You have seen all of those eye-catching Web sites that end up making you purchase more than you have planned, or encourage you to go to a restaurant that you would not have normally even thought about, right? Well, you have the Web art director to thank for that. You have probably also thought that you would love to put your creativity to work and have the same effect on people. Now is the time to jump in and start your career path in this industry and achieve your goal. If you are a creative, successful designer in any field, now is the time to make the move to information technology, where you can use your skills in an industry that is absolutely exploding with opportunity.
There have long been a number of jobs done overseas, but IT jobs in U.S. locations are quickly taking over for local jobs that require natural English-speaking sources to complete the work. Great Web sites do not just appear overnight; they are the efforts of multiple people collaborating and coming up with a unique vision that conveys the thoughts and ideas of the creator of the project. The bulk of the time though, the creator of the item being sold does not have the ability or skill to translate their vision to the Internet. That is where you come in. Your ability to convey their thoughts and visions with your team’s creativity is what makes magic happen and has people opening their wallets to e-commerce. Your soul purpose is to create this direction and ensure that the final product is exactly what the client envisioned.
Some of your primary duties would be:
- Determining the graphic look and feel of the project.
- Designing proposals.
- Establishing operating budgets for new projects.
- Overseeing overall production and progress of projects.
- Supervising and directing all staff on the project.
- Managing product-related design, usability, testing, and systems compatibility.
While this is a demanding position and one that definitely dictates experience in the field, it is still relatively easy to get a substantial position if you are a good designer with a general feel for what works and what does not. You are going to have to be able to get your finger on the pulse of what will be both appetizing to the general public and also what the client wants to see in regards to conveying their message and image to the world.
This position is one that will take some practical experience to acquire, however. Generally, you are going to need to bring about three years of practical Web design experience to the table. In that time, you will have hopefully been promoted to senior designer and will have begun the process of client interaction. True, this will be on a smaller level, but you will still be getting the idea of how to be liaison between the team and the client. At this point in your career you should have been faced with challenges and problem-solving issues that will have built you a solid foundation which will enable you to move to the next level and become a director.
Once you get to this level, you will be able to put all of your previous talents and experience to use in putting together a team of select individuals who each bring special talents to the table. These talents, along with your direction, will lead to successful partnership and will create a desirable product.
Information technology is an incredible, ever-expanding market, and designers are an integral part of that growth. These talented individuals are the reason this sector is growing at the pace it is and they are the reason it will continue to grow as one of the only industries not being threatened by the current economy.
The bottom line here is that a good designer knows what they are doing and should have no problem making the transfer from field to field. If you were successful as a packaging designer, you should be able to bring your skills to Web design and eventually become a Web art director in the incredible field of IT.
