Web development: EVERYTHING you need to know!

Web development is a fundamental part of today’s world and one of the main areas of Information Technology. There are thousands of vacancies open all over the world, with very attractive salaries. However, the lack of trained professionals in the market is still a major challenge to be overcome.

In this article, we will explain what web development is, which professionals are most sought after, the skills desired by employing companies, average salary, what a web developer does and much more.

So, if you want to seek or deepen your knowledge in this area, this article is for you!

Table of Contents

What is web development?

Web development includes creating, coding and programming websites and their respective elements and languages. It also involves integration with systems and tools, database storage, cybersecurity, among others, with the aim of structuring every detail of an internet page.

Remembering that websites and other programs present on the internet today are much more dynamic and require greater development, with various integrations with APIs (Application Programming Interface), database preparation and storage and much more.

This current complexity and the various languages used in programming ended up giving rise to different professions such as, for example, front-end and back-end.

Of course, there are still full professionals who master both programming languages, but depending on the size of the website development project, this professional ends up being a manager with the responsibility of integrating the areas.

Later on, we will better explain each of the professions/functions within this universe.

What does a web developer do?

The website developer, called a professional Dev or Web Developer, is responsible for creating all the structural planning of pages, using programming languages such as HTML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP, among many others.

And, as we said above, creating pages is increasingly complex. In addition to focusing on developing a web system from scratch, the Dev professional needs to create the entire invisible part, coding all the elements present on the page, considering integrations with APIs, data storage, cybersecurity and usability .

Web development: soft and hard skills required

When we talk about soft skills we refer to interpersonal skills and competencies. In this way, we can mention the soft skills of a website developer:

Communication and collaboration : you need to have good communication to deal with customers and the work team. Often a Dev will not be alone on a project and, in many cases, a client will not know how to explain in programming language what they really want;
Creativity : let go of the thought that developers only need to deal with code. It is necessary to let creativity emerge to solve complex problems or adapt coding solutions;
Commitment : meeting deadlines is an essential task with the work of any web developer, as well as their involvement with the project as a whole;
Detail-oriented : a lot of attention is needed to avoid and identify possible errors in coding;
Studious/self-taught : staying up to date is essential. The area of website development is constantly changing and new programming languages emerge every day. Professionals who do not keep up to date will automatically be out of the job market in a few years;
Emotional intelligence : you need to know how to deal with possible criticism, whether positive or negative.

The hard skills of a website developer are linked to the technique of the profession, that is, the understanding and ability to work with web development. In this case, we can mention:

Programming language : knowledge in languages such as JavaScript, CSS, HTML, PHP, C++, Python and many others will be essential;
Servers : be familiar with servers and their configuration: DNS , Proxy and FTP;
Database : it is necessary to have good knowledge about databases and for this, it is necessary to have an understanding of specific languages, such as MongoDB , PostgreSQL, SQL Server, MySQL and Oracle ;
Cybersecurity : website security is a technical capability that deserves attention. A website needs to be secure to protect both user data and the company’s internal data;
Proficiency in English : professionals need at least technical English, as this is practically the universal language of web development.

Differences between frontend and backend

Now that you know what the interpersonal and technical skills of web development professionals are, we can return to the subject we discussed at the beginning of the text, about the current complexity of development having generated different professions in the area. Therefore, we will explain the differences between front-end and back-end here.

Front-end is nothing more than the coding and programming of everything that we can view on an internet page as a user. This includes all visual elements present: arrangement of elements, text fonts, colors, photos, videos, chatbots, forms, menus, CTA’s, among many others.

Contrary to what you might think, it’s not the front-end developer’s job to design the page layout. Usually this function is in charge of the Web Designer. The front-end encodes this layout using programming languages to make it visible to anyone accessing the site.

The back-end developer is the professional who works on all aspects of web development that are invisible to the user. He is responsible for coding and programming all parts of the internal operating system. This means integrating with APIs and servers, storing and protecting internal and external data, as well as usability, among others.

Therefore, it is clear that there is a big difference between frontend and backend, but the two functions are complementary. For each of them there is a universe of programming languages to be worked on, so the web development area was divided.

Should I specialize in frontend or backend?

This is a very personal choice. Both share Dev’s skills, but each in their own proportion. The back-end professional needs to have much broader knowledge of databases and cybersecurity than the professional who specializes in front-end development, for example.

Regardless of specialization, website developers have a guaranteed place in the current and future job market. However, as we have already mentioned, it is an area that needs to be constantly updated. So, studying and participating in events in the area such as the Dev Summit is essential.

Full stack web development

Professions were separated by the complexity of programming languages, as well as the size and depth that current projects are showing.

However, this does not mean that there are no professionals who dominate and move through both areas . He still exists and is known as a full stack web developer.

Smaller companies, which have demands on simpler projects, choose to hire a full stack to handle all the demand. In this way, the professional works at both ends of web development, that is, both as a front-end and as a back-end.

Larger companies whose projects are more elaborate tend to have several professionals working together in their technology sector. In this case, the full stack web developer is usually the bridge between the front-end dev and the back-end dev.

By mastering programming languages, the full stack has the ability to look at both and identify possible errors in programming. It also manages to very efficiently mediate the conversation between the two to resolve interface problems.