How to Hire a Web Designer

How to Hire a Web DesignerHow to Hire a Web DesignerIf youre trying to hire a web designer in the current competitive market, you know how challenging it can be. As companies continue to invest in their digital footprint, demand for web designers has increased.Demand is relatively high, says Sarah Bass, The Creative Group division director in Cleveland, Ohio. Although most clients are looking for well-rounded digital designers and leid just web designers.Eric Kimble, branch manager in Denver, Colo., agrees Theres very high demand here, but were not hearing the title web designer as much. Kimble says clients instead ask for UI or UX designers, visual designers, interactive designers or digital designers.Given the high demand and potential broadening of the role, how do you hire a web designer?Here are some tipsDefine what you needIts important to define the parameters of the job youre hiring a web designer for so you can create a focused job description - that way, youll attract the best qualified candidates.Kimble suggests considering the goal the organization has for the position Is it to help create a product? Is it to create brand-related deliverables? Is the job strategic in nature? Is leadership required? Your job description and the type of web designer you need will depend on those answers.Elizabeth Ledbetter, vice president and metro market manager in St. Louis, Mo., adds The supervisor the new hire will be reporting to is the one who should identify key details for the role and job description, as well as evaluate candidates and choose who joins their team.abflug HIRING NOWHire a web designer with the right skillsOnce you have a clear idea of everything the position will entail, focus on the skills necessary to be successful in the role.Kimble suggests seeking someone with a strong portfolio who can demonstrate visual mastery of their craft. Consider what qualities you require for your project and review each candidates resume, asking questions such a s Does the person have the right industry and technical knowledge? Who are their past companies and clients? Does their resume demonstrate consistency, or is this person bouncing from job to job? If it is just a contract or project, does the candidates experience demonstrate an ability to start and finish a contract or project on time and on budget?Bass says many of her clients look to hire a web designer proficient with Adobe Creative Suite, HTML and CSS. She adds that they also need people who are comfortable with responsive design and have a good understanding of UX best practices.Bass recently placed what she considers a top candidate Theres a particular digital designer that my clients always like because she has a diverse background in both agency and client work, a clean portfolio and is as flexible as she can be in meeting client needs.Ledbetter says some top skills that her clients seek when they hire a web designer include having a demonstrated understanding of internet de sign issues, including browser usability, cross-platform compatibility, color and quick loading of images. They also need fluency in graphic illustration and user interface design, usability principles and mobile strategies, as well as in-depth knowledge of design software and authoring tools such as Illustrator, Photoshop, Dreamweaver, HTML5 and CSS.She adds that ideal candidates for a web designer role have a strong understanding of design principles (space, color and typography), UX knowledge or experience, a diverse portfolio and a variety of digital exposure (social media, banners, ads, websites and mobile).The best candidates have incredible portfolios and have had a variety of clients, so they can adapt their design style to a client or company, says Ledbetter.And dont forget soft skills Bass says the best web designers she places are easy to work with, possess strong communication skills and have nice personalities. Kimble concurs, describing his best web designer candidate as extremely likable, a good person, humble and someone you like being around. Ask the right questionsOnce you understand the skills necessary for the job and have created a clear job description, youll want to develop some questions to ask every candidate - and for consistency, compare their answers. Here are some examples of questions you can ask a web designerWhat industries have you worked in?Do you have in-house or agency experience?Have you worked on a similar project (to the one youre hiring for)?Have you used (Illustrator, Photoshop, etc.), and do you have examples of work using it?What do you do when you disagree with a colleague about how to approach a project?Describe a challenging work situation or project and how you handled it.What project are you most proud of and why?How do you handle criticism?What is your creative process like?Next, when reviewing a web designer candidates portfolio, you can ask How were you involved in the project, concept and execution? Is this your work alone or did you collaborate with colleagues?SEARCH JOB CANDIDATESGet compensation rightIts important to offer a competitive salary when hiring a web designer because theyre in high demand. According to the The Creative Group 2019 Salary Guide, the midpoint salary for a web designer with average experience is $67,250. A web designer who has taken UX, UI or web development courses or has certifications in those areas could receive $101,500 or more, depending on their location and level of expertise.Where to find candidatesLedbetter says some of her best candidates come from referrals and recruiter networks. Attending local networking events and AIGA events are also great ways to find strong talent.Because supply is lower than demand right now, we cast a wide net and find candidates through many different channels, says Kimble. These might include industry job and candidate boards, college campus events and even networking at nontraditional places, like cookouts, elevators a nd happy hours. Because recruiters are so well-connected and their network is vast, using a staffing agency is also a great way to hire a web designer.Missing out on a candidateLedbetter says she sees clients missing out on qualified candidates daily In this job market, if you like someone you must make a move. Strong candidates have multiple job offers, so you need to not only move fast, but offer a competitive salary, perks and opportunities for career growth.Kimble also sees clients miss out on web designer candidates regularly, often because a firms vetting process is too slow.Bass agrees Despite the current market conditions, we still run into clients who insist on adhering to their own process. She says clients either wait too long to provide feedback on a candidate, or they bring in a candidate and want to interview them multiple times before making a decision. The candidate often accepts another job before the interviews are concluded. In the majority of those situations, th e client loses the candidate they were most interested in hiring.

5 Ways to Name the Right Salary Range

5 Ways to anthroponym the Right Salary Range5 Ways to Name the Right Salary RangeYouve made it through several rounds of interviews for a job that you really, really want. You can just feel that the job is yoursuntil your potential employer asks the question that can possibly make or break your chances of scoring some new business cards with your name on them. How much do you think youre worth? Knowing how to name the right salary range can be tricky.Depending on your previous work experience, skill level, and yes, your confidence level, too, you might bedrngnis know how to answer. Ask for too much, and you can kiss the job goodbye. Ask for too little, and you might wind up working for far less than you could actually be making and what you truly deserve.In the article 5 Smart Approaches to Take When Youre Asked to Name Your Salary, the fine folks at The Muse tackled this very tough question. If youre unsure of what to say, here are five ways to name the right salary range- and get t he job that you want.Do your research.Its one of the most important steps to take during your job search, and few job seekers actually do it finding out what the going salary rate is for the type of job youre applying for. Sites like Glassdoor.com and PayScale.com have salary calculators that can help you get an idea of what youre worth to a potential employer. Just make sure youre looking at salaries for the location that youre in (if youre looking for a flexible job, make sure that you factor that into your calculations).Be quiet.Youre anxious for your job search to end and to finally be employed. So when the hiring manager asks you how much you want, you might start babbling a whole lot of unnecessary information, including a low-ball salary rate. Instead of talking first, its a good idea to try to not volunteer too much info and let your potential boss do the talking. You never know he might mention what the previous person in the position youre applying for received, and you ca n base your salary requirements off of that.Max it out.When trying to figure out the right salary range, its perfectly acceptable to ask a hiring manager what the top figure (i.e., the ceiling) would be for the position youre applying for. The reasoning is this once you know what the max would be, you have a starting point to work from. And from there, you can build up from the bottom (i.e., the floor), factoring in how much money you would need to live on each month. You may find that youll settle on a figure somewhere in the middle between your floor and your potential employers ceiling.Be flexible.Sure, having a cushy salary is super important, but so are other work perks that money cant buy. For starters, if your boss-to-be allows you to work from home at least part-time, you can calculate how much youll save in commuting costs, pricey lunches, and business attire (not to mention how much time youll save not having to commute into an office each and every day).Other benefits tha t can help make up for a lackluster salary include generous vacation benefits, excellent medical and dental benefits, retirement options, a stipend for clothing or reimbursement for school tuition if youre planning to go back to school, etc. All of these work perks can cost a pretty penny, so if your company is willing to shell out the money for them, it can make your salary seem much sweeterInvest in your future.As you searched for a job, you were looking for specific job titles and applied to those that matched your previous work experience and skill level. But that doesnt mean that you have to stay stuck with that same job title, particularly when your potential starting salary is a little, well, low. Ask the hiring manager if your job title can get an upgrade.Why is this important? Beyond getting a little more respect from your colleagues, and potentially changing your pay grade, having a snazzier job title can be a great investment in your financial future, particularly when yo u look for your next job. By already having a more senior-level job title, it ensures that you can get a much higher salary in your next position.Negotiating the right salary range is important, no matter what position youre applying for. Be open-minded and be prepared to ask for what you truly deserve in order to be happy with your job and its salary.Readers, do you know how to negotiate the right salary range? Do you have trouble asking for what you want in job interviews? Let us know in the comments section below

How to Earn More Money in 2019 With Side Gigs

How to Earn More Money in 2019 With Side GigsHow to Earn More Money in 2019 With Side Gigs When you hear the phrase gig economy, you probably think of apps, like Uber, TaskRabbit or Instacart. But the truth is, tzu siches a whole world of side gigs out there, available online and off, for all sorts of people. With positions as varied as Courier, Lesson Plan Creator, Personal Financial Advisor, Search Engine Evaluator, Online Community Manager and many mora, theres a side hustle for virtually every differentskill set and passion. And the best part is, it can often be pretty financially lucrative - especially if you take on a side gig on top of your full-time job. Say hello to extra income for vacations, shopping sprees or even those pesky bills that always seem to pile up.But with so many options available, navigating which side hustle is right for you, how you enter the field and what the pay is can be intimidating,to say the least. Thats whereElana Varon, auth or of The Ultimate Side Hustle Book 450 Moneymaking Ideas for the Gig Economy , saw an opportunity. Varons new bookgoes into the what, why and how of side gigs, as well as real-life stories from those who have taken them on. According to Varon, the benefits of taking on a side hustle are significant.Most people who take on a side hustle want the extra money, so thats a big benefit. But if youre exploring a new career, a side hustle can help you learn about other types of work you can do and get experience in the field. And hopefully, youre able to spend your time doing something you enjoy, Varon said. And for those concerned with work-life balance, dont worry - there are plenty of side hustle options that dont require workingaround the clock. The beauty of a lot of side hustles today is that you can decide how much you want to work,Varon added.Glassdoor recently got the chance to chat with Varon to get her insight on what makes a great side hustle, how to balance full-time work wit h part-time gigs and some of the most surprising side hustles out there (think mushroom farmer). Heres what she had to say.Glassdoor What initially inspired you to write this book?Elana Varon Side hustles have come out of the shadows, but with all thats written about them, there welchesnt a comprehensive resource to help people figure out what they could really do, or how to go about it. Some side hustlers are entrepreneurs, but a lot of people are simply looking to make some extra cash, or finance a hobby. They can all use the book to get ideas that fit with their skills and interests, available time and financial goals, as well as get tips for finding and managing their gigs.Also, Ive been researching and writing for years about the impact of technology on the workplace. This book was an opportunity to dig into the flip side - how gig economy platforms, social media, recommendation sites and other technologies are influencing how people find work and earn a living.Elana Varon The ideal side hustle is work that fits your skills, interests and available time, and that enables you to meet your goals. Most people who take on a side hustle want the extra money, so thats a big benefit. But if youre exploring a new career, a side hustle can help you learn about other types of work you can do and get experience in the field. And hopefully, youre able to spend your time doing something you enjoy.Elana Varon The beauty of a lot of side hustles today is that you can decide how much you want to work. So the first thing to do is have a concrete goal. Its a lot easier to manage your time when you know what youre trying to accomplish. Then be realistic about how many hours you have, so you can choose a side hustle that fits both your goals and the rest of your life - which includes sleeping . If you dont get enough rest, your performance and your health will suffer, and not just in the long term.So if you travel a lot for work, renting your apartment out on Airbnb might be a better fit than tending bar on weekends. If youre a stay-at-home parent , caring for your children is your full-time job (even though youre not getting paid for it), so youre going to need a side hustle that you can work on when your partner is home or your kids are in school. There are some situations, of course, where people are going to decide to push their limits - maybe they have to cover an unexpected bill, or theyre launching a full-time business or they have to put in extra hours in their main job. But hopefully those periods are temporary.Elana Varon I talked to a few people whose side hustles turned into full-time businesses , and some people started their side hustles with that goal in mind. If you want to take that route, you need a plan, and you have to be comfortable with the risks. From working your side hustle, you probably have an idea of how much money you can potentially make if you do the job full time, but most people wont earn that much right aw ay. One of the biggest adjustments people have to make when becoming self-employed is figuring out how theyre going to pay their bills - both for the business and themselves personally - while theyre building up their customer base and revenue.You also have to be ready to spend a lot more time on the marketing, financial and administrative aspects of your business, or find someone to help you. We used to do our own taxes, but when I started my writing and editing business, preparing the returns became more complicated. So we hired an accountant who not only prepares our returns but also gives us advice.Finally, if you have people who live with you or depend on you, make sure theyre on board. Youll have to renegotiate household and (if you have kids) childcare responsibilities. You may have to cut back on your household spending for a while. And depending on what kind of work you do, it may be a while before you are able to eat dinner uninterrupted or stay off email while youre o n vacation - or even take a vacation.Elana Varon A couple of things Most people are used to paying their taxes via withholding. They dont get a W-2 from their side gig, so they dont think about what else they might owe. But if you make more than a few hundred dollars from your side hustles, you have to pay taxes on those earnings. Because ridesharing and TaskRabbit have received a lot of media attention, theres a tendency to think of side hustles as defined by work you get via apps or platforms. But a lot of jobs arent well-represented on gig platforms, at least not yet, and most people actually mucksmuschenstill get work the old fashioned way, through friends and colleagues.Elana Varon I was struck by how many people I talked to had serial or multiple side hustles. I expected it from Millennials, who in general are more likely to freelance than older generations and grew up assuming they would have multiple careers. But Gen Xers and Baby Boomers also told me about having a lot of different gigs. You might conclude from this that people arent feeling financially secure, and that was true for some. But I heard a lot of pragmatism. People saying, Sure, I like this, but its still work, so I want to get paid.Elana Varon I dont think there are any universally top or best side hustles, because people have different skills, interests and goals. But monetizing assets you already have can get you a relatively high return on your efforts. I interviewed someone who lives in an urban neighborhood where there wasnt much parking - on the street or off. For a while he had a house with a two-car driveway, which was rare. And since he had only one car, he rented out the unused half. He didnt have to do any extra work other than putting an ad on Craigslist and talk to the tenant occasionally, so that was pretty close to free money .Those kinds of side hustles, where you can get value from things that are otherwise idle are interesting because theres theoretically no lim it to what you can rent out - boats, clothes, tools, RVs. There has to be demand for it, obviously, but sharing platforms have expanded the possibilities. While I was doing my research, I also became fascinated with mushroom farming. Maybe youve seen the kits for growing a log of shiitake mushrooms in your basement, but it turns out that if you have enough space and enough time, you can raise a profitable little crop. Its not for me, though. I have trouble keeping houseplants aliveWant a few more side hustle ideas to get you started? Consider these optionsDidnt find the right position? Dont worry - theres a virtually unlimited number of options available, so if you havent found the right one yet, dont get discouraged. Think about what you do best and how you can monetize it, and be sure to check out The Ultimate Side Hustle Book for more ideas