So – you have a killer idea for a new business venture or blog. You’ve got start up cash and people on board. All you need next is an awesome website. ACK! What the hell do I do now?!

For all the time we spend on the internet, many of us are in the dark about what makes websites tick. Enter The Girl’s Guide to Web Design (GG2WD), an eight-week online course designed to demystify the traditionally male enclave of web design and programming code. Make 2012 the year you learn code: acquiring these skills will empower you, make you smarter and more employable. We chatted with GG2WD founder Amanda Aitken – who kicks off the next session of courses on January 30th, and is offering 3 scholarship spots to get you going – about how sisters are (or should be) doin’ it for themselves on the interwebz.

SheDoestheCity: First, what is the Girl’s Guide to Web Design?

Amanda Aitken: The Girl’s Guide to Web Design is an online learning experience that teaches creative chicks to ditch their fear of code, unleash their inner designer and create an awe-inspiring WordPress blog or site. Basically, it teaches you everything you need to know about conceptualizing, setting up, designing, and executing a gorgeous blog or site – code, graphics, SEO and all. Students get access to a private website, where they can watch videos that walk them through all the concepts and plenty of examples. If you enroll in the “First Class Edition” of the course, you also get weekly access to me (Amanda) during our Q&A Screencasts, when I answer all your questions and show you the solutions live on your computer screen. And you also get access to the private Facebook group, where you can hang out with fellow students, trade ideas and share design triumphs.

SDTC: Tell me a little bit about how you got started.

AA: You know when you try something for the first time and are immediately obsessed? That’s what it was like for me and the internet. I remember spending HOURS on the computer when my parents got our first dialup account. I was fascinated by images on the web and the way they could be combined with colours and layouts to create sites. I decided to teach myself HTML so that I could make my own online creations, and it just kind of snowballed from there! By the time I was 17, I was taking on web-related summer jobs and making sites for a few clients. When I graduated from university, I dove right into the corporate world with a job in online marketing – but my entrepreneurial spirit had other plans. I had various web projects going “on the side” for years while I worked for other people in marketing, account management, and communications. It wasn’t until I got laid off from my job as a retail copywriter (I wrote the slogans you saw in the windows of Garage and Dynamite stores!) that I formally launched my web design business out of a tiny little office in the equally tiny row house apartment I shared with my then-boyfriend (now fiancé) Justin. And The Girl’s Guide to Web Design came a couple of years later.  

SDTC: Why target women specifically?

AA: The course is aimed at ladies who have an amazing idea for a blog or site, but who are frustrated because they don’t have the skills to make it a reality online. A lot of our students have tried to figure out their website setup or to learn to code before, only to get frustrated and give up. The Girl’s Guide to Web Design is designed to be a fun and friendly approach to learning all the stuff that can seem really scary to a lot of people. There are a few reasons why I decided to target women with the course. First, I’m pretty girly, and I like being able to talk to women in femme-speak. Second, I think it’s a shame that code has this reputation of being a strictly male domain, when it’s such an empowering skill set to learn. It’s a shame that more women don’t get into it, because when you know how to code and set up websites, it means you can get any project or business up and running on your own, without needing to rely on, wait for, or pay anyone else. How empowering is that? Entrepreneurship is a huge passion of mine, and I talk to a lot of women who have these incredible ideas, but no way to bring them to fruition. And these days, you have no business if you don’t have a website.

SDTC: It seems that a web designer offering a how-to on code is akin to a magician revealing his tricks. Why “expose” the mysteries of web design?

AA: Great question! I’m a very “figure it out yourself” kind of person, and I never felt right about designing sites for people when it was so clear to me that they had wonderful design sense and could probably learn to do it themselves! In a weird way, it was kind of like “why are you paying me to do this for you? Why don’t you just study up, get the skills yourself, and be ready to take on the world with whatever blog or site you want to build?”. Learning to DIY websites isn’t for everyone, but I think there are a lot of people out there who would get such enjoyment out of learning to code. Believe it or not, several of our students have emailed me to say things like “it’s Friday night. I was invited to a party, but instead I’m settling in with a cup of coffee – and I can’t wait to code the night away!”. People are usually shocked by how satisfying and fun it is.

So to answer your question, I get a lot of joy out of teaching people these skills. And to be honest, I’ve made a lot more money teaching web design on a one-to-many basis than I have working on individual websites for people, although I still do that, too.

SDTC: I have a Tumblr account. What can designing my own website give me that Tumblr or other ready-mades can’t? 

AA: Total customization! The focus of The Girl’s Guide to Web Design is learning to make sites that look NOTHING like anybody else’s. With the skills you learn in the course, you can present your content in any way you see fit. You don’t have to work within the confines of a template or a pre-set theme. Instead, you can build and tweak and perfect every last detail and graphic on your site, which is pretty much the most fun thing ever, if you’re into design! 

SDTC: I see! So, where and how can I sign up?  

AA: You can sign up right now (for either version of the course) at http://girlsguidetowebdesign.com/enroll/

Enrollment for the next session of the First Class Edition of the course will close on January 29th, as the course kicks off on January 30th. The Jetsetter version of the course is available for purchase anytime and has no set start date, as it’s an at-your-own pace thing. 

If you sign up between now and January 29th, you’ll be showered with amazing bonuses, too! The earlier you sign up, the more bonuses you get – and trust me; you want these bonuses! We’ve got artistic digital planners to help you get organized, a guide to getting going with video on your site, marketing how-to, and even a copywriting course! All the info on this week’s bonuses is available at http://girlsguidetowebdesign.com/magical-mystery-bonus-tour/.

SDTC: Thanks Amanda!

The Girl’s Guide to Web Design is also running a scholarship contest right now! They’re giving away 3 free spots in the course (Jetsetter or First Class – your choice). Get the full scoop at girlsguidetowebdesign.com/win-a-free-spot-in-the-course/

~ Heidi Craig