In the era that everyone is online these days and always busy with different gadgets. The Internet does not only promote interpersonal communication among various users, It’s also where you can source different kinds of information you need, make purchases and pay bills.
When you log onto a website or an application, you are introduced to the welcome page which is the sum of layers of the menu, buttons, data, design, content site map, and other items that promote functionality and utility. All these tools fall under the combined name of “front end”.
Who is a front-end developer?
A front-end developer is a web developer that develops the front end of a website or software.
A web developer is a skilled person who creates a website’s appearance and design. While the front-end developer ensures that website visitors can effortlessly interact with the page. The design works online by using coding languages such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript which generally run in a web browser.
The challenge linked with front-end development is that the methods and strategies used to create the front end of a website change continuously and so the developer needs to always be aware of how the field is developing.
The front end includes the user interface which is the part of the website or app designed for the consumer’s use, this builds the setting for everything that you see, touch, like and click.
Functions of a frontend developer
If you’re thinking about becoming a talent at Borderless as a front-end developer and working for top companies globally here are some skills expected t from you:
- Create features to enrich the users’ experience.
- Endeavour to make the web design mobile responsive.
- Optimize web pages for the best speed and scalability.
- Determine web page design and system
- Maintain a consistent brand throughout the whole design
- Work together with web designers and backend developers to improve the usability
- Protect and promote a website
- Developing SEO best strategies
Read also: Best tools to manage remote developers
Top 8 Front-end Developer Skills
- HTML and CSS
Hypertext markup language (HTML) and cascading style sheets (CSS) are called the basic designing blocks of web coding. HTML gives arrangement to web pages while CSS helps to enable the style of the HTML elements with the colour, fonts and typeface.
Without these two skills, you can’t function as a front-end developer. The big news about these tools is that you can learn them in just a few weeks.
- JavaScript
This is one of the most popular programming languages you can use as a front-end developer. JavaScript is mainly used for improving the interaction of the web page with users by making it more lively and interactive with features like slideshows, polls and many more. it is not limited to videos, audio and animation.
It can also be used for game development and mobile application development. It is very easy to learn, once you have a basic understanding of HTML and CSS, it aids your learning to learn faster and more efficiently and you can be a great front-end developer with javascript.
- Search engine optimization (SEO)
Search engine optimization is the practice of optimizing websites so that they can become number one on search engines. This is one of the most important marketing techniques for any corporation or business to boost traffic to a website organically through search results.
However, there is a separate team to supervise SEO practices and knowing the basics can help you determine where to place titles, keywords, meta descriptions, and text on a website so search engines can effortlessly find and see them.
- Frameworks
Frameworks contain prewritten code modules for common website elements to offer frontend developers a ground to improve while still allowing flexibility with the final design. They’re easy to integrate and are easy to use.
The major uses of frameworks for front-end developers are that they create interactive tools and develop responsive websites. It helps build constant products for traffic gains. Examples of common frameworks include Ember, AngularJS, Semantic-UI and ReactJS.
- Version control
A version control system is software specifically designed to track and control changes in your source code. There are different types of different version control software that developers use, but the most common one is called Git. This is open software that allows developers to compare earlier versions of the code with an older version, to know what went wrong, without starting the source code process from the start. It also allows many developers to upload or download source code changes.
- Cross-browser
Being sure of many factors, a website’s appearance differs across browsers. Frontend developers use browser tools to deal with this problem.
Browser tools allow developers to fine-tune web pages in a way that is best fitted to a specific browser. Moreover, frontend developers use responsive design techniques to change site layout and design depending on the type of device accessing it.
For example, whenever a PC accesses a desktop website, the site consumes extra screen real estate and smaller fonts than mobile sites, which use bigger text and small screen real estate.
- Web performance optimization (WPO)
Web performance optimization is one of the major skills you can have as a frontend developer. Learning HTML and CSS and other skills without knowing how to build a website with excellent performance will spoil your excellent skills.
It doesn’t matter if you built an amazing website if the user experience is poor, consumers today are fierce, and if they notice a slow loading website or it takes more than a few seconds to load, they are likely to abandon it, which can cause users engagement drastically. Website performance optimization techniques enable a very fast loading time through automation tools so consumers can engage with the website without delay.
- Testing and Debugging
As a front-end developer, one of the most important skills you must have is the ability to test and debug code. It’s a reality of life for a front-end web developer. As a front-end developer, you always prepare for bugs: bugs happen. Being used to testing and debugging methods is essential.
Testing is an essential aspect of any project to keep the bugs away.
Debugging simply means removing all of the “bugs” those tests discover or your users find once your site is installed. The ability to figure out why and how they’re happening and fix the difficulty.
However because testing and bugging contribute a large part to an effective user experience, they are one of the valuable skills for a front-end developer to learn.
Future of The Front-end Developer
According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, Web developer occupation in the US is propelled to grow 15% from 2016 to 2026. The ratio is much faster than the standard for all other occupations or careers.
Moreover, these numbers seem extraordinary, if you halt and consider how things have changed, it’s not so surprising that the Increased in Internet usage, primarily in the mobile field, indicates a bigger need for user interfaces, which indicates more front-end developers’ jobs. Web development is a career that goes hand in hand with the Internet’s popularity, and the world is changing with technology help. If you want to go where the jobs are, then look no further, at Borderless we will help you get there.
Other Soft Skills
Apart from the most valuable skills that make you a Frontend developer, other skills that make you stand out are called soft skills.
- Communication skills
Effective communication skills are very important when working with other people. That’s why front-end developers should be able to communicate very well what they have in mind and write the clear documentation their team members will understand.
Every company or organization needs a good communicator. As a front-end developer, you need these skills to be on top of your career. because you will work with another team like backend developers, UI/UX designers and web developers. Possessing highly social skills is a requirement in front-end developer skills.
Read also: steps to hire a remote software developer
- Teamwork
As a front-end developer, you need to be a skilled collaborator. Having teamwork skills will make you a great front-end developer, you can’t work alone even if you end up working remotely or as a freelance front-end developer you need other team members. Front-end developers must know how to support other people, ask for advice when needed, optimize the workflow, and provide the end product rapidly.
Conclusion
Frontend developers who possess both creative and soft skills are very highly regarded. The market’s requirement is vast and largely the gap is not expected to be filled any sooner due to the rising need for skilled developers. By having the right set of skills, there’s no ambition you cannot attain. Like they say the sky is just the beginning.
Looking for more knowledge in this changing technology world and related to career-building? Be sure to visit our company’s blog to access more resources regarding the skills you need to succeed in your chosen tech field.
