How to get a well-paid, remote job as a Bubble.io developer

1. I saw the demand

When I started (2020), it was at a good time (warning: you can get into something too early — like my friend Geo!). Bubble was pumping. There were 700,000 users, intense levels of demand, and few great/available developers or agencies.

Developers, good ones, and average ones were in high demand. Where are we now in the Bubble world? Yes, there are more devs. But there is EVEN more demand.

Bubble lets anyone build software. But it's not as easy as many think. There are now around 2.8 million users (4x the number of 2020) and LOTS of them need help!

SOS. Bubble developers. Are you there?

2. I took a step and invested in myself

My first move was taking a startup accelerator. My second was doing a Bubble Bootcamp. Both cost time and money. TBH, I was really unsure if either was a good idea at the time.

But I took a step and invested around $2,000 across both. I say “invested” because that's what it was. An investment into my professional development.

The accelerator bought knowledge, contacts, and a new perspective.

The Bootcamp gave me an end-to-end overview of Bubble and answered a lot of questions.

In the end, I knew I could pitch Bubble to the right people, say the right words, and have confidence in my ability to deliver, even if I had to work hard to figure it out on the fly.

3. I backed myself

I love solving problems with technology. I walk around and think “I could fix that” or “I could improve that!”.

I’ve always created stuff via trial and error. Writing music. Coding with Basic, VB, and Access. Tinkering with audio production. Learning PHP and MySQL back in 2007. Picking up Qlik (a BI tool) and SQL Server in 2016 for a cracking job opportunity.

Then I came across Bubble. At first, I was skeptical but quickly had an “ah-ha” moment during the Bootcamp. This was a versatile, powerful, yet relatively easy tool I could quickly learn.

I figured out I could model and build most web applications I used on a daily basis, even complex ones. My confidence to learn Bubble opened the door to a world of possibilities.

4. I built a portfolio of personal and client projects

The next thing is self-propagating.

Firstly, I built my own (quite ugly) portfolio. Then I won some client work, doing short engagements either building/improving apps or teaching.

Gradually the work got better.

The clients represented companies making serious investments in their business. The training opportunities increased my profile. I updated my portfolio and went again. I eventually hired other developers and designers. Momentum Group was born!