Web Design & Development Grad Uses New Skills to Grow Business

As a longtime entrepreneur, David Drake knew the one area of knowledge he was lacking could help grow his business. “I was a very good designer, but didn’t know how to post on websites,” David said. “For less than the cost of paying someone to build a website, I could pay for myself to attend class and learn it quicker.” David first discovered our Web Design & Development Certificate course from an online search. He then attended an Open House event to explore more. There he was assured that the nine-month course would indeed teach the “latest and greatest” design and development technology platforms.

“There was no reason for me not to do this,” David said. “I love education and technology. The fact that the instructors were not pure academia also appealed to me. They were actually subject matter experts actively working in the profession they teach. The return on investment was huge.”

Business Boosting Knowledge
David’s previously launched business, reOneSpot.com, is an integrated enterprise cloud solution for real estate agents that streamlines and automates the entire house buying process. By familiarizing himself with HTML coding and the current Adobe Creative Suite which included Dreamweaver, Photoshop and Illustrator, David was successfully able to apply several vital components to his business to help it flourish. He boasts the class helped him with overall marketing efforts that included keeping his website current and updated, creating dynamic and attractive email campaigns and SEO and Google analytics.

“Everything we are doing now is online and in the cloud,” David said. “If you’re not familiar with how this stuff works, you’re at the will of other people. The latest trend is that everything must be mobile first. The design must translate between all platforms’ application interfaces.”

Offering Advice
When asked what advice he’d give future students considering this program as a jumpstart to a career in web design and development, David cited that the skills learned in class are readily transferable to what the job market is seeking. He said, “It’s imperative to develop the ability to create a few websites of your own. The market is going to want to see what you’ve done.”

Perhaps the greatest incentive of the class is the opportunity it presents students to build their own website – which serves as the final project of the course. David says having that in your portfolio is paramount when applying for jobs in the field.

 “For less than the cost of paying someone to build a website, I could pay for myself to attend class and learn it quicker.”

Onward and Upward
Wired as an entrepreneur, David intends on using his newfound skills to continue building his business with the intent of selling it – then starting the process all over again. Always practicing the mantra of investing in himself, David plans to continue his education by enrolling in a project management agile certified practitioner (PMI-ACP) program. “Your learning cannot stop when you walk out of CCPE if you want to stay relevant in the industry,” he said.

Occupational Trends
• Employment of web developers is projected to grow 27% through 2024 (Bureau of Labor Statistics).
• Annual salaries for web developers range from $88,000 to $137,000, while web designers range from $67,000 to $112,000 (Mondo.com).
• Yahoo! ranked Web Design as the No. 1 career with the most significant growth potential requiring minimal education.