really need to know in order to bid on a project is the final number
of pages the site will need. In an initial meeting, though, it's
helpful for me to have a dialog with the client about her vision for
the site — what she wants it to do for her — and anything else about
her business that she wants to share with me. Such dialog up front
helps me to get a feel for new clients as people and to understand
their needs, priorities, and expectations.
Q: What are the Top Five DON’T points for working with a web
developer?
Q: What are the biggest mistakes made by people who set up
their own web sites?
Just one: setting up their own Web site. No, no... kidding. DIY
can be a viable option for someone on a tight budget. But in
general, the biggest mistake do-it-yourselfers make is poor
organization… "blind alleys" without links to the rest of the pages
on the site, for example. Another one is cramming too much
information on a page, so that the poor user has to scroll
vertically to China, sometimes down a long, unbroken wall of text.
Or worse, has to scroll horizontally. One flagrant error that DIYers
often make is to specify any font that's installed on their
computer, so of course it shows up beautifully on their own PC. What
they don't realize is that the rest of the world is seeing their
carefully selected Haandskrift Medium Oblique as Times or Arial —
the web defaults — because the rest of the world doesn't happen to
have Haandskrift installed. Which leads me to another issue: most
DIYers fail to test their sites on anything but their own systems
when in fact, they need to check it on other monitors, browsers,
screen resolutions, and operating systems. (I don't like sites done
entirely in Flash for that reason: Some part of them is usually
inaccessible on some systems.)
Q: Is it helpful when a potential client comes to you with
an “old site” that needs upgrading?
It really doesn't save any time if they need a new site.
Regardless of any existing site the client may have online, I
usually start over from scratch... much easier and more efficient
than trying to rework all the old code into a new structure. If it's
just a matter of updating info, though, then of course I retain the
existing code and just edit it.
Q: And speaking of upgrades, how often should a client
update his/her site?
In general, it depends on the type of site, but at the very
least, sites need to be freshened up every six months. For sites
that are used as a business' primary marketing tool, once a month is
good; once a week is better.
Q: What’s the best way to ensure our sites are viewed by the
largest possible audience?
Search engine optimization, Facebook, Twitter, blogging,
enewsletters… I recommend using pretty much every tool out there to
spread the word. Of course make sure your web address is included on
every print piece you have, and spread it around at every
conceivable opportunity.
Q: Who’s your favorite client?
My favorite client is the one whose site I'm working on at any
given moment. So hey! Loree Lough is my favorite client! (Actually
she really IS one of my all-time treasures.)
Q: How can people find you on the web?
My business site is www.sumsites.com. I'm also on
Facebook as SumSites and as Margie Summers. And I can always be
reached by email: msummers@sumsites.com.
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