DON’T Become a Web Designer in 2023?

A few days ago, my friend Peyton released a video saying “Don't become a web designer” ( • DON'T become a web des... ) with a bunch of reasons why not to get into web design. And on this video, I actually want to debunk them and explain why I don't think these are actually valid reasons. Also, nI’ll share why I feel
Web design is actually an awesome career path.
Web Design Courses: flux-academy.com/
📽️ CHAPTERS
00:00 - Intro
00:17 - Why get into web design
01:13 - Super competitive → Growth in service providers but also need / 90-10
04:01 - Things change rapidly → staying up to date
05:33 - Underpaid → 50-70k (15k minimum)
07:02 - People don’t value design
09:11 - Talent doesn’t always win
10:37 - Ai
📱 Find us on SOCIAL MEDIA
Flux Academy's Instagram 👉 / flux.academy
Ran's Instagram 👉 / ransegall
Thanks for watching our video!
#freelancewebdesigner #freelancedesigner #webdesign

[@vekkdrums]

When someone says a field is competitive I just roll my eyes with exhaustion. It seems some ppl hacen realised we are 8 billion mofos in here. Literally any field is competitive 😂

[@FluxAcademy]

100%.

[@DJ-Illuminate]

I was a graphic designer and a good one in 1991 but it was too competitive where I lived so I jumped into web design. This worked until 1998 so I jumped into web programming with JS and eventually CSS and PHP. This then got too competitive so I also added server maintenance. Now with Low Code we are where print design was when desktop publishing happened. The income levels will drop. I am waiting to see where Framer and WebFlow are going before I jump back in. I do like Framers AI. Oh, I am 66 years old. I haven't found work in two years because of my age. It apears people think I am outdated when I'm not.

[@sushantkumar7163]

You kinda inspire me in this give up easily world.❤️

[@gastonm]

Hope you find a job soon! Cheers.

[@randolphpinkle4482]

Show your portfolios, your projects. Forget about age.

[@whizz-macky2568]

I thought most would happily hire with all the experience acquired

[@IdoAnything9186]

Ageism sucks man. Yeah sorry to hear about that. I keep thinking to myself... is this a sustainable job? Will people judge me if I'm 60 and still doing this? You just confirmed it 😢

[@Mike-du2gr]

Web Design + Digital Marketing + CRO (Conversion Rate Optimization) is the way forward

[@yokoso2386]

so it is like landing page?

[@itssezi]

You got it right in the center, Ran! Especially on your last topic, we already see saturation in the market that emerges out of lack of inspiration, risk aversion, or everybody going to Pinterest (sometimes, even me included ahah), AI will aggravate it. Those with the creativity and critical thinking to search for new and interesting solutions are the ones who'll make it in the long run, because those are the ones that the brands who want to stand out will reach out.

[@adamzonnis980]

There will always be work for anyone willing to go out and find clients.

[@EduwareIzekor]

Nice take on this old age question. There is a guy named Ben hunt who wrote a ebook 7 years+ ago with the title 'Webdesign is dead'. And much of its content still ring true today. I think the focus is too much on design which has been commodotized by all the emerging tools the past few years and it will even get worse due to AI. How can a designers differiante themselves? The answer is to learn skills outside of your core skills. Namely marketing, sales, how businesses works, copywriting etc...Why? Because as a designer your main focus is design and when you pivot to getting your clients results then you can truly thrive. The client wants to go from his current situation to their desired situation which could mean sales, leads etc...Design sits in the middle, what can you do after design to help them reach their goals? Can you guarantee results? These things will never change. If you want to stick to only design then I believe it will only get tough unless you are among the 10%. Another strategy might be to niche down and own a category. In my opinion web design might become less and less revelant as the tools we use keep getting more proficient. Knowing how to build a website is one thing, knowing how to get results is another thing. That's where the big bucks$$$$$ lives.

[@FluxAcademy]

100%!!!

[@intothelight777]

My thoughts exactly. I am a business owner, not a website designer, yet I design a few websites here and there. I gave up on getting someone to build me a website because at the end of the day I realised that wasn't what I wanted. I wanted a tool to generate me clients and income. Most of the website designers out there had no idea on how to create a tool (website) that would deliver for me. Yes, they could build beautiful websites but what was the point if they weren't building my business. I've spent years learning how to build websites and marketing strategies that combine because I wasn't in a position of spending a ton of money on the people who actually knew how to do it properly. The lesson learned is if you decide to run a business then you must know what the customer wants. You might think they want a website. That's where you need to learn the art of asking the right questions. If you are just into website design then yes you will eventually go broke unless you find that tiny market that just want an amazing interactive website. Also since I'm not young anymore the other lesson in life is to consider how much money you want and what you're prepared to do for it. Many of us will build a very good business that provides a sufficient income. Get over the fact that you have to be the best and make the most money. Those ideas are for the dreamers. Just offer a quality service and you will earn a decent income. Create a niche and your income will increase. But remember, it's never about the money. It's about what the money will bring. If you want fun and that's what your business brings then you are already rich.

[@EduwareIzekor]

@@intothelight777 I totally agree with you. I have given up on that dream of wanting to be the best or make the most money. I just want to deliver results for the industry I serve and make some money doing it. Everyone should decide for themselves what enough is. The constant persuit for higher profits and more awards is endless. If you know your number that will bring you a decent life then go for it. Have a great day!

[@EduwareIzekor]

No, I have the book though :)@RealLifeOfTate

[@roshinahasan5288]

Wow. This is as real as it gets! And that’s why I love your videos Ran. I feel like social media pushes the idea that we need to be this “millionaire” designers when in all honesty that’s not true.

[@bradleylambert3284]

I'd be more than happy to earn 50-60k a year doing something I enjoy that I'm in control of! I don't think I would want the hassle of a 500k a year agency.

[@NeptuneDesign]

Real talk!!! Appreciate you Ran!! Much love from South Africa

[@nicolatoledo]

Agree, and we are all different so also our service is different even if looks similar to other, we need to be smart and good to show or unique value 🔥

[@mateusvidal3187]

Totally agree with you Ran. I'm starting this journey and the more I see many successful people in this market I get more confident about the choice I made. There is still a lot of space for those who work smart and consistently.

[@suryanshdesigner6102]

Great choice! Can we work together?

[@thecreator5143]

​@@suryanshdesigner6102 what you do?

[@suryanshdesigner6102]

@@thecreator5143 i do ui designing and also learnt GD earlier

[@okparaeric7637]

​@@suryanshdesigner6102where do you see your clients?

[@TravelleMcManus]

I am in the process of starting a webflow agency and I was pretty discourage when I saw Payton video. I know that wasn't his intention but it made me think long and hard if I should keep pursing this and I ultimately decided I will because how much joy I got out of web design that even if I didn't get rich, I would be happy with what I am doing. Well this video was definitely what I needed to really get my spirit back up and I am excited to launch my business here in the next month! Thank you Ran!

[@FluxAcademy]

go go go! if you love what you'll do you'll have more energy to improve and WIN

[@crelloc]

Create the agency but you need to niche down to a market(s) and network network network to get referrals.

[@TravelleMcManus]

@@crelloc great advice! I’m thinking on marketing towards small online e-commerce business that sells digital (or physical) assets

[@crelloc]

@@TravelleMcManus kzbin.info/www/bejne/q3SkoJuIhqaAf6s

[@PaytonClarkSmith]

Well put Ran 👍🏻 While our approaches were different, I think we both want designers to succeed by being aware of the pros and cons of the industry. I would add that I am also a web designer and would still choose this career over anything else! My video provides ways to overcome all of these negatives so you can succeed. My next KZbin video: How Ran Segal became my Mortal Enemy 🥷” 😂 jk Talk soon my friend

[@JeremyMuradesign]

you guys should do a webflow battle ;)

[@FluxAcademy]

haha! why enemy?!

[@PaytonClarkSmith]

@@FluxAcademy totally kidding 😂

[@RafaelSantiagoBuenoArdila]

I think your channel is great too. greetings from Colombia

[@hellobont]

I couldn't agree more with ALL of this man, very well explained. I actually don't like the word "competition" either. Like you said, there's enough for all of us. We are only competing with ourselves. Also, loved your forecast of how AI can affect the industry. I hadn't thought about it like that, but it makes total sense that "human made" is going to become even more valuable than it is today. I think that AI can do great basic work, but I don't think it will be able to create advanced level design. So granted, if you're at the bottom of the pyramid, you'll probably have people doing things at the same level but faster using AI. Anyways, always love to hear your take on these things.

[@alenaatikh]

Thank you for the video ❤ I've been working in digital, content marketing, social media, all this. I'm 30 now and studying UX/UI design for a couple of months, hope it's not too late for me. Good luck everyone ☺

[@Farisdalia]

Hey how is it going:)?

[@adsonmettler]

Great discussion, great analysis, and great content! Thanks for sharing, I just subscribed to the channel!

[@fidel.magallon]

Well I do agree for the most part about the points you make in the video, but having tested Stable Diffusion in this last week to create images, I have a different perspective about the Ai part. It's no so simple to get the perfect image you want, it takes some effort to get it right. Maybe if you use sites like Midjourney you might be a little faster and easier to use, but you have less control over the results compared to Stable Diffusion which gives you control over everything, like a Photoshop for Ai. You need to spend time testing different text combinations and fixing errors until you get the result you want and you can also mix and match different art types to make your own unique style that will set you apart from the rest. So just because you're using Ai doesn't mean your work will look generic or like a template, because you have limitless creativity that goes beyond your own abilities. Another thing I like about it is that you can make your own unique "stock" photos, instead of searching the web for hours to get images that many people have used before. And all this doesn't mean that you won't have to use tools like photoshop and Illustrator, because many things are better to do them over there. It only means that you have new tools to be faster, more creative and with more satisfaction at the end of the day. I don't know about others but many times I've had to conform with images that fail to reach my standards, because sometimes I don't have the ability to do them or there's a time constraint because of the project deadlines or the budget won't allow me to buy the stock photos. So I can say it's so refreshing to be able to get an improvement on that side because the images are so good that you can't tell the difference between a well made Ai image and a photo. So if you have not tried to use Ai tools yet, I'd highly recommend it because it will change your mind.

[@dimitrishow_D]

Agreed ai stil takes a lot of work...

[@telsamorgan5369]

Your videos are very useful and provide lots of information. I have received lots of help after watching this post, please continue to share this kind of information. Thank you.

[@okamgbapatrick415]

Sometimes media just makes you feel like giving up and looking for another means to make money But in life there is always gonna be bumps on your way to success Determination and consistency always pays Thanks for the video!!! Your content has helped me alot👍🏿

[@chubz-clashmini304]

I really enjoyed this video I came on here to understand web design because my younger brother was going into it, but it really gave good advice for other fields

[@jansleyreal]

I've been trying to get into UX design the past 9 months, and with the rapid rise in AI and massive tech layoffs, it's occasionally made me question the longevity of this career path. Appreciate you shedding light on this issue!

[@FluxAcademy]

Good luck Jansley!

[@ctaylor960]

Web development is the same way. It took me 1 year to get my first Dev job where they barely trained me and treated me like crap. Makes me question this field too but I will keep going.

[@yofi2614]

@@FriedToiletDuckRice Microsoft

[@adevikthur]

Thank you for reviving this fire 🔥.

[@daliafatima8463]

Thanks Ran to clarify my doubts,,,Im in the way to be a PRO Web Designer 🙌

[@shawnrobinson8046]

Well said. Great video overall. I definitely agree with the pyramid example.

[@basianiez5576]

I’m currently learning to be a web designer and manage to get my first projects. I was in a lot of doubt at first but I can see that locally there’s definitely a demand on that. I think you are making very valid points! besides I really enjoy making websites

[@FluxAcademy]

Fantastic! thanks for sharing and good luck on your journey!

[@basianiez5576]

@@FluxAcademy thank you! and for making this channel, I learn so much from here :)

[@carlosacosta799]

do you know how to coding too?

[@wilfredthole1200]

The same with me but I'm only 14 so people try to discourage me but I still have people who help and support me

[@wilfredthole1200]

​@@FluxAcademy thanks for the advice

[@rishabhb99]

Well said Sir, AI is the best in this phase of digital excellence but what if a no-code tool help you design your website or application with more creativity that comes bursting from inside of you. You just choose different templates you wanna work on and easily drag and drop the elements you want in your platform and publish your website. Qafto is a no code tool that helped me a lot when I was in trouble for making a portfolio website and I was not having any technical knowledge. It just boosted my confidence that it is so easy that I can build my own website without any technical knowledge. It really changed my vision regarding website building and no-code tools.

[@faizurrahman7791]

love the last section about AI, it's just exploring my mind and what a thought ran differently it will happen in the future of AI.

[@jzwadlo]

great video! only thing i disagree with myself is @6:21 -yes you are right re: income - however everything is relative. If you are making logos or websites for brands worth several 10's or 100's of millsions - then you should be rewarded proportionality. If you're working for smaller businesses then obviously not so much. It's all a matter of scale - But yes I do think putting a 'blanket figure' as to how much someone in the industry should be making is wrong for sure!

[@zhyparandasheva]

Thanks you are really smart, you are helping me get again my motivation, Thanks a lot 🙏

[@depayanmondal]

please make more portfolio reviews but this time focused on the portfolios of web developers

[@businessdesigner5460]

This is why I loved you. I want to ask a question. I think you would familiar with T shape skills development. Is App design, Web design and landing Page design is an another skills to perform the design for different sizes of screen and if it is! then what design skills should I choose to make it t shaped skills.

[@lg8159]

If we would compare the impact of AI with the same revolutionary impact as ‘from horse to cars’, meaning faster with no need of horses (web designers). It’s wrong. The consequences are bigger. It’s more like horses to time/place traveling. Imagine that you, instead of WhatsApp, you could visit your relatives across the ocean in a nano-second. It would destroy multiple businesses: - aviation - travel agencies - airports all around the world - food& beverages industry (no snack or coffee breaks needed) - chaos due to massive criminality/illegal border entrance - more legislations and more strict government control But it will also has a bunch of benefits: - cleaner environment - less traffic - less Jet lag ( I suppose, did not give a lot of thought to it) - happier individuals with off-shore relatives/friends because the borders are literally GONE .. so you can visit anybody, anytime, anywhere. Translate this to AI today: - no need for copywriters (hello, chatGPT) - no need for photographers and web designers (hello Midjourney) And what about Web developers??? Webflow is also trying to cut us out with their AI integrated tool. AI is disruptive in every sense of the word, but also exciting and hopeful. It all depends on how it will be used.

[@jean-huguesdoumbe6994]

Thank you Ran

[@plantifulalexandra]

2:42 I live in a small German village/in the forest. I don't have any local clients.😅 Maybe there are some, not sure how to get to them.

[@heroofhyrule2642]

Do you have to learn JavaScript to become web designer?

[@denniszenanywhere]

There’s one site where you can do a rough sketch and it generates a ui design. This means AI can generate individual designs based on your needs. Now that is scary as it would also affect ux designers.

[@feyishow4469]

Really😮😮. Plz wats the site?

[@vickywitvicky]

The final point about the AI is the nail in the coffin mate thank you for make ppl realize about their mistakes. For some reason ppl just Hype it everything and destroying it, just how they doing it for NFT, crypto and Web 3

[@eliasnabi]

Regarding your comment on AI, starting around the 11:40 timestamp, it seems that the key advantage will lie with individuals who excel at communicating with AI, rather than those skilled in traditional "hand made stuff- non AI methods". The ability to create highly specific designs will be dependant upon effective communication with AI, which may ultimately distinguish the top designers in this era of advanced technology. In the digital realm, it's improbable that we'll see a total "flip" in the industry as you've described, given the nature of AI technology. However, this is merely my opinion, and only time will tell. Regardless, Ran, your perspective is quite thought-provoking and insightful.

[@FluxAcademy]

Interesting, its still too early to really tell how things will unfold..

[@Videosuser]

I agree with a few of your points, but there's no much data in your video backing that up. Although there are difficulties in every industry, there are some areas that are growing a lot more than others.

[@Ayo_-_]

Nice! that's really a great idea looking in the long run, just as how today's original paint art work are more expensive...

[@FunTelligence7]

Awesome video

[@monikamoon14]

Almost clients had a vision but no budget - and I mean couldn't afford me even at affordable prices... Finding those proper paying clients... Ooooff. How do you find those people, suitable paying clients?

[@Alexandra-ek6bb]

Excuse me? The "old people" you're referring to are not at all lazy and neglecting keeping up with the new tools and best practices. We are (at least I am) in fact a perpetual learner and as passionate about design and user experience as ever. Not only that, we have experience in areas that the young people don't, which gives us a competitive edge. Here' the great thing about being a designer - you can do it at any age as long as you're physically and mentally healthy and it's your sole job. My kids are raised, I'm in excellent health, and love my work.

[@arpitshrmah]

You go grandma

[@manjoeshar]

how a web designing is different from UI/UX?

[@morizanova]

USD 100 -200 is common price, people in my country or town agree to pay for SOHO web design works . Some works maybe offer more money but it also come with much complex assignments which you guys in first world would charging them around USD 10k -20k

[@hellobont]

Price is relative to the budget of your client Moriza. If you offer the same work to someone with a higher budget (and they trust you as an expert), they will happily pay more than USD200. And nowadays you're not limited to your country. You are watching a video made by someone in Israel. I'm from Argentina, and have charged international rates myself. So your biggest limitation is your mindset.

[@morizanova]

@@hellobont first all, thanks for reply . And secondly yeah we`ve been taking advantage from cross continent and international freelance works (which paid us 4 - 5 times better for easier task ) in last 5 - 8 years or so I`m not sure , if my last comment before , I was implied any kind of lazy mindset but what I wanted to said was, In some country or area, value not always equal with better price . Simply because we had different meaning of value compared what any youtube and design school taught us Even if some our local client really want paying us more , their financial conditions just not allowing that for happen . So forget about using premium plugins or working with any easy solution offered by annual subscriptions platforms out there Do it in native programming language or people branding you as template workers a.k.a Not Expert Dev That`s why you`ll find lots of young creatives from my country flooding any freelance platforms

[@_ar8410]

Totally agree on your take on AI

[@lifotechnologies814]

Myself Aravind Iam Indian. being indian Webdev Iam Surving with Html Css(Bs) Js(Jquery) and for backend with django. Iam now getting salary 35K inr. Now with the help of AI I transformed into UI dev with in three months (daily night 3hrs + weekend ) and In june there will be increment around 10K inr Approach AI +Ly

[@sinamalakzadeh4843]

What should i do at last Web design and web development? Or Ml and li

[@yokoso2386]

so what do you choose

[@KoolKatVibes]

50-70k is nice and all but the cost of living in the US is BONKERS. so yeah, i think it's a bit underpaid

[@KoolKatVibes]

also the minimum wage doesn't even come close to covering the cost of living

[@brunel23]

What are your thoughts on AI apps that allow you to create a website in minutes? Is this not going to replace web designers?

[@hrvstmusic]

Nope.

[@FluxAcademy]

I discuss this on this and other videos

[@lifotechnologies814]

how long a company provide Ai for Free?

[@ez3902]

Don't be a web designer, be a designer who's specialized in improving conversion rates for B2B & B2C Products. There now you're more in demand.

[@zimocj]

Can I contact u to know more about this?

[@maryamhh]

What the difference between them and how be a designer ???

[@thetranspersonalalchemist]

50k in the US aid really difficult to live off of even thought the minimum wage is so low. Minimum wage is an amount that literally no one can live on. Even 70k is difficult yo live off of in most markets as a single person.

[@TheEnterthedreaming]

Don't look at the minimum wage in the US as any gauge of anything. Minimum wage doesn't pay the bills.

[@administrator4728]

Bruh, no one in America can survive off of 15k a year unless they live with their parents. 50k you can barely get by in a cheap city. I pay 20k a year just in rent for a tiny 2 bedroom apartment.

[@Somethingaweful]

Damn I wanted to become a comic-book writer, AI took it over. Okay, fine web-developer, AI took it over... Just a general programmer..... AI took it over. I'm starting to think we are fucked. There's no point, people want to make money. They don't want to better mankind. If they can replace us. They will.

[@bardic_muse]

He wants more web design project that is why

[@petergaspar5896]

Good thoughts, but in my opinion, people don't fully harness artificial intelligence enough as it is, even though there are numerous possibilities within it.

[@morizanova]

I kind agree with your opinion about AI , there are lots of potential which not yet fully explored by users . It's only scratch the surfaces

[@SoumikMallick123]

@Flux Academy Thank you Ran for the motivation 🙏

[@reethkitchards]

Most clientele have bad taste and don't value design or understand it's importance.

[@kluplau]

1:17 ... Webflow? "... all of the topics that Payton listed as reasons not to get into Webflow..." Webflow?

[@SIDotaku]

To the last point about A.I, I think you're making the mistake (that everybody else is making) of thinking in human/historic terms. The whole point of A.I is NOT to be robotic. In other words, if a web design A.I is crafted properly, it will create ORIGINAL works better and faster than humans can. Even if it's simply through it's speed of iteration.

[@FluxAcademy]

Clients wants a hug with their website. Ai can't do that (I'm not joking, go watch the Trust The Process documentary on this channel and see for yourself)

[@SIDotaku]

@@FluxAcademy - I'll definitely check it out. But again I feel you're missing the point of A.I...The reason you YOURSELF don't need to hire a web designer is because you have the capability to create beautiful, well thought out UI/UX. EVERYONE will have that capability in the near future in the form of A.I agents. Design as a viable vocation WILL disappear as people get integrated with this technology. We WILL be obsolete! And I say this as a person who's been a professional designer for 17 years

[@arpitshrmah]

​@@SIDotakuDude everyone could start making content 15 years ago when Garyvee was shouting over his lungs. Now how many businesses were able to do that? There are a lot of content creators who make so much money simply because they provide distribution to businesses. How on earth do you think every business can just do drag & drop and make websites when there are a lot other stuff to do. Think yourself more of a service provider & not a website designer.

[@SIDotaku]

@@arpitshrmah - The video was speaking specifically about design so that is what I was specifically commenting on. But to your point about diversifying your role(s), yes, that DOES seem like the most viable solution. The problem is predicting the kinds of things A.I will ultimately change. Even OpenAI doesn't really know. So for all we know, the leveraging of intelligence/skill/creativity (which is what being a "service provider" is) might not even be a thing in the near future. A.I is like NO other technology we've ever come up with before.

[@arpitshrmah]

@@SIDotaku Are you saying that businesses would need NO services in the future as they can AUTOMATE every single one of them? I hope I misunderstood it. Businesses would always need more & more distribution for sales. And people who starts from zero & built their way up, have a good work ethic, only DEATH can stop them.

[@dougscott188]

AI will be a super power for good designers.

[@bancroftberlin]

Payton loves his click-baity titles, this and his often contradicting statements is why I stopped watching him. In contrast to you: Very solid arguments, especially that everything offering a good career is competitive. It's up to you to be honest to yourself on the way. You might not have what it takes if you can't get a leg up and choose a different path.

[@rmadaconcepts9117]

Its probably still okay but I worry about my son generation. Class of 2033 might not have a design industry worth working towards.

[@Hoss_VegasTTV]

Oh, my sweet summer child, don’t go by our minimum wage. If you work full time making minimum wage you’re eligible for government assistance. 50-70k is just above paycheck to paycheck in most places in this country.

[@FluxAcademy]

thanks for the context!

[@jonathanfelso]

Wtf is up with your water bottle?

[@Optable]

Out of the 182 clients I've worked with, 44 of them were paying $185/hr for large segmented brand/front end/continuous projects. The others between $130-$165/hr. Now that has to get spread out between the two of us, but I've also been told by these clients we were extremely cheap. Now, I'm a senior and I can leverage my history over 14 years at large agencies, however it's really the sales and Rfp/Rfq process that will allow you to get good rates and the signed contract to earn them. Don't undervalue, and gather social proof. Our portfolio is honestly not even great. However our data and results are. That's because I've leveraged what I know, what works right away, and how metrics are boosted via correct SEO. And that process is not GPT friendly. While there is a lot of value there, the problem with great SEO for each different client becomes it is never one size fits all, or even close to it. Some things are even the opposite of best practices depending on the client, and some are extremely finicky when it comes to general "add these keywords in this section" stuff. My secret sauce, and what's around that is my point of sale, and the reason my clients continue to come back over the last 4 years. And it includes the use of saved blank. And nothing to do with words or searches! Good luck to all!