Senior Art Director
Paulsboro, New Jersey, USA
Professional Websites:
www.tonypearldesign.com
www.sticks-and-skins.com
CIW Associate
CIW Professional
Master CIW Designer
Tony emphasizes how focused CIW studying and training will reap awards after certification. "Just like any other schooling, the harder you work and the more you put in, the more you get out," said Tony. "CIW training will pay for itself many times over!"
Visual Designer and business owner opens new doors by becoming a Master CIW Designer
Tony Buford's design firm, TonyPearlDesign, has been doing graphic design and consulting work for clients within the Entertainment industry in the Northeast region for nearly 15 years. Tony looked at the advances in digital design and advertising and he knew that adding the ability to create Web sites for his clients would prove to be an invaluable addition to his company's services.
Tony decided to compliment his graphic design experience with Web training and a CIW certification - tangible proof of his Web credentials.
In just six months, Tony earned his CIW Associate, CIW Professional and Master CIW Designer certifications through classes at the New Horizons Computer Learning Center in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. Tony completed 12 classes in total from the school including CIW, Photoshop, Javascript and Microsoft Office courses.
"As a more senior member of the advertising design community, I saw that design and production for the Internet and multimedia were becoming necessary skills, and would be even more so," said Tony.
Tony cites Javascript, WYSIWYG design software, and knowledge of the interconnection of servers throughout business as the most valuable topics he learned from his CIW training. Tony was also able to combine Web site design and his previous experience as a Visual Designer to tackle projects that before his CIW training he would have not been able to accomplish.
One of these projects was centered on the Web site www.sticks-and-skins.com. The client that had commissioned TonyPearlDesign had written booklets giving tips to music students. The client wanted to sell and promote these new training materials. Tony researched online publishers, designed and coordinated the publication of his five books and re-designed the Web site that sells them.
"The fact that I've been a Visual Designer long before my CIW training made the training that much more valuable," explained Tony. "All the ideas that I had, I now knew how to translate them into quality images online. The site was a hodgepodge of animated GIFs, stolen images from the Internet and it didn't have either consistency or a single theme that visitors could latch on to."
With the success of this project, Tony has continued to develop Web sites for various other clients, continuing his string of success in Web site design and graphic illustration.
Tony has advice for those who are just beginning their paths and gaining experience in Web-related positions.
"The people who will take you into their companies want something that tells them you can take on new challenges, follow complex paths to a successful final product and are willing to see the 'big picture' about what each job means to the end client," said Tony. "CIW certification isn't easy, which is good. That will tell your prospective employer that your certification means more than you can write a check to a school."
