How to Become a Visual Designer

Do you have a technical bent and want to work with computers, but you also have a creative and visual flair and hope to put those talents to use in your work? You sound like the perfect candidate for visual design. With so much commerce handled via websites, apps, and other visual interfaces, folks with design skills are in high demand and make excellent money. Knowing how to become a visual designer allows you to get experience and land the top positions.

This article is here to help you find your way through the maze of advice and recommendations for anyone who wants to become a visual designer. We let you know which skills are the most important ones to learn as a new visual designer. You’ll also get some great advice on how to get your work noticed and where to post your creations and ideas. With our assistance, you’ll be well on your way toward a rewarding and creatively satisfying career.

Develop Your Skills

When you first decided to get into visual design, you probably didn’t put much thought into what you’d need to learn. That is, aside from getting more practice on image editors. There’s a lot more to visual design than just knowing how to draw and being familiar with the way visuals affect us. To land a good design gig, you need a variety of soft and hard skills. A good designer is a team player and an experienced technology-user, and your experience needs to reflect that.

A great way to build your skillset is to start working on freelance designs. You can use collaborative tools and platforms like Github to link up with developers and other designers on big, exciting projects. Doing so will help you develop all sorts of skills, including deadline management, team building, communication, and basic design and development concepts. It’s an excellent way to network, too—you never know who might have a job to offer you.

Get Your Work Seen in an Online Portfolio

Visual design is, well, a visual skill. You need to get your work seen if you want to land good jobs. And you have to have something you can point to when they ask you for evidence of your abilities and experience. To succeed as a visual designer, you need to be able to point at your work and say, “I did this, and I can do the same for your company.” A reliable and flexible online portfolio is a must for design folks.

There are lots of excellent portfolios out there, and many of them offer essential services at no cost. You’ll usually have to pay for larger save space and more features, but the free options will get you started. 

Behance is a popular portfolio site and a fantastic starting point for new designers. Your work will gain global exposure when you sign with Behance. 

You can also give Dribble a try—the name’s kinda dumb, but the services are anything but. And, like Behance, you won’t have to pay a dime for a basic membership.

So, that’s the deal, my lovelies. People with both tech and visual inclinations can find lots of visual design jobs. But, you’ll need to pick up the right skills and get your work noticed if you want to succeed. Now you have a better idea of how to become a visual designer and get your design career off the ground and rocketing toward success.