How To Become A Pro Magento Developer (Skills & Tips)

Magento software platform has seen an increase in users due to the growth of eCommerce. The process of creating the best feature-rich eCommerce store, on the other hand, necessitates the expertise of Magento developers. It’s critical that you put your design and development skills in the hands of a professional. So it’s natural that people are now looking to become a Magento developer.

As a result, if you are wondering how to become a Magento developer, you need to focus on a few important ideas and aspects in order to make your eCommerce endeavor profitable and successful.

Table of Content

• What does a Magento developer do?
• Want to become a professional Magento developer? Here’s some pieces of advice for you
• You should have at least all these skills to become a developer on Magento platform

What Does a Magento Developer Do?

The simplest answer to the question “What does a Magento developer do?” is fairly straightforward. In order to become a Magento developer, they must first create and help maintain Magento websites. But then again, that is not a very helpful or thorough answer to the question. So, what exactly does Magento development entail?

Before learning what Magento development entails, we must first comprehend what Magento is. Magento is an ecommerce platform designed to give web developers a starting point. From this, constructing ecommerce websites, which are websites that allow customers to buy and sell products, services, or downloaded content is easy.

Rather than having to construct the same essential functionalities of an ecommerce website (a product catalogue, shopping cart, and checkout) over and over again, Magento makes them available for customization.

1. What does developing for Magento include?

Now that we have established an understanding of what developing a Magento website means, let’s talk about the details of what a Magento developer actually does. A Magento developer creates, maintains, and improves Magento websites. Typically, planning and developing a Magento website requires much work. The collaboration of a team of Magento website developers, website designers, and others to complete all of the necessary tasks is required. 

A Magento developer might operate independently or as part of a Magento agency. Generally, there are two groups of Magento developers, based on their skill sets:

• Front-end Magento developers create Magento themes and work to reproduce a web designer’s design in Magento, ensuring that your website looks fantastic and is responsive (mobile-friendly) to perform well on smartphones and tablets.
• Back-end Magento developers concentrate on adding capabilities to your Magento website, whether through Magento extensions or custom code.

People who excel at Magento developer skills can also earn the titles of Magento Certified Developer Plus (MCD+), Magento Certified Developer (MCD) and Magento Certified Frontend Developer by passing a multiple-choice test in their industry.

2. When working as a Magento developer, you are in charge of:

• Magento installation and configuration
• Building Magento themes based on existing designs
• Increasing Magento’s performance and decreasing loading times
• Setting up Magento stores to accommodate multi currency and multilingual configurations
• Ensure that you install, test, and configure properly payment gateways such as SagePay, Authorize.Net, PayPal, and others.
• Making sure that integrating with other business systems, such as custom relationship management (CRM) software, accounting software and other business programs is possible
• Performing search engine optimization audits on Magento websites

Want to become a professional Magento developer? Here are some advice for you

To become a Magento developer, if you want, we have a few pieces of advice for you. They will definitely come in handy someday, so always keep them in mind! 

1. Have a strong interest in technology and coding

To become a Magento developer, you must definitely have the passion for it, then it won’t be hard. Work doesn’t feel like a hardship when you enjoy what you’re doing. This is also true for Magento developers or any other techie in this situation. Enthusiasm to learn and a desire to produce outcomes distinguish a Magento programmer from the competition. The ambition to improve and achieve desired results is crucial.

These two characteristics aid the process to become a Magento developer in mastering development abilities. It will only be worthwhile if you are passionate about technology and coding in order to become an expert in this field. 

2. Start with the fundamentals

Never move to higher levels just to land a good contract or a better employment. By doing this, you will constantly stuck at many parts while working. As a result, you should begin with the most fundamental fundamentals of Magento code and work your way up. Learning the fundamentals lays a solid basis for a successful career in Magento programming.

3. Constantly refer to Magento-related content 

Apart from the brainstorming you’ll conduct while developing, it’s also crucial to keep reading Magento-related blogs and articles. This will keep you up to date on the latest developments in the industry. It also helps you maintain your enthusiasm for it. Reading Magento-related blogs and articles can provide you a better understanding of industry experts’ thoughts and opinions.

4. Become a certified Magento developer

A certificate that you receive after completing the test will confirm all of your development talents. This improves your marketability. And in addition to your talents, you now have solid evidence that you can complete the assignment effectively.

5. Learn to code in supporting languages

In Magento code, there are three key specializations: front-end, back-end, and full-stack. You may need to master a few more supporting coding languages. These include OOP (object-oriented programming), PHP, Javascript, Jquery, MVC Architecture, MySQL, HTML, CSS and SEO principles. But it can also depend on your competence (search engine optimization).

6. Attend developer-oriented events 

Attending Magento-related developer events is also beneficial to your advancement in the area. Apart from the drive which you gain after meeting like minded people, you also become aware of fresh ideas and breakthroughs inside the sector.

7. Assess your work 

You must not forget or disregard your job once you have finished it. You will be evaluating your programs and outputs on a regular basis. This offers you a better idea of the quality of work you’re doing. It also tells you if there are any areas you can improve

9. With self-reflecting comments, you can help your codes

You shouldn’t merely write codes if you want to be a professional developer. Instead, you should make it a practice to write comments at the end of each code to clarify its meaning and place in the stream of codes.

10. Make a list of all the changes you’ve made

You must always keep a record of any changes to codes you may execute due to some reason, using proper tools. If issues occur later in the code, this will help you figure out what went wrong. This saves you a lot of time when it comes to fixing problems, which boosts your productivity.

11. Make an extensive portfolio

Isn’t it vital to have a collection of all of your work as a record if you continuously work so hard on the tasks you embark on? It’s crucial that you maintain a portfolio and constantly update your successes. This aids in summarizing your achievements in the sector and increases your value in the industry, resulting in additional contracts and assignments in the future.

You may also be interested in:  How to Hire a Web Developer Salesforce CRM Platform: An Ultimate Guide CS Cart vs Magento: Overall and Detailed Comparison

You should have at least all these skills to become a developer on Magento platform

With that out of the way, let’s take a closer look at some of the most important Magento 2 developer skills you’ll need if you’re wondering how to become a Magento developer yourself.

1. Expertise in a variety of eCommerce integrations

ECommerce integration saves time by automating the entire workflow and eliminating data and process redundancies. eCommerce integration is always required for commercial websites. As a result, to become a Magento developer, you must be well-versed in eCommerce integration with a variety of systems, such as payment gateways. Moreover, another key element to look for involves ad-supported and free services that are being built in the near future.

2. Creativity & innovation

Magento development is a creative and innovative process. With the rise of eCommerce websites, besides being efficient at coding, every Magento developer has to be creative in thinking on multiple levels. Magento developers with creativity can create and customize highly unique online stores that keep clients coming back.

Besides, a qualified developer should have a creative perspective to design future-proof tactics for your organization brand. They will begin working in line with the future procedure in order to bring their clients’ company to the top. If a Magento developer has the necessary knowledge and creativity, he is qualified to build a trustworthy website from the ground up.

3. Strong widget development skills for Magento

To become a Magento developer, you should also have great widget building skills that make the data more interactive, viral, and portable. There have been a number of advancements with widgets in the web development area, and they are now also in any eCommerce website. By making it appeal to a wider range of audiences, it could be accessible to the most customers.

4. Skills in creating custom CMS themes

Simply said, a skilled Magento developer should always be a master when it comes to creating bespoke CMS themes. As a result, to become a Magento developer, you will need customisation skills in order to create or customize a CMS theme that meets the client’s specifications. Magento stores make use of CMS software to some extent, so any Magento 2 development firm would engage a Magento developer who is also familiar with CMS software. With the increased demand for CMS software, there has been a steady increase in the number of themes available for diverse software. This is vital since a decent website needs to have a unique design that compliments the brand.

5. Understanding of programming languages

As discussed earlier, Magento is a platform, created fully out of PHP. PHP is the primary programming language used in Magento development, and it is unquestionably a must-have ability for any developer. Which means, to become a Magento developer, you must also be well-versed in all technological fields and terminologies. He must be knowledgeable with technology and understand how computers and web servers work. When a web developer has to get involved, HTML, CSS, and Javascript can all be useful in the building of eCommerce websites. Custom functionality can be added to JavaScript frameworks in the form of modules that you can integrate with your online stores. A strong understanding of JavaScript, as well as CMS and MVC frameworks, is critical for Magento developers.

It is incredibly important for online store owners to identify whether the Magento developer has prior expertise dealing with PHP, and it is also preferable. Aside from the PHP language, a qualified developer should be aware of:

• Data Design Principles
• Basic design principles
• SQL
• Frameworks
• Object-Oriented Design Patterns

6. Problem-solving skills

Being a Magento developer necessitates excellent problem-solving abilities. While developing an online retail site, a developer may encounter a number of coding and design issues. MySQL is useful for dealing with data challenges, but don’t overlook other technologies that might assist you in doing so. A Magento developer may encounter several significant issues that must be resolved in order to deliver a powerful online shop on time. If you give up on finding a solution to your challenges, you will not be able to build an effective eCommerce store in a timely manner.

7. PSD and XHTML skills are required

Because this is another of the most sought-after skills in a Magento developer. For working with new templates, converting from Photoshop (PSD) to XHTML files is a great way to go. Furthermore, this form of designing to coding service is the most in-demand skill set among them all.

8. SEO knowledge is essential

Another important factor that a Magento developer should be aware of is SEO (Search Engine Optimization). It is a critical part, and the developer you pick must be familiar with all of the fundamental tasks as well as functioning SEO in order to optimize your eCommerce website as effectively as feasible. This is critical because web developers must constantly update their websites to keep up with the latest trends.

→ Read more: The Complete Magento 2 SEO Checklist and Guide

9. Ability to communicate

Communication is a two-way street, and it is not only required for a Magento developer to grasp the client’s needs, but it is also necessary for the developer to effectively explain his point. Most eCommerce shop owners aren’t technically savvy when it comes to web development, thus it’s up to the web developer to speak out if something goes wrong.

Furthermore, a Magento developer with excellent communication skills will make it simple for you to communicate your eCommerce requirements to him. However, ensure that the Magento developers you select have excellent communication abilities, particularly in your local language.

10. Understanding of current development trends

Technology advances at a rapid pace, and Magento developers must stay current with the newest development techniques and technologies in order to create cutting-edge eCommerce stores. As certain that a Magento developer is up to date on the current Magento development trends. To become a pro in the world of Magento development, developers must go the additional mile, learn constantly, and keep up with the current developments.

11. Prior Magento experience is critical

Prior Magento experience is required, and you must have worked with Magento in the past. Because Magento is a complex platform with numerous components, a professional Magento developer must be familiar with the front and back end processes, 3rd party plugins, theme development, and so on.

12. JavaScript expertise is required

Because the Magento frontend relies on JavaScript to work, it is a must-know programming language for any professional developer. In addition, each competent developer should be familiar with these technologies.

• jQuery and jQuery UI
• KnockoutJS
• RequireJs
• UnderscoreJS 

13. Databases and caching knowledge

If you run an e-commerce store, the first thing you want is for your website to load in under three seconds. The time it takes for a page to load might have a detrimental impact on conversions.

Conclusion

As a conclusion, these are the crucial Magento developer abilities to look for if you are choosing to work as a Magento developer. We hope that this post has given you a clear understanding of what goes on behind a Magento developer and the tactics that Magento developers should employ, and that these pointers will assist you in getting recruited quickly.

For more useful tips and tricks on how to effectively use Magento, you may want to visit our Magento Tips & Tricks.