WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A WEB DESIGNER AND A WEB DEVELOPER?
A web designer is a graphic artist who develops and styles objects for the Internet. Website designers are able to tap into their creative energy and design the overall layout and look for websites.
A web developer is one that develops applications and functionality for the Internet. It is rare to find a web developer that knows every programming language; web developers usually just focus on a few languages. Typically one developer will focus on the front end programming of a site using HTML, CSS and JavaScript while another developer will focus on server side programming like PHP, Java, Ruby, and .NET.
User Experience (UX) designer
A UX web designer’s job is to keep your visitors hooked. They know exactly how to craft a website that your specific audience will enjoy because they’ve carried out thorough research into the users’ demographics and website-needs, not to mention tons of prototype testing and site restructuring.
Just think, if people enjoy using your website, they’re more likely to revisit or recommend. So, you can already see how it can help grow your online community. For some inspiration, check out these excellent UX examples.
User Interface (UI) designer
A UI web designer helps to improve the way users interact with elements, or the interface, on your website. This is done by translating complex brand ideas and values into a website that’s enjoyable and easy to navigate.
How does it differ to UX? It’s a subtle one, really. UX involves research into building a solid foundation for a positive user experience, while UI focuses on the aesthetics (the look and feel) of the actual website.
Visual designer
A visual designer is a mixture of both UX and UI. It’s their job to not only improve the user journey using their creative and coding skills, but to solve design issues. They also help to conceptualise a brand’s unique style or tone of voice.
In essence, they’re a master of all web design trades and their specific roles can vary hugely depending on what you want.
Back-end developer
The back-end is where the website’s core structure is designed. These developers are experts in programming and using complex software languages like Java, SQL and C#. The work they do is not seen by users because it involves coding on the web servers and databases, not on the browser (unlike front-end developers, which you’ll soon find out).
In short, their job is to create logical, functional websites using various programmes. They also spend a lot of time testing and fixing bugs.
Front-end developer
This is also known as client-side development. It’s more connected to web design than back-end development because it involves using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to create things the user can see, like client lead forms.
In summary, like a back-end developer, those developing the front-end have coding skills but they build frameworks the user can actually interact with.
Full-stack developer
A full-stack developer works across different layers – or stacks – including both the front and back end. It is essentially the full package when it comes to web development, because they are an expert in all areas.
