Webmaster bloat is at an all time high. Web design isn’t rocket science, and with the tools readily available anyone with an Internet connection, Photoshop, and a text editor can stake their claim. The obvious result of this saturation is a reduced level of quality, trust, and accountability in the market.
A skilled Web developer faces unique challenges in this industry. Potential customers and employers are keen on the signs of an unpolished professional, but some of the most astounding progress is also coming from some of the most unsuspecting individuals.
It can be difficult as well as challenging to face the result of years of unemployed hacks trying to turn a dime in Web design with a few months of HTML experience. Nobody wants to wonder what people might really be thinking.
Let’s hope this one’s better than the last. What’s wrong with these people? Some of these deadbeats didn’t even finish high school, let alone college! My cousin is a website guy, a real World Wide Web Master. Raymond is a big winner, let me tell you. Can’t these flops scrape together twenty five frigging dollars for some real business card insteads of handing out something they printed on their mom’s HP? With some URL you need a mainframe to decode? Sorry supercooladvancedwebdesignskills217.com, I’ll spend that minute finding someone a little less super and a lot more skills. But I’ll file this prestigious business card in my Rolodex right after I scrub the ink off my hands from the supercooladvanced ink jet printer you used on this atrocious logo. Fuchsia. Who would have thought.
Alright, I’ll stop this utterly facetious yet illuminating look at what some Webmasters fear potential customers are seeing, and what some customers feel is a plague to the entire industry.
As prospective customers, avoid too many heuristics and acknowledge the assets that make a truly good developer, such as trust, talent, and dedication.
Moving ahead as developers, be prepared for accountability, focus on quality, and make sure you can follow through with expectations. Above all, encourage other Webmasters to take their profession seriously and recognize the importance of the Internet as an industry.
