21 tasks, each one witnessed by the sources that watched the job — and behind every one, a prompt you can use tonight.
You’ll split time between content and code. Mornings often mean writing or editing lesson text, storyboards, and testing protocols for a module; afternoons you might build a prototype in HTML/CSS/JavaScript or set up multimedia in Adobe After Effects or Photoshop.
You also run scheduled website tests, monitor traffic and performance, and update assets in Adobe Creative Cloud. Some days are hands-on with AWS EC2 or DynamoDB when the course needs backend tweaks; other days are user research and meetings to align the web presence with the client’s learning goals.
Start with the tools you’ll touch every day: HTML, CSS, and basic JavaScript for interactive lessons, plus Adobe Photoshop and InDesign for page and visual layout. Those cover producing content, prototypes, and web-ready graphics.
After that, learn Adobe After Effects for videos and Adobe Illustrator for icons. AWS basics (EC2, DynamoDB, CloudFormation) come later—learn them when you need to deploy, monitor server load, or document technical factors.
You use EC2 when a course needs a web server for interactive apps or to host prototypes during testing. DynamoDB is handy if the course stores user progress or quiz results in a NoSQL database.
You’ll document server load, bandwidth, and database performance, and you might use CloudFormation scripts to spin up repeatable test environments. You don’t need deep devops at first, but basic deployment and monitoring skills are required.
AI can draft lesson text, suggest layouts, generate image drafts, or help create searchable indices, saving time on first drafts. But you must check accuracy, learning alignment, and copyright—AI-made content often needs human editing and source verification.
Use AI to speed prototyping (e.g., mockups, sample code) but never skip user testing, accessibility checks, and final validation. Keep records of AI use in technical documentation and testing protocols for transparency.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) for 2025 data, about 113,330 people worked in related web and digital design roles. Median pay is $104,000 per year; the lowest tenth is $53,750 and the top tenth is $201,550 per year.
Use these numbers as a guide—actual salary depends on employer, location, and how much you do (design vs. backend work). BLS is the source to cite for broad U.S. pay figures.
Compared with a web developer, this role mixes instructional goals with web work: you design learning experiences and also write HTML/JavaScript and create graphics. Developers often focus more on complex backend code and full application architecture.
Compared with an instructional designer, you spend more time on web technologies, prototyping, site testing, and maintaining website content. You bridge both worlds: learning design plus practical web implementation and technical documentation.
Mastering HTML and basic JavaScript is the single most useful technical skill. It lets you build prototypes, integrate multimedia, create searchable indices, and troubleshoot website issues immediately.
Pair that with Adobe Photoshop or InDesign so you can optimize graphics for performance and assemble page layouts. Those two together let you produce, test, and iterate course content from day one.