When most people think about the internet, they picture social media, search engines, and online shopping — not the people behind the curtain keeping it all running smoothly. But every website has someone responsible for its health, performance, and profits.
That person is a webmaster, and right now, Long Island needs more of them. Current estimates say that 1,600 webmasters exist on Long Island.
What Is a Webmaster?
The world-wide-web was invented by the first webmaster, who coined the word, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, a British scientist who developed the world-wide-web in 1989-1991.
Research and development started in 1989, by Aug. 6 1991. Tim released the first website on the first web browser, which he also made. He invented all of this along with HTML code and more. He was knighted by the Queen of England for his contributions to society.
Nowadays, a webmaster is an engineer, designer, problem-solver, and business strategist. Think of us as digital/web property managers. Just like you’d hire someone to maintain your building or landscape your yard, you need someone to maintain, protect, and grow your website. A website is an asset, the best thing you can do is maintain and grow it.
Webmasters handle everything from domain management and website security to SEO (search engine optimization), analytics, and updates. They make sure your website stays live, loads fast, looks sharp, and brings in business.
Without webmasters, websites break. They get hacked, disappear from Google, or fail to convert visitors into customers. That’s like owning a storefront on Main Street with no lights, no signage, and a locked door.
The Power of a Webmaster
Here’s the thing: Being a webmaster isn’t just a technical skill, it’s a money-making engine.
A smart webmaster understands how to turn traffic into sales. For local businesses, that means making your site rank higher on Google for Long Island searches, optimizing it to convert visitors into leads, and keeping it running 24/7 without issues.
For individuals, learning webmaster skills can lead to freelance work, digital marketing jobs, or launching your own business. You don’t need a fancy degree; you need curiosity, consistency, and the ability to problem-solve. I’ve seen Long Islanders who started building sites for their friends’ businesses and now run six-figure digital agencies.
The internet is the new real estate — websites are assets — and webmasters are the developers.
Why Every Long Islander Should Care About Their Website
Whether you own a restaurant, a plumbing company, a law firm, or any shop, your website is often the first impression people have of you. And that impression directly affects your bottom line. Great websites usually mean a great business, you can tell if someone cares by their website and if they actually maintain and take care of it digitally.
A good webmaster ensures your website isn’t just a placeholder. Your website is an active, living part of your business that attracts customers, showcases your work, and generates revenue.
Long Island’s economy thrives on small businesses, and small businesses thrive online these days like on Amazon and Google. The better we take care of our digital and websites, the stronger our local economy becomes. If every Long Islander became a webmaster or learned how to be one, we would have the strongest economy in the whole world easily.
Long Island would become an industrial and commercial hub, we would be the ultimate producers and our economy would set records. It would be truly amazing.
Becoming a Webmaster
The best way to start? Get your hands dirty. Build a website. Break it. Fix it. Learn HTML, CSS, and WordPress, or create a custom website on your own. Play around with SEO and analytics. Watch tutorials, join online communities, and start experimenting.
And if you’re a student or professional looking for a career change, consider learning the craft. Webmasters are in demand everywhere, and the skills you gain can take you from local clients to global opportunities.
Webmasters are the backbone of websites, the mechanics keeping the internet’s engine running. Long Island has the talent, creativity, and hustle to lead the next generation of web professionals.
Greg Grigorian is a Long Island webmaster
