Graphic Designer Portfolio

How to Make a Graphic Designer Portfolio

How to Make a Graphic Designer Portfolio: Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners

The graphic design is a communicative design that uses art, colors, and text to communicate an idea with visually appealing effect. It is a visually stunning art with purpose that involves systematic planning to achieve an objective using the images, symbols and graphics. The aesthetic expression of the concepts in used widely in various industry to capture the attention of the people. The graphic design institute in Jaipur aims to find the people with creative mind and nurture them to become great graphic designers.

Creative Mind with Artistic Inclination

People who have keen observation skills along with artistic penchant can become good graphic designers. The analytical thinking is one of the essential qualities to study graphic designer. The graphic designing courses in Jaipur will take care of the rest. It provides complete freedom to the students to tap their creativity and use the physical tool to create an impressive visual. The students will learn various methods to combine art and technology to create a stunning piece of work that can allure people. They use the following tools to bring life to an idea;

  • Sketchpad: It is the traditional tool to sketch the ideas roughly with the pen.
  • Tablet: The improvement in technology has paved way to the modern tools like tablets that expands the creative horizons of the designers and maintains the sketchpad feel.
  • Software: Software like Photoshop and illustratorcan add special effects to the art to enhance the effects of the photographs.

Uses of Graphic Design

The graphic designers have a myriad of options as there are countless opportunities available in the industry. The graphic designing courses will equip the students with skills that will enable them to venture into different fields in the industry like;

  • Creative Director: Students with focused mind can become the creative director of a team that creates visual for product branding and advertising.
  • Art Production Manager: The graphic designing courses in Jaipur will give necessary training for the students to manage the production area of art to lower their cost effectively.
  • Art Director: The art directors manage the illustrators and production artists to ensure timely completion of projects.
  • Package Designer: A package designer creates designs for packaging of product to market them successfully.
  • Visual Image Developer: Exclusive designs are created using the 3D modelling, image editing, and photography.
  • Logo Designer: Company/ brand logo is the identity of a business, so it is designed to carry creativity and message.
  • Illustrator: The graphic design institute in Jaipur will cultivate skills in students to represent the ideas through 2D and 3D images.
  • Multimedia Developer: They can add images, sounds, and design to create animation videos that can blow people’s mind.
  • Web Designer: They are an integral part of the internet business world as they integrate layout, graphics, and information pages to create high-quality websites.

The graphic design institutes in India will enhance the skills of the students to make them adept to the industry standards. The graphic designer portfolio of students will have eye-catching works that will entice everyone. The graphic designing training courses will help the student make a niche in the designing industry with the latest courses that suits the needs of the industry.

Website Designing Company in Delhi

List of the Top Delhi Web Design Companies

Here is a list of Top 10 Delhi’s Website Designing & Development Companies

These are the best companies and service offering include Internet marketing, website design, SEO Packages, Search engine optimization, Social media Optimization, Google Adwords, Adsense, webmasters etc.

Because we have so much coding running down in our veins, we believe we can do a really cool job of website and mobile app development even while we are sleepwalking. So, all your cool start up ideas can turn into real mobile application and website, all you got to do is give a holler or simply walk in to our Delhi adda. Coffee is on us! Know More.

Best Website Designing companies in Delhi are listed here. Web design  & web development services for all your marketing needs. Explore more!

1 | Digi Web Art

Corporate Office – NSP, New Delhi

Business – Website Development, Web Designing |

Call Or WhatsApp – +91 9529294652 |

Website – http://www.digiwebart.com/ |

Digi Web Art is leading Top Delhi Web Design Companies, which is offering website designing services in India, corporate responsive web designing firms India and web agency. Best Website Designers of Delhi – DWA web designing team of is always ready to turn your vision into reality. T

2 | Web Click India

Corporate Office – New Delhi

Business – Ecommerce Website Design,SEO Services |

Website – https://www.webclickindia.com/ |

Web Development Company in India from Delhi. Web Click India is Best Web Designing Company in Delhi. Get Responsive Ecommerce Website Design,SEO Services.

3 | Webpulse

Corporate Office – New Delhi

Business – Responsive Ecommerce Website with SEO,B2B,B2C Portal Development |

Website – https://www.webpulseindia.com/ |

Awarded as Best Website Designing Company in India, Webpulse™ leading Website Designing Company in Delhi makes sites that ranks on Google to boost your sales. That develop everything you need – Mobile Responsive Website, eCommerce Websites, B2B Portal,B2C Portal CRM and lots more..

4 | Cross Section Interactive

Corporate Office – Noida

Business – Web Deesign & Development, Digital Marketing services |

Website – http://www.csipl.net/indexa.asp |

Cross Section Interactive a best website development, web designing company in Noida/Delhi NCR specializing in web design, mobile apps development, SEO & SMO.

5 | OGEN Infosystem

Corporate Office – Delhi/NCR

Business – SEO services, Web Development & Designing |

Website –https://www.ogeninfo.com/ |

OGEN Infosystem is Best Website Designing Company in Delhi, We are Awarded as Top 5 Website Designing Company in India, Ecommerce Website Design Company in Delhi,India.Responsive Ecommerce web development, Web design & Development and SEO Services, PPC, SMO, B2B, B2C Portal Development, Website Designing Company in Delhi, Website Designing Company in India

6 | Web Media Makers

Corporate Office – Delhi

Business – SEO services & Website Solutions |

Website – http://webmediamakers.com/ |

Web Media Makers is the award winning top & best responsive web designing services company in Delhi NCR, India offering website design Delhi in Cost Effective Prices.

7 | Esteps

Corporate Office – New Delhi

Business – Web Solutions, Digital Marketing & Application Development  |

Website – http://esteps.in/ |

Esteps is a leading website designing company in delhi, District Center, Janakpuri, india, that provides SEO, SMO and Web Design services to businesses in the Delhi NCR.

8 | Olive Global

Corporate Office – New Delhi

Business – Website Design, SEO services & Internet marketing |

Website – http://www.olive.in/ |

Olive Global empowers brands worldwide through its offerings in website design & development, search engine optimization (SEO) and digital marketing campaigns.

9 | eMaven Solutions

Corporate Office – New Delhi

Business – Web Design & Development, eCommerce, Online Marketing |

Website – http://www.emavens.com/ |

eMaven Solutions a leading result oriented Digital Agency located in Delhi, India Since 2003. Contact us today to fulfill your ecommerce Website Designing and Development needs and other services.

10 | Art Attackk

Corporate Office – New Delhi

Business – Website Design & Development, Branding & Digital Marketing. |

Website – https://www.artattackk.com/ |

Art Attackk is a creative website designing company in Delhi, India. We offer a full range of digital marketing solutions like – web design & development, SEO, SMO, branding and more.

seo company in delhi

Top 10 Best SEO Companies in Delhi NCR

Here is a list of Top Best 10 SEO Companies in Delhi NCR.

These are the best companies and service offering include Internet marketing, website design, SEO Packages, Search engine optimization, Social media Optimization, Google Adwords, Adsense, webmasters etc.

What is SEO Services / SEO Service Provider

An SEO service provider utilizes the practice of search engine optimization to increase the amount of visitors to a Web site by obtaining high-ranking placements in the search results page of search engines (SERP).

Best SEO companies in Delhi are listed here. Search engine optimization services for all your marketing needs.

List of top 10 Leading Delhi Based SEO Companies goes here:

Explore more!

1 | Digiwebart

Corporate Office – New Delhi

Business – SEO services, Internet Marketing & PPC |

Website – http://www.digiwebart.com/ |

Digiwebart Leading SEO Company in Delhi, India & UK. ROI based SEO Services in Delhi. That SEO Company in India provides Internet Marketing Services like Website Development, PPC, SEO & SMM.

2 | SEO Service Delhi

Corporate Office – Delhi

Business – SEO, Digital marketing, SMM Services |

Website – http://www.seoservicedelhi.in/ |

SEO Service Delhi, SEO Company in Jaipur, One of the fastest growing Search Engine Optimization Company located in Mumbai, India. Offer result oriented SEO Services. Get Free SEO Audit Report.

3 | Techmagnate

Corporate Office – New Delhi

Business – Digital Marketing & SEO services |

Website – www.techmagnate.com |

Techmagnate is a high quality SEO Company in Delhi NCR offering professional SEO services to Clients looking to increase traffic to their website.  That also provide SEO, SMO, SEM, PPC, ORM, E-mail marketing services at affordable prices.

 

4 | SEOServicesCompany

Corporate Office – Delhi

Business – Digital Marketing services |

Website – https://seoservicescompany.co.in/ |

SEOServicesCompany is a top-notch seo agency and company in Delhi, India, provide complete seo services like profitable keyword research, on-page and off-page.

5 | EMarketz India Pvt Ltd

Corporate Office – Delhi/NCR

Business – SEO services, Web Development & Designing |

Website –https://www.emarketz.net/ |

EMarketz India Pvt Ltd SEO company located in Delhi offers SEO, SEM, PPC, ORM services at affordable rates. Get internet marketing services includes Search engine optimization, Social media optimization, Pay per click and online reputation management.

6 | Arihant Webtech

Corporate Office – Delhi

Business – SEO services & Website Solutions |

Website – http://www.arihantwebtech.com/seo.html |

Arihant Webtech is leading Digital Marketing & SEO Company in Delhi. Digital marketing offers SEO, SEM, ORM, SMO Services.

7 | Acme Infolabs pvt ltd

Corporate Office – New Delhi

Business – SEO services |

Website – http://www.acmeinfolabs.com/ |

Acme Infolabs pvt ltd is a leading SEO agency that provides high quality, results driven SEO services to companies in Delhi, India & worldwide. Get free SEO audit report.

8 | Webbharat Network

Corporate Office – Delhi

Business – SEO services & Internet marketing |

Website – http://www.webbharatnetwork.com/seo.php |

Improve your business online presence by optimizing your website with best SEO practices deployed by Webbharat Network one of the finest SEO company in Delhi.

9 | Alliance IT

Corporate Office – New Delhi

Business – Online Marketing |

Website – http://allianceit.in/ |

Alliance IT is one of the most esteemed and reliable digital marketing company which provides SEO, SEM, PPC along with Web Marketing we provide assistance in terms of web designing, web development, content writing.

10 | Pepper Designs

Corporate Office – Delhi

Business – Online Marketing |

Website – https://www.pepper-designs.com/ |

Getting maximum visibility by applying smart Pepper Designs Best SEO Company In Delhi NCR is not an impossible thing when Mediapasta handles it. We takeover immediately and upgrade the online resources for web indexes that affect visibility.

 

Related:

 Top 10 SEO Companies in India

Top 10 SEO Companies in Mumbai

 

Graphic Design Companies in Jaipur
Graphic Design Companies in Jaipur

Top 10 Best Graphic Design Companies in Jaipur

Here is a list of Top 10 Graphic Design Companies in Jaipur

These are the best companies and service offering include printing, logo & graphic designer in India from Jaipur, web design, development, digital printing, branding, digital marketing etc.

CHECK OUT JAIPUR ‘S BEST COMPANIES OF GRAPHIC DESIGN WITH ALL CATEGORY BUSINESS SERVICES INCLUDE:

✓Agriculture & Farming ✓Apparel & Fashion ✓Atomobile & Auto Parts ✓Ayurvedic & Herbal ✓Books & Stationery ✓Chemical Website Designing ✓Computer & Electronic ✓Education Website Designing ✓Entertainment ✓Energy & Power ✓Environment ✓Food Products & Beverages ✓Furniture Website Design ✓Gifts & Handicrafts ✓Granite Business ✓Health & Beauty Website ✓Industrial Supplies ✓IT & Telecom Services ✓Hotels & Restaurants ✓Jewellery Website ✓Kitchen Utensils & Appliances ✓Leather Goods Website ✓Machines & Equipments ✓Medical Website ✓Marble Business ✓Milk Products ✓Metals, Alloys & Minerals ✓Natural Stones Website ✓Office Supplies & Stationery ✓Paper Products ✓Printing & Publishing ✓Security Products ✓Sports Goods Website ✓Tours & Travels ✓Transportation & Logistics ✓Telecom Equipment & Goods ✓Textiles & Fabrics ✓Toys & Games Website.

Best Logo & Graphic Design Services Company, Agency and Famous Logo Designer companies in Jaipur are listed here. Graphic Design & Logo services for all your various needs. Explore more!

1 | Digi Web Art

Corporate Office – Jaipur, Delhi, Mumbai, Varanasi, Meerut

Business – Graphic Design services, Digital Marketing, Web Design & development | Website – http://www.digiwebart.com/ |

Digi Web Art is the professional brand consultants & graphic design company in Jaipur, India that offers Wall Art,Logo Design, Visiting cards design, Conceptual Designs, Digital Artist, Catalogue design, Wedding cards design, Book Cover design, News paper Ad design, Packaging Design, Banner Design, Standee Design, Stationery Design, Flyer Design, Restaurant Branding, Real estate Brochure Designing and Product Presentation by best experienced graphic designers in Jaipur.

2 | Sacred Fig Design

Corporate Office – Jaipur

Business – Logo Design and Graphic Design Service | Website – http://www.sacredfigdesign.com/ |

Searching for best Graphic Designer in Jaipur? Sacred Fig Design is the Graphic Design Company of Jaipur, India for you. See Graphic Design Portfolio itself explains about Graphic Designing services.

3 | Dot ‘N’ Dash Graphics

Corporate Office – Jaipur

Business – Logo Design, Internet Marketing & Web Designing | Website – http://dotndashgraphics.com/ |

Dot ‘N’ Dash Graphics is a Graphic Design & UI Design Services Company providing artistic and professional graphic and UI design that focus on visual communication.

4 | Graphicstudio

Corporate Office – Jaipur

Business – Logo Design, Website Design | Website – http://www.graphicstudio.co.in/ |

Garphic Studio is a graphic design studio in Jaipur that works with organizations of every kind. Graphic Studio functions like a workshop – projects are opened up, examined, problems identified, serviced, modeled and then presented in a compelling manner.

5 | Kool Studios

Corporate Office – Jaipur

Business – Logo Design, Brochure Design & Packaging Design | Website – http://www.koolstudios.in/home.html |

Kool Studios, Graphic design can often make or break a good communication concept. Therefore we build our creative services around your needs, specialising in graphic designs for small-medium businesses.

6 | IMG Global Infotech

Corporate Office – Jaipur

Business – Branding & Creative, Digital Solutions, Web Solutions & Mobility Solutions | Website – http://www.imgglobalinfotech.com|

IMG Global Infotech is Jaipur based Web Design & Graphic Company, offering best Web Designing, Web Development, WordPress, eCommerce, Logo Design for low cost in Jaipur, India.

7 | Xpert Net Technologies

Corporate Office –  Jaipur

Business – Web Design &  Development, Mobile App Development & Ecommerce Website | Website – http://xpertnettech.com/ |

Xpert Net Technologies is one of the leading Graphic Designingn Company offering Mobile App, eCommerce , Google AdWords, Software Development & SEO services in India.

8 | Dreams Soft Technology Jaipur

Corporate Office – Jaipur

Business – Logo Design, Business Card Design | Website –http://www.dreamssofttechnology.com/ |

Dreams Soft Technology-Graphic Designing Company in Jaipur, delivers all brand designing solutions including Package Design, Logo Design, shop branding and brochure designing.

9 | Mr. P Media Works

Corporate Office – Jaipur

Business – Website Design, Website Development & SEO, SMO Marketing | Website –https://www.mrpmediaworks.com/ |

Mr. P Mediaworks is a leading digital advertising and marketing consultancy of Jaipur, Rajasthan, offering unparalleled services in Social Media Marketing, Branding, Graphic Design & web.

10 | JPR Infotech

Corporate Office – Jaipur

Business – Logo Design & Website | Website – http://jprinfotech.com/ |

JPR Infotech : Best Graphic Designing Company and Agency in India, Jaipur. are the leading service providers of Creative Graphic Design in Jaipur. Offers professional Website design, Web development, Graphic designing, Internet marketing & SEO Services.

SEO-Strategy

Four Reasons Why You Need To Customize Your SEO Strategy

The Google Webmaster Rater Quality Guidelines make it clear that each web page must have a purpose. The guidelines go so far as to instruct raters to mark pages with no clear purpose as “low quality.” For some, their website is an online portal to express feelings, opinions, hobbies and personal experiences. Business owners and entrepreneurs are not granted that luxury.

Using Purpose To Define A Marketing Message

It is no longer enough to have your website’s purpose defined as “the place where we get leads.” (Unfortunately, for many of the consulting conversations we have, this is where their marketing plan begins and ends.)

The purpose of a web page must match the users’ needs. By reverse-engineering your potential clients’ needs, you can customize each web page to solve those needs and position your business in their minds as the top choice for future solutions. This focus on purpose needs to be the new core of every SEO campaign.

The Competition Has Become Tougher

We live in a time where most people rely on the internet for everything. People Google anything that comes to mind. In fact, they use major search engines for reviews before shopping online or offline. With this in mind, most businesses rely on an effective SEO strategy to influence the behavior of potential customers. This has forced even the most relaxed small business owner to have at least a modicum of SEO knowledge.

Chris Kicidis of Cover Your Head, a custom embroidered hat company, describes a strong search engine optimization plan like a custom-woven hat: “You need a strategy that is customized to cater your needs. An SEO plan that fits is all you need to stay on top of the competition.”

We implement this for clients by identifying what their customers and potential clients need and then adjusting the marketing strategy to meet that need. A practical example would be reaching out to a site that is already serving our potential customers and seeing if we can assist by offering thought leadership content or resources.

This niche-focused SEO strategy is vastly different from the broader campaigns that SEO companies were running only two years ago. And it represents the algorithm’s improvement in its ability to determine user intent and serve sites that best match that intent.

You’ll Be Able To Define Your Competition

A purpose-focused SEO strategy often starts by gathering information about your competition. Online tools such as SEMrush, SpyFu and AWR Cloud can help identify which sites are ranking the highest for certain user queries and suggest additional queries that are related to the campaign.

While this in-depth knowledge of the competition provides an excellent foundation, only focusing on the competition is an excellent way to be left behind.

Talk through your customers’ problems and pain points as a team and experiment with the types of queries they would use to solve those issues. Then, as Laura Lippay, organic search and technical lead at Netflix, explains in this article, you can carefully examine each competitor that attempts to meet that need and plan a way to improve on the content currently offered.

Additionally, every angle of your top competitors should be analyzed during this phase. Content length, URL length, title length, keyword density and cross-promotion opportunities are areas your company can emulate. These little tweaks can provide a significant advantage.

As James Pemberton, founder of WeRank, told me in an interview recently, “Another commonly overlooked SEO strategy is the URL structure of the website. If this is done right, your website will rank quicker, with fewer resources, and for a lot more keywords.”

Starting with an in-depth competitor analysis and a detailed plan can help you improve the customer experience while also protecting you from wasted effort.

Avoiding Common Mistakes

Poor-quality content that doesn’t help the user could be near the top of the list. Content can be awkward to create and expensive to pay someone else to help you with. As a result, most businesses struggle in this area. We often see web pages that offer little more than an image of the company with an address and phone number (and possibly a slogan). Before hitting publish, ask yourself: “Is this the most helpful resource online for my potential customer?”

Another common mistake we see is focusing on too many platforms simultaneously. Are your customers on Facebook or on Twitter? Or do you need more Google traffic from AdWords and SEO? It is easy to get distracted by “likes” and engagement metrics. Leveraging tools like Google Tag Manager can help you hone in on which platforms are providing your business with the best ROI. Don’t be afraid to cull the underperforming platforms and reallocate those resources to go deeper with the ones that are working.

Regularly Changing With Google’s Algorithm

The constant droning from Google’s John Mueller about “quality content” can be frustrating.

There are two critical angles hidden in these comments that need to be fleshed out. The first is purpose-driven content. Identify the user intent and meet that. Even if the user is only trying to find a plumber, providing that user with an attractive, mobile-friendly, easy-to-navigate website with a working phone number that is answered promptly by friendly staff is what it takes to resolve their query. You can see that “quality” in this case goes much deeper than just having long-form written content on a website.

Secondly, we need to ensure our off-site promotions are of the highest quality. Buying links to sites that your customers will never visit is a frustrating experience for all of the parties involved.

Adjusting your SEO campaign by seo company so that the users and their needs are put first, and then meeting them with the perfect solution at every corner, is the only way to stay ahead of the constant algorithm improvements.

about-SEO

What you need to know about SEO in 2018

Those involved in the SEO world know how complex and ever-changing the industry can be. With over 200 ranking factors and the constant updates of the algorithm, keeping up with SEO trends is mandatory.

One thing never changes, though: providing the best possible experience for users. In 2018, quality content will certainly remain in focus, but there are other novelties in SEO practices that come with changes in user behavior and evolution in technology. Take a look at a few of those things to look out for in the new year:

Google is switching to a mobile-first index

Today, we are witnessing a shift from desktop to mobile when it comes to the preferable way to surf the web. Nearly 60% of searches now come from mobile devices, and Google has finally decided to roll out the mobile-first index update. This means the algorithm will primarily use the content your site offers in the mobile view for ranking it in the SERP.

Mobile-first index was mentioned for the first time in 2016 on the Google Webmaster Central Blog, where the team shared recommended practices. Without any doubt, this will be a big historical change in the way websites are indexed.

Having a mobile responsive website is becoming an imperative, as well as having a structured markup for both desktop and mobile version. Webmasters do not need to make changes to their canonical links. Adding and verifying a mobile version of your site to the Search Console is also advisable.

Voice search will continue to rise

Virtual assistants such as Google Now, Cortana, and Siri have shortened the path between users and the answers they need. Google’s CEO Sundar Pichai announced that voice searches make up to 20% of mobile queries, which puts new challenges in front of SEO experts. Forecasts say this type of search has a growth tendency, so optimizing for Google Voice Search is a good idea.

Marketers have to analyze user intent in order to optimize well for voice searches. Typically, users have four different queries: they seek knowledge (educational content and exact answers), places (“near me” queries and addresses of local businesses), activities (how to’s and other types of guides), and purchase opportunities (online shops of their favorite brands). In order to optimize content for voice searches, you should definitely include a well-structured FAQ on your website so that precise information will easily get indexed and put in front of users. Use relevant long tail keywords (voice searches are often lengthier opposed to text) and optimize your content for conversational language.

Link building is not going anywhere

A study conducted by Stone Temple has proven once again that link building is not going anywhere and it’s not hard to understand why. A good quality backlink profile acts like a signal for Google that your website is a great resource that provides value to readers. But in addition to your standard link building efforts, you should also think about the concept of link earning. Although the difference between the two is subtle, the latter puts user experience in the center of attention.

Link earning is all about focusing on producing engaging content that actually answers the questions users are interested in, which inspires people to organically link to you. So, you are rewarded with a link naturally. If you want to hold a great ranking position, you should focus on building and earning links from reputable domains with high authority. Make sure none of the links pointing to your website come from shady and spammy sites. Disavow bad links.

High quality content + smart keywords will get you far

Smart SEO techniques always come down to creating great content with both users and search engines in mind. To truly stand out in the sea of average content across the web and earn better rankings, you need to create unique, original content that not only educates – but provides a concrete answer that satisfies user intent. That is the only way you will increase your organic visits. Of course, smart usage of keywords will help crawlers index your website easier. Use Google Keyword Planner to map out relevant words and phrases and optimize your content. Reoptimize your old content in accordance to new keyword trends.

When it comes to content, ensure your text posts are scannable and easily consumable. Add eye-catching visuals, make your website navigation logical, and always keep UX in mind. Dwell time matters: give your site visitors a reason to stick around.

Featured snippets matter more than ever

Marketing and SEO experts such as Bill Slawski, Eric Enge, and Marcus Miller believe the chase for a featured snippet will become the focal point in 2018. If a featured snippet appears on the SERP, it’s far more likely users will click on that link opposed to the listed results below. According to the Ahrefs study, a featured snippet will actually steal clicks from the #1 ranking result. Optimizing for rich snippets or “People Also Ask” boxes pays off, specifically because it instantly grabs the attention of users. This helps you generate more traffic, save money on PPC, and gain more visibility.

You should definitely keep these SEO trends in mind but also commit to white hat techniques only. Everything you do as a webmaster leaves a trace on how your domain is perceived by Google. I have already discussed domain ranking factors, and while agility remains one of the most important skills for an SEO expert, don’t get carried away and forget the crucial basics. Take the holistic approach and you will nail SEO in 2018.

essential-tools-for-web-designers

Best Tools for Web Designers to Use in 2018

I’ve been keeping an eye on the design space this year and put together my top picks for the best design tools for 2018. Some of these tools are desktop programs, others are SaaS apps or browser tools.

Either way, this list is bound to have something you’ll wanna check out. After all, your design skills are only one part of the equation when it comes to crafting awesome digital work.

Adobe XD

The newest design program from Adobe’s HQ is Adobe XD. This was built as a strong alternative to Photoshop since it’s made specifically for prototyping and mockup design.

XD started as a Mac-only program but eventually got released for Windows in beta. Over the past year it has grown into a powerhouse for digital designers who wanted a mix between Photoshop and Illustrator.

Right now XD still hasn’t caught up to Sketch, but it’s certainly growing and it has a dedicated team behind the program. It’s something you’ll at least want to try out sometime in 2018.

Sketch App

Sketch is Adobe’s biggest competitor in the design space. For years everyone used Photoshop for mockups because it was just the easiest solution.

Now that Sketch has gained mainstream support it’s by far the most popular program you can use. It’s much cheaper than all of the Adobe products and you can get it for a one-time fee, unlike the monthly subscription requirements to Adobe CC.

Sketch even has a sizable open source community with designers who release their own plugins for the software. This makes it easier to use, extend, and structure for any type of design work from icons to mobile apps.

Plant Version Control

Coders have used version control for years and Git has been a lifesaver in the dev community. But designers may feel shafted with little-to-no alternatives for version control.

Thankfully Plant is a modern solution. This is version control the way designers want it to be. You can manage your files easily with a solid backend + full GUI control over everything.

One of the biggest deterrents to version control is the command line. But with Plant you have a GUI which works much better for non-coders.

Plant even offers a free plan you can test out just to see if you like it. Anyone doing professional design work can save a lot of time running on this platform.

Principle

UI/UX animations have become the norm for modern design work. If you build a mockup for a client they might also expect some animation in your designs.

There are quite a few programs you can choose from but my top pick is Principle. This is Mac-only just like Sketch but it’s probably the best UX animation software out there.

You can easily import Sketch files or PSDs into Principle and use those elements for animating.

A great way to add some life into your mobile app mockups or website designs.

Figma

When it comes to digital prototyping you have a lot to choose from. Many designers prefer to start with paper for wireframing, then move those ideas into software for digital prototypes.

But if you like to do the whole process digitally have a look at Figma. This is a powerful prototyping tool that supports every stage of the design process with collaboration between team members.

You can share designs, upload mockups, and even export CSS right inside the program. Pretty cool!

Presentator

I first stumbled onto Presentator a few months back and immediately loved the idea. It’s still going strong into 2018 and I hope this tool is around for the long haul.

It’s a free open source collaboration tool for designers, all of which runs directly in your web browser. Simply upload designs and share them with team members, clients, whoever you want.

You can decide on permissions with each file and each person you invite. So maybe some people have read-only access while others can leave notes with critiques.

The fact you can use this for free makes it my top choice for design collaboration.

Webflow

There’s a lot of talk about Webflow and it may seem like just another visual site builder. Yet with Webflow you have control over the design, code, and final launch of every project you build.

It’s so much more than a simple visual editor. It’s really like a digital design tool made for digital designers.

This comes with a full CMS engine, hosting, and client access if you design sites for clients. Probably not the best tool for every website but certainly worth testing if you have the time.

Fontjoy

Font pairing made simple best describes the Fontjoy webapp.

This free tool pulls a full library of fonts straight from Google Webfonts and curates them together on one page. Then you choose which font(s) you’d like to test including the size, weight, and line height on the page.

No more wasting time flipping between various fonts in the browser. All you need is a stack of fonts you’d like to test and some time to run through Fontjoy.

FontBase

Now if you mostly work with local fonts then you know the pains of font organization. That’s why FontBase was created.

This is a 100% free font management tool that runs on all 3 major operating systems. It offers a visual GUI for all the fonts on your system organized by collections, font foundries, and even custom folders.

You can experiment with fonts right in the application or pull dynamic webfonts from Google’s library.

FontBase is no doubt the best font management tool out there. And you cannot beat the $0 price tag.

Icon Fonts

While this isn’t technically a “tool” I do think icon fonts are a big collection of tools that designers need to keep using.

More designers are creating icon fonts for free and releasing them online. No longer are you required to stick with Font Awesome as the only icon library. There are so many out there, you just gotta look for ‘em!

And new ones come out all the time.

Here’s a short list to get you started but keep on the lookout for new icon fonts in the coming year.

Vectr

Free graphic design tools are rare and it’s tough to find ones that work well.

Vectr is perhaps the coolest one on the market with a browser and desktop app you can use for free.

The program supports itself through paid upgrades like premium assets and custom add-ons.

But you can always use the Vectr tool free of charge for any project you want. I really like it so far and I think it’ll catch more attention from designers(and coders) throughout 2018 and beyond.

IconJar

Want a better way to organize all those iconsets you download? IconJar is the solution.

Right now it’s only available for MacOS but it may get a Windows update in the near future. This is no doubt the best program for managing icons locally without digging through folders by hand.

You can make your own custom folders in the program or even tag icons based on type. For example, you can search “checkmark” to find all the check icons from all the icon packs you have.

Crazy helpful for designers who love to try different iconsets. Plus this has a free trial so you’ve got nothing to lose.

Moving Forward

These are some of my top picks for the best design resources you be testing. But things change and new tools come out all the time.

The best way to stay on top of the game is by reading blogs and following design news. This way you know about all the options available and what else you can try using for your projects.