A76

Thanks to all who have responded, this has been really helpful. I've been reading about UI/UX designers and job descriptions trying to learn more about how this process works. It appears that it would be best for me to focus on design - Photoshop, Sketch, InVision, etc. and hone these skills. This seems like good advice: "It does seem that your main passion is within design so why don't you start doing some designs and putting them on a service like Dribble, then seek out developers you can work with? Or look for employment as a designer if you'd prefer that to freelancing? To get anywhere with development you really need to have a passion for it, IMO stick to what you enjoy the most - that will leave you feeling most fulfilled." - rbrtsmith Any additional thoughts are welcome.

That's interesting, I'm just trying to narrow down and focus on what I'm good at. Based on various experiences, I think I have an eye for design in general. I've done some logo design, video production, and basic site design. I like to focus on the big picture, so to speak. With that in mind, it is possible to eventually handle building small sites for clients on my own, correct? Especially if I stay away from eCommerce. Like for my local, small doctor's office I mentioned?

I thought the basics that I need to know would be HTML and CSS, especially for WP? Should my first steps be getting familiar with those two and then JS?

Thanks for your response, even though some of that was basically greek to me lol. My understanding is that some people focus on design and front-end development, and then hire or work with a developer who does the bulk of coding. However, what I'm more interested in is building moderately simple, beautiful sites that I could do myself. I find that what I really enjoy is design and having creative control. Hopefully I can find a way to make that work after some more practice and learning.

Awesome, I will check out that channel and expression engine. Thanks for being so helpful, there's a lot more to this industry than I realized. It seems that there's a wide variety in knowledge and abilities. If I'm gonna do this, I wanna do it right. My impression is that builders like Wix and Squarespace aren't real threats to the field, as long as you can sell yourself, and articulate why you can give clients a much better product.

Yeah, it's for Mac, I use a macbook pro. Description: MAMP installs a local server environment in a matter of seconds on your computer. It comes free of charge, and is easily installed. MAMP will not compromise any existing Apache installation already running on your system. You can install Apache, PHP and MySQL without starting a script or having to change any configuration files! Furthermore, if MAMP is no longer needed, just delete the MAMP folder and everything returns to its original state (i.e. MAMP does not modify any of the "normal" system).

Thanks for your response. I'd love a way to practice building WP sites and coding, but I have to buy a domain and hosting each time, right? I read about a way to practice on your desktop (MAMP), but read that there were problems with this, like it getting randomly shut down. Is the advice to avoid Wix due to what I said in my original post? "I understand that Wordpress is superior for SEO, scalability, customization, site portability, price, and if the client is in this for the long haul, since they completely own a WP site." I was drawn to its ease of use, but it doesn't seem to be taken seriously. There's obviously a lot for me to learn.

Thanks for responding. I'm familiar with the adage "you get what you pay for." Wix doesn't seem to be taken seriously, and there must be good reasons for that. Should my focus be practicing WP and re-learning basic coding, tutorials, etc.? Other platforms? I know WP is the juggernaut with most major companies using it.

Thanks for your reply. I realize developers probably laugh at the mention of Wix lol. I'm trying to learn as much as I can though. You say WP isn't the best solution under most circumstances? What platform is? What else should I be learning for fairly small sites? I've read a number of articles, but so many of them have disclosures about how they're paid for referrals, and I'd like some UNBIASED advice for once lol. For instance, a small, local doctor's office has a really poor, ugly site. It was done by GoDaddy's design service, and I can't believe they paid for it. Say I want to pitch them with a mockup eventually. How would I go about something like that?

Hi Everyone, I'm a new designer in the US, and I just have a couple questions. I apologize if these have already been asked, but I searched here and couldn't find good answers. I'd appreciate a little help. (Apologies for length as well lol). I've run 3 websites before, a couple years ago. One was a self-hosted Wordpress site, using bluehost hosting and a namecheap domain. I really liked design and started to get into this, but discovered that I didn't love coding and would like to limit the amount I do. I recently discovered Wix and have build a couple sites there. I don't feel right offering client services until I'm good with both platforms. But I'm a little confused on when to use one vs the other. I understand that Wordpress is superior for SEO, scalability, customization, site portability, price, and if the client is in this for the long haul, since they completely own a WP site. I've also discovered site builders for Wordpress like beaver builder, which I've read is good, and divi. On the other hand, I've seen small sites designed for individuals on WP that I'd think could be done just as well, and maybe faster in Wix. If my goal is to build relatively small, simple sites for individuals and small businesses, (and maybe offer some content writing) how much effort should I put into each platform? Should my main focus be on improving my Wordpress skills? Should WP be my platform most of the time? Should I put effort into getting good with Wix and Shopify? There are only so many hours in the day, and I want my efforts to be focused in the right place. Thanks so much for your help!