Honestly, Why not Figma?
Well to me, it's because of its freedom!
Figma is arguably the best solution-based tool out there for designers, it is mostly used by product designers, UI/UX designers, UI designers and recently it is used to create awesome illustrations by creative designers. Figma is both a web-based design tool and an app-based design tool, it doesn’t require much memory space for it to be functional because of its cloud storage capability.
Product designers use it mostly to create Wireframes, Low-fi and Hi-fi products and also it is used for prototyping products.
Figma gives the ability to store your designs on a cloud, no need to save your files in your computer, they automatically save on the cloud while you work, you can leave your computer at home and login to your Figma account in your workplace and continue from where you stopped a night before, not that’s the real taste of freedom. The most recent feature would blow your mind, imagine having a network failure and you are unable to save your file immediately, Figma helps store your file pending when the network comes back up, you can keep designing and even turn off your computer and it would still be available for you to keep working on when the network comes back up, it stores on the cloud automatically, you don’t need to be bothered pressing CTRL S.
A short history
Figma was released on 27th of September 2016 and has around 1 Million Sign-Ups since then, it has the most amazing features for prototyping, designing and also cloud-based storage, the most exciting feature about Figma is the instant collaborative tool it has in stock and also the plugins that ease a designers time frame for design, Figma truly is an awesome tool.
Here is the breakdown of her features.
Designing: It’s vector-based design software that utilises shapes, such as circle, triangle, rectangle and square. Text, shadows, lines and images to form presentable objects.
Prototyping: Are you done designing and would like to present your Hi-Fi designs to your client just to convince them on how it works and also buy into the idea of the product, all you have to do is connect each frame according to the process it was designed and it would give you an instant direction on how to go about it and how it is meant to work to your prospective clients or developer.
Cloud-Based Storage: Are you tired of saving files on your computer and having it clung up space on your computer, would you just prefer it saved instantly as you work without having to press control save all the time, Figma comes with an automatic cloud storage feature that helps automatically save your project while you keep working without having to bother about losing your document, the recent update comes with the ability to keep working even when the network messes up.
Collaboration: Do you want to work with your favourite designers on an interesting project that could change the course of humanity and history, or solve a problem that has been pestering a community? Figma gives users the option to work in a team and collaborate on projects.
Plugins: The pure heart of gold is when you don’t have to leave the software to accomplish a particular task, it can be depressing surfing through multiple platforms to make things work. Figma introduced the ability to use a plugin to accomplish tasks without having to leave the platform and also help with productivity.
Community Driven: Here’s where creativity meets community, Figma launched her community in 2019 and has grown over Months, designers are given the ability to join their community based on the country or city they reside in, there’s a city moderator who creates topic around design and the business of design, designers get to join in by registering, a link would be shared via email to the participant to join on a fixed date. This community hangout can be amazing.
I started using Figma in March and it has been an amazing experience with the software. I have tried other design tools and Figma just stands out with all it's features.
I hope you enjoyed my article on Why Figma and how it can help you a lot with productivity as designer, I hope it persuades you enough to try it for a day or a week and see how amazing the software is.