DollarDesk

Course 07

Web Development

Build, launch and maintain business websites with WordPress, Shopify and the HTML, CSS and JavaScript underneath.

Who it’s for

For logical, patient people who like building things and want to make and maintain websites for small businesses. No coding experience needed to start.

What you’ll be able to do

  • Build a business website in WordPress from a blank install
  • Set up and customise a Shopify store
  • Edit HTML and CSS to fix what a page builder can't
  • Make sites fast, mobile-friendly and ready for Google
  • Connect a domain, hosting, SSL and business email
  • Keep client sites updated, backed up and secure on a monthly plan

Course outline

6 modules
  1. 01

    Module 1

    How the web works

    • Domains, hosting and DNS in plain words
    • Websites, landing pages and online stores: what clients ask for
    • HTML, CSS and JavaScript: what each one does
    • Setting up VS Code, Chrome DevTools and GitHub
  2. 02

    Module 2

    HTML, CSS and JavaScript basics

    • Page structure with HTML
    • Layouts with Flexbox and Grid
    • Responsive design for phones
    • Small JavaScript fixes: menus, forms and pop-ups
  3. 03

    Module 3

    WordPress websites

    • Installing WordPress and choosing a theme
    • Building pages with Elementor
    • Plugins for forms, SEO, speed and backups
    • Handing the site over so the client can edit it
  4. 04

    Module 4

    Shopify stores

    • Store setup, products and collections
    • Themes and theme settings
    • Payments, shipping and tax settings
    • Apps and small Liquid edits
  5. 05

    Module 5

    Launch, speed and care

    • Connecting the domain, SSL and business email
    • Speed and SEO basics with PageSpeed Insights and Search Console
    • Backups, updates and security
    • Monthly maintenance plans clients pay for
  6. 06

    Module 6

    Getting web clients

    • A portfolio of three practice sites
    • Profiles and proposals on Upwork and Fiverr
    • Pricing projects and retainers
    • Coding faster with AI, then checking every line

Read a free sample

From the guidebook

The first section of the Web Development guidebook, exactly as buyers get it.

From the guidebookSection: Start here

Start here: your first $500 as a web developer

Your first $500 comes from two or three small business websites, not from one big custom app. US small businesses need simple, fast sites they can edit themselves, and that is exactly what WordPress and Shopify let you build in days, not months.

Route What you do Typical starter price To reach $500
Small business website (best) 4–6 page WordPress site with a contact form $200–400 per site 2–3 sites
Fixes and edits Fix a broken layout, speed up a slow site, move a site to new hosting $30–100 per task 6–10 tasks
Monthly care plans Updates, backups, small edits every month $40–100 per site per month 5–8 sites (this becomes steady income)

Starter prices are lower than what experienced developers charge. They buy you your first reviews. Raise them after every 3–5 happy clients.

The 5 steps

  1. Learn the foundations (days 1–10). Read sections 1 and 2 and build one plain HTML/CSS page by hand. You need to understand what a page builder is doing for you.
  2. Build three practice sites (days 8–20). One WordPress site for a made-up local business (a dentist, a restaurant, a plumber), one Shopify store, and one hand-coded landing page. These become your portfolio.
  3. Set up profiles (days 18–21). Upwork, Fiverr and a LinkedIn headline: "WordPress & Shopify Developer · Fast, mobile-friendly business websites · US hours".
  4. Pitch every day (days 21–30). 10 Upwork proposals and 10 direct messages to local US businesses with outdated sites. Lead with a free 3-point audit of their current site.
  5. Deliver, then sell the care plan (month 2). Finish on time, hand over with a short video, then offer a monthly care plan. One-off sites pay once; care plans pay every month.

Get paid

Open a Payoneer account before your first client pays. It receives US dollars and sends them to your Pakistani bank account. Upwork and Fiverr both pay out to Payoneer or directly to your bank.

$500 is about PKR 140,000 at roughly PKR 280 per dollar (approximate, check today's rate). That is your first goal.

Templates and scripts

  • Client website brief template
  • Launch & handover checklist
  • Monthly maintenance report template

Tools you’ll use

  • WordPress
  • Elementor
  • Shopify
  • HTML & CSS
  • JavaScript
  • VS Code
  • GitHub
  • Figma
  • Google Search Console

Roles you can apply for

  • WordPress Developer
  • Shopify Developer
  • Junior Front-end Developer
  • Website Maintenance Specialist
What comes with every course
Portrait of Mohsin Amer Riaz

Your instructor

Mohsin Amer Riaz

Founder & CEO, SoftwareBiz

Mohsin founded SoftwareBiz in 2017, a software development, IT services and business process outsourcing company, after years as a self-taught freelance developer working with clients worldwide.

Strengths in Web Development

  • Self-taught web developer who started out freelancing for clients worldwide on Upwork
  • Leads SoftwareBiz's digital engineering practice
  • Builds systems for businesses across the GCC, APAC, Europe and the US
  • Licensed with the Pakistan Freelancers Association (PAFLA) since 2022
More about Mohsinmohsin.one