What Skills Are Required to Become a Good Magento Developer?
The path of becoming a Magento developer might seem different, but the skills required to become one are the same as ever. It doesn’t matter whichever field you are striving hard for, you need to be up-to-date with the latest trends, and Magento developer’s skills that significantly match the current needs of the target industry.
Now the eCommerce realm turns out to be one of the hottest and most seamlessly growing industries across the globe. You see every small, medium and large-scale business is striving hard to enter the lucrative field and make the most of the profit-spinning realm. Today, launching an e-commerce store has become a cakewalk, all thanks to the emerging and ever-growing turnkey solutions such as Magento development.
For those who don’t know, Magento is an open source Content management system or an eCommerce platform which is highly preferred across the world due to some of its amazing features and functionalities. That is why the demand for talented India based Magento experts keeps on rising every now and then. Why from India specifically because from India the cost of development will be very less. Are you willing to become one of those highly-paid grads? Well, then, this post is certainly for you. Here we will be shedding light on some of the best skills required to become a Magento developer.
Magento is an open-source eCommerce platform launched back in 2007 and since then it has been gaining momentum with each release. Also, it offers an amazing range of benefits such as:
Free to use
Powers 1.2% of the internet
More than 250,000 sites are created using Magento (tried and tested)
Businesses using Magento tend to grow 3X faster
Around 12% of eCommerce stores are created using Magento
Table of Contents
Who is a Magento Developer?
You see the success or failure of any eCommerce project mostly depends on the choice of your eCommerce platforms and Magento somehow turns out to be the most tried and tested choice here. But here comes the big question, who is a Magento developer, and what exactly does he or she do?
Well, a Magento developer is said to be one that has the ability to develop Magento websites like never before. And not just development, a Magento developer is also needed for designing, testing and basically every aspect required to conduct a successful Magento development.
For starters, one must understand what exactly Magento development is all about. However, there are several posts stating why Magento is insanely popular and capable enough to conduct a development project that is visually rich, fully functional and quite intimidating. Now the actual role of a Magento developer is to develop high-end, full-fledged and best eCommerce stores. Let’s say there is a requirement of developing a store right from scratch, then you will need a variety of skill-set from the installation and configuration of your Magento store from scratch. Also, you must have a better understanding of how to develop Magento themes and custom features and of course, how to migrate from one platform to another to optimize the overall store performance and more. At the same time, developing a Magento store from scratch requires a team featuring Magento developers, web designers, and testers, so here maintaining seamless cooperation and collaboration is a must.
Magento developers usually are bifurcated into two categories;
Frontend Magento Developers – These kinds of programmers are highly responsible for the overall look and feel of the eCommerce store. In the end, they are responsible for the fact that the store must be visually appealing and responsive enough. On and all, the store must be capable for grabbing the eye of the visitor and rendering seamlessly across a wide range of devices such as tablets, smartphones and so more.
Backend Magento Developers – These programmers focus well on creating features and functionalities of the Magento store. By using different pre-built Magento extensions and bespoke code, a successful Magento store is developed.
Tasks of a Magento Developer
eCommerce development
Design Magento Templates and Modules
Integrations and Troubleshooting
Knowledgeable of HTML, CSS, Javascript, PHP/Magento/WordPress
Payment Gateways
A deep understanding of UI/UX trends
Great working knowledge of SEO, Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, A/B Testing, PPC, Adobe Illustrator, and Adobe Photoshop
Without any further delay, I would like to mention some of the core skills required to differentiate oneself as a successful Magento developer.
Skills to Become a Good Magento Developer
● Proper Time Management
One of the basic yet essential skills every Magento developer must master at is time management. You see development projects are never one-time investments, they tend to remain ongoing and so is the demand of the Magento developer. As a programmer you are not supposed to concentrate on just one project, chances are extremely high when you have to don multiple hats when one you are required to develop a Magento store whereas during other time you are required to focus on some support and maintenance issues. As a Magento developer, one must know how to manage time or use it in an efficient manner. Here I can offer you certain tips that can assist you well in managing time such as:
First and foremost, figure out how much time is required for a given Magento Development Project
- Second, try bifurcating or dividing the entire project into manageable chunks
- Third, Prioritize all your tasks
- Fourth, Take regular breaks and try to avoid situations of burnout
- Fifth, stay focused for the longer periods
- Last, Make use of time in an optimal manner
● Great Communication Skills
Another interesting skill that every Magento developer needs to master at is great communication. Even if you try working as a freelancer, you must be great when it comes to communication. You see here you have to communicate effectively with your clients so that there is no scope for any misconceptions. Apart from this, if you dream about working at a multinational software development or eCommerce development company then also, you must be great at communicating since here you don’t just address end clients but are also bound to communicate with your colleagues from the same as well as other departments such as testing, designing, business development, business analysts and so more.
To become a successful Magento developer, one must be able to present his or her opinions and thoughts without any glitches or issues. Also, having good communication and understanding skills let the Magento developer to deliver exactly what is expected from them.
● Magento Certifications
If you are a certified Magento developer then it means you will be more in demand than any other developer without a degree. Also, certification means proper authentication and reliability and credibility. So as a Magento developer, you need to get certified and pass with flying colours. In other words, a Magento developer must be technically sound and well-experienced. Here I would like to mention some important elements of the Magento tech stack.
Apache
Nginx
PHP
MySQL
Varnish
Redis
Solr
Composer
Zend Framework
Symfony
On a basic note, a Magento developer is supposed to be proficient in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, as well as numerous skills including languages such as PHP, Java, Python, and Ruby. Simply enroll for a reputable Magento development course and apply for the Magento Developer certification exam
● Creative Thinking
Another interesting skill that every developer including a Magento professional must master is creative thinking. Yes, gone are the times when developers and programmers were imagined as tech-savvy geeks or weird nerds. Today, they are expected to be creative and innovative in their approach. After all, this is the only way they can enhance their valued client’s presence. Developing a novel solution is not just about enhancing technical aspects, one has to be creative enough as well.
You see here being creative means one certainly has a knack of making the most of different modules, themes, and extensions, when there is a need to integrate third-party softwares and when it’s not. And above all, how to enhance the overall features and functionalities and scalability of the developed solution.
● Professionalism
The next crucial trait required in any successful Magento developer must be of absolute professionalism. Now this aspect is not just limited to developers but to any other professional. When you are working for someone, you must carry a professional attitude and follow appropriate ethics. When you do so, you are able to create a good impact on your end clients. Professionalism has been one of the primary traits that every eCommerce store owner is looking for when hiring a Magento developer. And fortunately, you will come across several professionals out there who incorporate all the aforementioned traits and skills, so all you need to do is look for the right one.
● SEO Knowledge
Being a Magento developer doesn’t necessarily mean you must be well-versed with just development aspects. In fact, they must also have better know-how regarding SEO. You see nowadays simply developing a website and doing nothing much about it is a major sin. He or she needs to be well-versed and come up with different SEO strategies and approaches. After all, this is the only way through which your website can rank higher in SERPs and take your store to the next level. Even though sometimes as a developer one doesn’t feel the need to learn or get acquainted with the basic SEO skills. But trust me when I say this, learning about SEO surely can give you a cut above. Also, when your client knows that you already have tricks to increase traffic to the developed Magento website, they won’t even bother to go anywhere else.
Over to You!
So yes, these are some of the best skills required to become a successful Magento developer. Mastering them is not so hard but once you do, you have a long way to go! I hope the following post was worth your time. In case, if you would like to add something or offer a relevant tip regarding the best Magento developer’s skills then feel free to mention that in the comment section below. Everyone is jumping on the Magento development bandwagon but the ones who keep up with the basic as well as trending skills tend to rise much like bubbles rise to the top of a soda bottle.