Tag: design systems

10 Ways to Improve Design-to-Development Handoff

Struggling with design-to-development handoffs? These 10 strategies can help reduce miscommunication, speed up workflows, and ensure your final product aligns with the original design vision:

  • Use a Shared Design System: Standardize UI components and guidelines for consistency.
  • Create Interactive Prototypes: Simulate functionality to clarify designs for developers.
  • Write Clear Documentation: Include specs, interactions, and implementation notes.
  • Track Design File Versions: Avoid confusion with organized version control.
  • Build with Components: Reusable elements save time and ensure consistency.
  • Connect Design and Development Tools: Sync resources for smoother collaboration.
  • Automate Style Guides: Keep design and code aligned with real-time updates.
  • Set Up Communication Systems: Use tools for feedback, updates, and collaboration.
  • Hold Regular Design Reviews: Align teams and address issues early.
  • Share Design Decisions with Developers: Explain the "why" behind choices for clarity.

These steps combine tools, communication, and processes to streamline handoffs and reduce friction between teams. Start small – like adopting a design system or interactive prototypes – and build from there for better collaboration and faster results.

How to Hand-off UI Designs to Developers

1. Create a Shared Design System

A shared design system helps reduce miscommunication during the handoff process by aligning design and development teams around a single, unified framework. By using a shared system, workflows become smoother, and consistency is easier to maintain.

Key elements of a shared design system include:

  • Component Libraries: Ready-to-use UI elements with matching code for easy integration.
  • Style and Usage Guidelines: Clear details on colors, typography, spacing, and practical examples.
  • Design Assets: Centralized resources accessible to everyone on the team.

"A great handoff addresses those gaps in information… When both the design and development teams are consulted throughout the production process, resentment won’t have a chance to build up." – Lucidchart Blog

For example, Airbnb‘s Design Language System (DLS) cut handoff time by 34% and reduced design inconsistencies by 68%, proving how effective shared systems can be.

Tools like Figma and Sketch are great for creating and managing these systems, while platforms like Storybook and Bit make it easier to document and share components across teams.

To build a shared design system, follow these steps:

  1. Review your existing design patterns and components.
  2. Set clear standards for colors, fonts, and spacing.
  3. Create a library of reusable components with matching code.
  4. Document all guidelines and usage instructions.
  5. Train your team on how to use and contribute to the system.

Consistency and regular updates are key. Over time, refine components, improve documentation, and incorporate feedback from your team to keep the system relevant and useful.

Once your design system is in place, the next step is creating interactive prototypes to further bridge the gap between design and development.

2. Use Tools for Interactive Prototypes

Interactive prototypes act as a link between design and development teams, offering a dynamic, clickable preview of what the final product will look and feel like. These prototypes help bridge the gap between static designs and functional applications, cutting down on miscommunication and improving collaboration.

Why interactive prototypes matter:

  • They simulate real-time behavior, showing exactly how interactions will work.
  • Interactive elements visually explain functionality better than lengthy documentation.
  • They help spot usability issues and technical challenges early, saving both time and effort.

"Interactive prototypes are a game-changer for design-to-development handoffs. They help us catch errors and misunderstandings early on, saving us time and resources in the long run." – Marcin Treder, CEO of UXPin

Key features to include in prototypes:

Feature Purpose Impact
Dynamic Layouts & Real Data Ensure prototypes work across devices and use realistic content Creates an accurate representation across platforms
State Management Show how the interface behaves in various scenarios Makes interaction patterns clearer

Best practices for using prototypes:

  • Focus on the most important user flows.
  • Get developers involved early to address any technical limitations.
  • Use prototypes to demonstrate how components from your design system work in practical situations.

Tools like UXPin’s Merge technology take this a step further by letting teams use actual React components in their prototypes. This method has been shown to cut implementation time by up to 50% and reduce the number of design-related questions during development.

For more complex features, advanced interactions can help clarify edge cases. While prototypes are great for showing functionality, pairing them with clear documentation ensures that no details are missed during the development process.

3. Write Clear Documentation

Prototypes might show how something looks, but documentation explains how it works. It provides the technical details developers need to bring designs to life. Well-written documentation minimizes misunderstandings and avoids costly mistakes during development.

Key Documentation Elements

Component Key Details
Design Specifications Dimensions, spacing, color codes
User Interactions State changes, animations, transitions
Implementation Notes Technical needs, dependencies

Think of documentation as a "living" resource that evolves with your project. Tools like Zeplin can help by centralizing design and development references in one place.

How to Keep Documentation Effective:

  • Track updates so developers always have the latest information.
  • Use annotated wireframes to visually explain design decisions and context.
  • Organize content logically by breaking it into sections that align with the development process.

"Design handoff is actually about delivering specs, sharing design intention, giving context about user journeys, and reinforcing a design system so that developers can do their job efficiently." – Zeplin Blog

For even better results, align your documentation with your design system. Teams using design-to-code tools often find this reduces questions during implementation by offering a single, reliable reference for designers and developers alike.

Additional Tips:

  • Include detailed notes for complex interactions.
  • Link back to related components in your design system.

Once your documentation is clear and thorough, the focus shifts to keeping design files clean and up-to-date for smooth teamwork.

4. Track Design File Versions

Keeping track of design file versions is just as important as version control for code. It helps teams stay organized, avoid mix-ups during handoffs, and ensures developers always have the correct files.

Key Practices for Version Control

Practice Purpose Benefit
Single Source of Truth Keep all definitive design iterations in one place Prevents duplicate files
Clear Naming Convention Make files easy to identify Reduces confusion
Change Documentation Record modifications clearly Allows quick rollbacks
Regular Backups Protect against data loss Keeps work secure

Tools like Figma simplify this process with built-in version history. It automatically saves changes and lets teams label important iterations. This makes it easier to refer back to specific stages during the development process.

How to Implement Version Control

Adopt a consistent file naming system, such as ProjectName_v1.2_ComponentName. Using tools like GitHub for design teams can significantly lower file conflicts and mismatches – by as much as 60%.

"Version control ensures design integrity by tracking changes and preventing errors during development." – UXPin Documentation Team

Tips for Managing Versions Effectively:

  • Centralize master files and archive older versions to keep things clear.
  • Use branching for testing out new design ideas.
  • Document major updates to track changes easily.

Once version control is set up, the next step is integrating design and development tools for smoother teamwork.

5. Build with Components

A component-based approach simplifies the handoff between design and development by promoting consistency, reusability, and faster execution. Standardizing components removes confusion and ensures a smoother transition from design to code.

Component libraries serve as a shared resource, aligning teams for quicker and more uniform workflows. In fact, teams using these systems have reported up to 70% faster development cycles compared to older methods.

Benefit Design Impact Development Impact
Consistency Standardized UI elements Reusable code patterns
Speed Quick prototyping Faster implementation
Maintenance Centralized updates Reduced technical debt
Scalability Easy design iterations Modular architecture

For example, Airbnb’s shared component library cut handoff time by 35%, showcasing how effective this method can be.

Key Strategies for Using Components

  • Begin with simple building blocks and combine them into more complex components.
  • Fully document how each component behaves.
  • Ensure design and code components remain synchronized.

"Component-based design systems play a crucial role by providing a centralized repository of components, guidelines, and assets that ensure consistency and efficiency across the product." – UXPin Documentation Team

Tools like Storybook and UXPin make managing components easier. UXPin’s Merge technology allows teams to work with the same React components in both design and development, eliminating mismatches during handoff.

When adopting a component-based workflow, prioritize creating a shared library that is accessible and understandable for both designers and developers. This method not only improves handoff efficiency but also ensures your product’s interface is easier to maintain over time.

To take this approach even further, integrating tools that bridge the gap between design and development is the logical next step.

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6. Connect Design and Development Tools

Bringing design and development tools together streamlines workflows and cuts down on rework caused by miscommunication. By using shared design systems and component libraries, teams can keep resources consistent and easily accessible. According to research, 62% of developers spend too much time redoing designs because of communication breakdowns.

Modern tools bridge the gap between design and development, offering a single source of truth. For example, UXPin’s Merge technology allows designers to use the same React components as developers, closing the gap between design and implementation. This method is particularly useful for keeping projects consistent, especially when they’re complex.

Integration Type Key Benefits Impact on Workflow
Design-to-Code & Prototyping Tools Automated spec generation and interactive specifications Cuts down on manual documentation and clarifies implementation
Component Libraries Bi-directional updates between design and development Maintains real-time alignment between design and code

Choosing the right tools is essential. Look for platforms that fit into your current workflow. A great example is pairing Storybook for component documentation with design tools that support code components. Together, they create a smooth handoff process.

"When handoffs become several recurring occurrences rather than one waterfall event, the solution is better implemented, fewer issues arise, and all parties are happier." – Lucidchart Blog

Key Practices for Tool Integration

Here are some practices that make tool connections more effective:

  • Automated updates for assets and specifications
  • Real-time syncing between design and development libraries
  • Keeping components aligned across all platforms

Connected tools save time and cut down on back-and-forth communication by syncing design specs, assets, and documentation automatically.

If your team is new to integrating tools, start small. Focus on tools that address your biggest handoff issues, then expand as your team becomes more comfortable.

Once your tools are connected and workflows are running smoothly, the next step is setting up systems that promote open communication across the team.

7. Generate Style Guides Automatically

Automating style guides can save time, reduce errors, and boost design workflow efficiency by 34%. These guides act as a central reference for design specifications and implementation standards, ensuring consistency across projects.

Tools like story.to.design, a Figma plugin, help create UI kits directly from component library code, keeping design assets aligned with development resources. Similarly, UXPin offers advanced features like synchronized design systems with built-in React libraries, enabling both designers and developers to work from the same set of components.

Style Guide Element Automation Advantage
UI Components Automatically generates variants from code
Styling Variables Updates in real-time from development
Documentation Creates specifications automatically

Choosing the right tools and integration methods is crucial for successful automation. Focus on these key aspects when setting up automated style guides:

  • Use standardized elements like UI components, color palettes, typography, and layout guidelines.
  • Ensure real-time updates between design and development teams.
  • Integrate tools seamlessly with your current tech stack.

"Automated style guides simplify the complex task of keeping design and code in sync, saving teams time and effort."

8. Set Up Team Communication Systems

Having a strong communication system in place makes feedback and collaboration much easier, which helps teams work more efficiently. Clear communication reduces misunderstandings and leads to smoother project handoffs. For example, teams using tools like Microsoft Teams often see fewer communication issues.

A good communication setup should include both instant and delayed communication options. Platforms that combine chat, video, and documentation features make it easier to collaborate and avoid miscommunication.

Communication Channel Primary Use Key Benefit
Real-time Chat Quick questions & updates Fast problem-solving
Video Meetings Design reviews & demos Share visual context
Project Management Task tracking & documentation Centralized information
Design Tools Asset sharing & feedback Maintain version control

Using these systems helps teams keep documentation and feedback organized, making collaboration seamless. Tools like video walkthroughs can explain complex designs clearly, cutting down on confusion. Integrated platforms also let designers add comments directly to design elements, so developers can see feedback in the context of their work.

To get the most out of your communication tools:

  • Use shared platforms to keep everyone working from the same information
  • Keep meetings short and focused, especially when discussing technical challenges
  • Set up clear processes for asking and answering design-related questions

"Early collaboration and clear communication channels can reduce design implementation errors by up to 60% and accelerate the development cycle significantly"

A great example of this in action is UXPin. Their platform allows designers to attach comments directly to design elements, giving developers instant access to relevant feedback. This approach has helped teams like Airbnb stay consistent with their designs while speeding up implementation time.

With a solid communication system, teams can stay aligned through regular reviews and collaborative decision-making.

9. Hold Regular Design Reviews

Regular design reviews help design and development teams stay aligned by addressing potential issues early and refining designs before they move into development. Plan these reviews at key points in the project, such as after finalizing major UI components or before starting development sprints, to make critical decisions more effectively.

Here’s what an effective design review should cover:

  • Walkthrough of design decisions: Explain the reasoning behind key choices.
  • Feasibility checks: Assess whether the designs can be implemented technically.
  • Feedback sessions: Gather input that can lead to actionable improvements.
  • Review of documentation: Ensure design documents are clear and detailed.

Use collaborative tools that allow real-time feedback and annotations. This makes it easier for developers to understand the goals and limitations of the designs. When paired with a strong design system, these reviews can focus on specific components and their implementation, streamlining the entire process.

Companies that integrate regular design reviews with design systems have reported up to 60% fewer implementation errors and quicker development timelines. To evaluate how well your reviews are working, consider tracking:

  • The number of design-related issues or revision requests
  • Time saved in the implementation phase
  • Team feedback on how clear and actionable the designs are

During these discussions, focus on balancing technical constraints with the original design vision. This ensures that both designers and developers feel their input is valued and that the final product meets everyone’s expectations.

Once regular design reviews are in place, the next step is making sure developers fully understand the design decisions to maintain alignment throughout the project.

10. Share Design Decisions with Developers

When developers understand the reasoning behind design choices, they can better align their work with the intended user experience. This approach not only enhances teamwork but also reduces friction during the handoff process.

One common hurdle is the communication gap between designers and developers. Research highlights that these teams often use different professional terminology, which can lead to misunderstandings about design goals. Sharing the "why" behind decisions – whether it’s addressing user needs or dealing with technical limitations – bridges this gap.

Here’s how to communicate design decisions effectively:

  • Document Key Rationales: Write down the reasoning behind your design choices, including user needs, business objectives, and even the options you decided to exclude. This gives developers a clearer picture of your overall strategy.
  • Encourage Open Dialogue: Create opportunities for informal discussions where designers and developers can tackle edge cases or clarify any unresolved issues. Ongoing conversations help keep everyone on the same page.

A Framework for Communication

To streamline the process, use this framework for sharing design decisions:

Communication Level Purpose Frequency
Documentation & Reviews Record design decisions and technical requirements Bi-weekly or as needed
Quick Syncs Resolve immediate questions and uncertainties 2-3 times per week or as needed

Interactive tools like UXPin can be especially helpful. They allow designers to create prototypes that showcase both static layouts and dynamic interactions, making it easier for developers to visualize and implement designs.

Another tip: include explanations for discarded options. This extra context helps developers make better decisions when translating designs into code.

To gauge how well this process is working, track metrics such as:

  • The number of design-related questions during development
  • Time spent revising designs after implementation
  • Developer confidence in executing design features

These indicators can reveal areas for improvement and ensure smoother collaboration between teams.

Conclusion

To effectively implement design-to-development handoff strategies, teams need to combine technical tools with strong communication practices. This can be broken into three main areas of focus.

First, integrating design systems, prototypes, and documentation is essential for smooth collaboration. Teams should aim for tools that work well together to minimize technical hiccups, establish clear communication channels to avoid misunderstandings, and refine processes to boost efficiency.

Success can be measured by fewer revisions, quicker project delivery, and improved team morale. Encouraging designers to learn basic coding and helping developers understand design principles can also bridge gaps between roles.

Involving developers early and maintaining ongoing feedback helps reduce miscommunication and keeps everyone aligned. Paired with design-to-code software, this ensures both designers and developers work toward shared objectives.

Start with small changes and expand as needed. By focusing on strong communication, shared goals, and the right tools, teams can create smoother and more enjoyable collaboration workflows.

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7 Best Practices for Design System Documentation

Want to keep your design and development teams aligned? Start with great design system documentation.

Here’s how you can create documentation that’s clear, consistent, and easy to use:

  1. Set Clear Goals: Know your audience (designers, developers, etc.) and tailor content to their needs.
  2. Use a Consistent Structure: Organize sections like design guidelines, technical details, and accessibility requirements uniformly.
  3. Detail Components Thoroughly: Include usage examples, props, states, and accessibility info for every component.
  4. Add Visuals and Interactive Demos: Show components in action to improve understanding and usability.
  5. Manage Versions: Use tools and changelogs to keep documentation up-to-date as your design system evolves.
  6. Encourage Collaboration: Involve designers, developers, and writers to ensure accuracy and relevance.
  7. Review and Update Regularly: Schedule reviews and use automation to maintain quality.

Why it matters: Clear documentation reduces errors, speeds up onboarding, and ensures consistent product development. Follow these steps to make your design system a reliable resource for your team.

Managing Design System Documentation

1. Set Clear Documentation Goals and Audience

Creating effective documentation begins with defining clear goals that align with your audience’s needs. Each team member has unique requirements – developers might need detailed technical specs and code examples, while designers often look for visual guidelines and component usage instructions. Recognizing these differences ensures your documentation works well for everyone.

For example, Razorpay improved their documentation by using focus groups and hosting office hours to gather feedback. This approach helped them create resources tailored to their diverse teams’ needs.

Here’s how you can approach it:

  • Identify your users: Understand their skill levels and how they’ll interact with your documentation.
  • Use straightforward language: Write in a way that matches your audience’s expertise.
  • Make it easy to navigate: Ensure information is simple to find.
  • Plan for upkeep: Set up processes to keep your documentation up to date.

To measure success, consider tools like:

  • User surveys
  • Usage data
  • Feedback from your team

These insights will help you refine and improve over time. Regularly reviewing these metrics ensures your documentation stays useful and relevant for everyone involved.

Once you’ve nailed down your objectives and audience, you can move on to building a consistent structure that supports these goals.

2. Use a Consistent Structure and Format

A clear and organized documentation format is key to building an effective design system. eBay found that adopting a consistent structure greatly boosted both work quality and team collaboration.

Creating this structure means organizing your documentation thoughtfully across various types. Here’s how some companies tackle it:

Component Documentation Structure
Eventbrite organizes its documentation by meaning rather than function. This ensures that terminology is consistent and accessible to every team member. Their documentation typically includes:

Pinterest takes a different approach by using standardized templates in JIRA. This keeps documentation updates consistent and encourages team involvement.

Tools and Implementation
Popular tools for documentation include:

Documentation Management
To keep things streamlined, use templates, version control, and clear contribution guidelines. This helps maintain a centralized and easily searchable documentation hub.

Once you have a consistent structure, the next step is making sure every component is documented with clear, actionable details.

3. Detail Components Thoroughly

“Documenting the usage and guidelines of a component is crucial.” – Geri Reid, former NewsKit Design and Accessibility Lead

When documenting a component, it’s essential to cover the following areas to ensure clarity and usability:

Component Anatomy & Technical Details
Break down the component into its HTML structure, visual hierarchy, and how its elements interact. For developers, include:

  • Props: List all types, required or optional parameters, and default values.
  • State Management: Explain how the component handles internal states.
  • Event Handling: Specify events the component listens to and their triggers.

Usage Guidelines
Define when and how to use the component. For example, Material Design recommends using a Floating Action Button (FAB) only for a screen’s primary action to maintain consistency across platforms.

Accessibility Requirements
Ensure your documentation includes information about accessibility, such as:

  • How the component behaves with screen readers and keyboard navigation.
  • Guidelines for color contrast.
  • Specifications for touch target sizes.

“High-quality documentation requires planning, effort, and process to make examples and guidelines that make a difference.” – Nathan Curtis, EightShapes

Component States
List and describe all possible states of the component, such as default, hover, active, disabled, error, or loading. eBay uses interactive demos to showcase these states, helping teams avoid confusion and misunderstandings.

By thoroughly documenting components, you create a strong foundation for your design system. This approach ensures teams work with clear, consistent guidelines. For example, Figma combines usage instructions with interactive prototypes, making it easier for teams to implement components accurately.

Once your components are well-documented, you can take it a step further by using visuals and interactive demos to deepen understanding.

4. Include Visuals and Interactive Demos

Visuals and interactive demos can make design system documentation more engaging and easier to grasp. By showcasing components in action, they help users understand and implement them effectively. In fact, TrustRadius research shows that interactive demos influence buyer decisions by 88%.

Interactive Demo Best Practices

Companies like Digital Ocean and IBM Instana set great examples in this area. Digital Ocean offers step-by-step guides, while IBM Instana integrates practical scenarios, helping users see how components work in real-world contexts.

Tools for Interactive Documentation

Tools like Figma, Storybook, and UXPin are widely used to create interactive and accessible documentation. These platforms make it easier for teams to build and maintain demos that align with their design systems.

The Impact of Interactive Demos

Interactive demos have driven a 90% increase in adoption, highlighting their importance in modern documentation. Companies like Maxio and Lattice use them effectively to cater to specific use cases. For example, Lattice employs click-through demos and customized product tours, improving how users engage with their components.

Key Tips for Implementation

When adding interactive demos to your documentation, consider the following:

  • Ensure compatibility across various devices and browsers.
  • Provide clear and concise instructions alongside the demos.
  • Regularly update demos to reflect any changes in the design system.
  • Include feedback options to gather user input.

For instance, Maxio and Lattice use interactive tooltips to add context to their demos, tailoring them to different user roles. This approach not only enhances usability but also boosts component adoption rates.

With visuals and interactive demos in place, the next step is ensuring your documentation evolves alongside your design system.

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5. Manage Versions and Changes

Keeping your documentation up-to-date is crucial as your design system evolves. Without proper version control, teams can face confusion and inconsistencies across projects.

Semantic Versioning

Semantic versioning (major.minor.patch) is a straightforward way to track updates. Major versions signal breaking changes, while minor and patch versions cover smaller updates and fixes.

Tools and Platforms

Tools like Figma, Supernova, and UXPin come with built-in version control features. These include branching, release notes, and file history, making it easier to track and manage changes over time.

“Maintaining a changelog for a design system is an essential practice that promotes collaboration, transparency, and effective communication.” – Zeroheight Team

Change Management and Documentation

eBay’s team takes a structured approach to maintain consistency. They use a custom linter to catch errors, host office hours and focus groups for feedback, and rely on automation to identify outdated documentation. This method ensures their design system evolves in a controlled and efficient manner.

Razorpay uses detailed changelogs, regular feedback sessions, and clear migration paths to manage updates. This approach keeps stakeholders informed and ensures smooth transitions while maintaining accurate documentation.

Best Practices for Version Control

  • Use automated validation checks to catch errors early.
  • Keep a detailed changelog to document all updates.
  • Provide clear migration paths for breaking changes.
  • Collect regular feedback from users and stakeholders.
  • Automate the process of flagging outdated content.

6. Encourage Team Collaboration

Great design system documentation thrives when the whole team gets involved. By bringing in different perspectives, you keep your documentation relevant, accurate, and useful for everyone.

Set Clear Contribution Guidelines

Use tools like Notion or Confluence to make collaboration simple. These platforms allow real-time editing, version control, and centralized storage, helping your team stay consistent while making it easier for everyone to pitch in.

Build Feedback Loops

Schedule regular team reviews and send out surveys to spot gaps or areas for improvement. This keeps your documentation evolving and ensures it stays aligned with your team’s needs.

Define Team Roles and Responsibilities

Each team member brings something different to the table:

  • Designers handle visual guidelines.
  • Developers focus on technical details.
  • Content writers refine structure and terminology.
  • Product managers offer business insights and set priorities.

This mix ensures the documentation is helpful for everyone involved.

Promote Cross-functional Collaboration

Encourage designers and developers to work together. This ensures the documentation meets both technical and visual requirements. Regular cross-team reviews are a great way to keep everything accurate and relevant.

Use Documentation Champions and Tools

Assign documentation champions to oversee updates, ensure accuracy, and train team members on processes. Tools like Zeroheight and Frontify make collaboration smoother by offering:

These tools help streamline the process and keep everyone on the same page.

7. Update Documentation Regularly

Keeping documentation up-to-date is crucial for ensuring it stays relevant and usable for your team.

Use a Version Control System

Set up workflows that automatically sync documentation updates with changelogs. This helps track changes and keeps everyone informed. Pairing this with design tools can make updates seamless when designs evolve.

Plan Routine Reviews

Organize quarterly reviews to check for accuracy and completeness.

“Regular reviews ensure documentation remains accurate and useful for teams.”

Keep an Eye on Documentation Health

Focus on these areas to maintain quality:

  • Component updates and new features
  • Usage instructions and practical examples
  • Technical details and API modifications
  • Design token revisions

Simplify Updates with Automation

Leverage tools like Storybook and Supernova to make updates easier and more consistent. Create a clear process for documenting changes, reviewing them for accuracy, notifying relevant teams, and testing updates to ensure everything works as intended.

Measure the Effectiveness of Your Documentation

Track these metrics to gauge success:

  • Reduction in support tickets related to design system questions
  • Improved team adoption and smoother onboarding
  • Increased engagement and usage of the documentation

Conclusion

Design system documentation plays a key role in connecting design and development teams. By following these seven practices, organizations can create documentation that meets the needs of their teams and stays relevant over time.

Using structured methods, such as eBay’s component status tables, helps keep documentation accurate and adaptable. A good balance between centralized management and team involvement ensures quality while encouraging collaboration across teams.

Strong documentation can lead to fewer support tickets, better team adoption, consistent designs, and faster onboarding. Looking ahead, integrating documentation directly into workflows can make it easier to adopt and keep updated, ensuring it remains useful for everyone involved.

To achieve this, teams should make updating documentation a standard part of the component development process. Regular reviews and feedback loops are also essential to keep it reliable and up to date. These steps help ensure that documentation stays a practical and dynamic resource for all stakeholders.

FAQs

Here are answers to some common questions teams encounter when working on design system documentation.

How should you approach writing documentation for a design system?

Clear and practical design system documentation is key. As Lukas Oppermann from GitHub explains:

“Designers and developers speak a little bit of a different language”

This underscores the need to bridge communication gaps. Use examples and straightforward guidelines to explain core design elements like typography and color. Tools like Zeroheight can help keep everything consistent and allow for collaborative editing.

What steps help in documenting and maintaining design systems over time?

Keeping design system documentation up-to-date is an ongoing task. Regular updates, informed by team feedback, are crucial. Here’s how you can manage it:

  • Use version control and specialized tools to track changes.
  • Schedule regular reviews to ensure accuracy and relevance.
  • Create open feedback channels to gather insights and improve documentation.

For more complex systems, tracking how the design is implemented across platforms ensures consistency and scalability.

Why does design system documentation matter?

Good documentation is the backbone of consistent product development and smoother team collaboration. It minimizes errors and ensures uniformity, as demonstrated by Razorpay’s Blade system.

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Breaking Down Silos to Improve Digital Product Development

Understanding DesignOps and Its Role in Design Teams copy

Breaking down silos makes it easier for everyone involved in a project to work together towards a common goal. Unfortunately, traditional working environments make cross-team collaboration different.

Newer tools with a code approach can give you an easier way to eliminate organizational silos. Explore one of them – UXPin Merge. UXPin powered with Merge technology help to break the silos between design, development, and product teams at your organization. It allows you to build prototypes with a single source of truth – coded components. Discover UXPin Merge.

Reach a new level of prototyping

Design with interactive components coming from your team’s design system.

Why Do You Need to Break the Silo Mentality?

Silos create inefficiencies that can adversely affect your teams. You might not even know that silos exist within your organization. Once you learn to notice their effects, though, you will likely spot departmental silos everywhere and see how they interfere with your company achieving a common goal.

Here are 5 common problems created by silos:

  • A narrow focus on individual tasks that do not contribute to the bigger picture.
  • Continued functionality issues that no one within the design team knows how to solve.
  • Longer product development, testing, and release timelines.
  • Lack of insight into how the company could improve its product development process.
  • Inefficiencies that add to project expenses and disappoint stakeholders.

6 Practical Tips to Break Down Silos

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With these issues in mind, consider how the following steps could break down silos and build a better company culture.

Tip #1: Form a leadership team that includes a representative from every department

You can build trust and improve communication by creating a leadership team that includes at least one representative from every department. The leadership team can keep the big picture in mind while steering the project toward its final goal.

Tip #2: Establish a unified vision before breaking the common goal into individual tasks

Communication doesn’t always trickle down to every member of a team. You can eliminate this problem by creating a unified vision and breaking the common goal into individual tasks. The tasks can get assigned to teams.

If you start with small tasks and hope that they come together in the end, you will likely find disappointment.

Tip #3: Invite team members from different departments to meetings

The pandemic forced companies to adopt remote working environments. Luckily, videoconferencing apps stepped up to help colleagues and freelancers from all over the world engage with each other in virtual environments.

Since you might need to invite marketers, developers, designers, and other colleagues, you should choose a videoconferencing service that can accommodate several people. You can even get marketing teams engaged to learn from their insights and help them plan for how they will sell the finished product.

Some of the top options include:

If you expect fewer or more participants, you can usually choose plans that match your unique needs. Choosing the right plan helps ensure that you get input from different teams without spending more money than necessary.

Many teleconferencing apps will also let you track metrics and record your meetings so you can focus on interacting with colleagues instead of taking notes. You should notice improved employee engagement when people can talk to each other without writing down their thoughts. You have to put a premium on engagement when working with remote teams.

Tip #4: Choose collaboration tools that appeal to all departments

Until recently, designers and developers often found themselves at odds when creating digital products. Even when they share long-term goals, their specializations encourage them to think about creating products in different ways.

That’s why there’s drift when it comes to the handoff process. It’s best to use a tool that will allow both devs and designers to collaborate without getting in each other’s ways. A solution with code-powered technology can help with that. 

When designers use already-coded components that can be easily reused, there’s no room for a disconnect between what is designed and what can be coded. Not to mention the time efficiency that tools like that offer – both with designing and coding the final product based on the prototype. 

Create a design system that contains all approved assets

Every team working on a product should have access to a design system that contains all approved assets and components. A design system ensures that diverse teams work toward a shared aesthetic and function even when they do not spend much time talking to each other.

When you go for a code-to-design approach in design on top of that, you don’t have to worry about syncing the changes in the code with the design components as that can be done automatically. Thanks to that you have all the approved assets up to date. 

Share information between teams as you make progress

Regular updates can incentivize developers, designers, and team members of other departments to stay focused on their projects.

Working in a vacuum often feels like a thankless—or even pointless—task. Someone designing icons might lose inspiration because they do not see what role the icons will play in the product. Similarly, a developer tweaking interactive forms might not see the point of their work until they witness it in action.

When you reach a milestone, celebrate by showing how everyone’s cumulative efforts have taken you closer to your ultimate goal. If possible, you might enjoy lunch or a drink together. If you work remotely, you can still enjoy a fun meeting that focuses more on building excitement and trust than working on the project.

Eliminate organizational silos with UXPin Merge

UXPin has always been a code-based tool for digital design. UXPin Merge takes the technology a step further by letting designers design with production-ready components That means developers get the opportunity to review designs from the perspective of fully functional code and quickly implement it

UXPin Merge also works in conjunction with several systems, including Material UI, CA Technologies Mineral UI, and IBM Carbon. This approach makes it even easier for engineers to participate in prototype development and making sure designers use components that have already been coded.

Discover more effective, collaborative ways to solve DesignOps challenges. UXPin Merge can help break down silos, reduce design inefficiency, and improve customer experience to meet your company’s goals better than ever.

 

Adopting Design Systems in Enterprise with Johnson & Johnson

Adopting Design Systems in Enterprise with Johnson Johnson

When any new leader walks into an enterprise with more than a century of history—as Johnson & Johnson does—they know they must adapt to some of the existing processes. Improvements in technology, however, have made it necessary for all corporate designers to turn processes into even more efficient methods. If you start a new job tomorrow, you might find that you need to turn old style guides into design systems. Ultimately, these new systems make life easier for you, your design team, and other employees.

Ben Shectman, a UX design expert with decades of management experience, found himself in that situation. He became the Experience Design Expert Service Leader at Johnson & Johnson in 2019. The company had two style guides that UX designers used for language and graphics. Unfortunately, the style guides were only available as PDF files. It was clear to Shectman that he needed to adopt design systems and move away from the PDF style guides.

Table of Contents

  • Design systems offer a single source of truth
  • Atomic-based design systems improve workflows
  • Create design systems for developers and designers
  • Try UXPin Merge

Design systems offer a single source of truth

PDF and print style guides present a considerable problem: you can never know whether you have updated all of them to meet the enterprise’s current standards. You can hold as many meetings as humanly possible, but an outdated style guide will manage to sit in someone’s desk drawer, just waiting to make your life more difficult a year or two from now.

single source of truth design system JnJ

Design systems offer a single source of truth that exists in a digital format you control. Some companies get by fine using established design systems like Material Design, Carbon, or Fluent Design System. A robust, multinational corporation like Johnson & Johnson, however, needs a unique design system built from the ground up.

You maintain complete control over your design system, build it in a design tool such as UXPin, have the components coded and stored in a Git repository. When you make an update, everyone who accesses it will only experience the new version. You never have to worry about outdated copies because you control the source for the company’s digital products.

Design systems based on atomic design processes improve workflows

Shectman decided to build the J&J interactive design system with atomic design. Atomic design serves J&J well because it lets designers break down features and designs into their most basic components (called “atoms”). Using UXPin, anyone in the company can potentially access the approved components and create new tools that comply with J&J’s guide.

design system based on atomic design process

In reality, Johnson & Johnson’s design team makes its internal products. The team even created a process that makes it easier for Shectman to approve new components and add them to the design system.

Regardless of who actually builds a prototype, the atomic design improves workflows by providing all of the approved components. From there, you just choose the components you need and adjust them to meet the project’s goal.

Create design systems for developers and designers

Johnson & Johnson’s design team meets with developers regularly to gain insight into their approach to building products. Getting developers involved makes it easier for designers to avoid concepts that don’t function well when put into code.

Building an interactive design system is a great start to improve design consistency. You can go one step further and try out a new technology called Merge. It makes it even easier for enterprise users to bring designers and developers together. The all-in-one designing and prototyping app powered by code, allows you to bring components from developers’ libraries (from Git repository or Storybook) and use them in your designs. These components keep all the interactivity and are still production-ready, which saves a lot of handoff troubles. It speeds up building digital products; both the design and development process.

design system for designers and developers

Everyone also benefits from Merge’s ability to make prototypes that function like finalized products. Whatever you design with Merge technology, will work exactly the same after the development team completes the project. 

Try UXPin Merge

Shectman and members of his design team offer a deeper look into their process in this webinar. It includes a demonstration of a J&J designer using their interactive design system to transform an outdated tool into a new version with better functionality and aesthetic appeal. Go beyond a design system and bring UI code components to the UXPin editor. Make it easier for designers and developers to create prototypes from approved components in a design system. Request access to UXPin Merge so you can speed up your product development process and make it smoother.

Discover Merge

Webinar: Interactive Design System in Enterprise

How do you manage and build a Design System for an enterprise? As you may already know, this single source of truth helps enterprises bridge the gap between designers and developers and speed up the development process. It is thanks to the set-out standards and reusable components that the design and development workflow is cut down and the digital experience is unified. 

Remember that Design Systems are not only an efficient solution for an enterprise. They are also a challenging process as you need to set out every piece of information in a clear and easy-to-use way. If you’re persuaded to build a Design System, or you already have one – new questions may arise. What are the best examples and practices to follow? How do you organize and manage your system in the best way possible? 

You may also wonder if your enterprise makes the most of a Design System and cares about the cohesive experience. After all, why should you go through all the work with standards and documentation if most product teams won’t be using them? Why not just use simple Style Guides? 

To clear some of the confusion and answer these questions, we decided to host a webinar with Johnson & Johnson: From Style Guide to Interactive Design System in Enterprise. J&J’s Experience Design Team will talk about their Design System examples and show best design practices to reach consistency and ultimate efficiency. 

You’ll learn about :

  • Transforming Style Guides into interactive Design Systems. 
  • Atomic Design and Rapid Interactive Prototyping. 
  • Promoting the adoption of Design Systems in your organization. 

Also, there will be a Q&A session to ask J&J’s experts some questions. 

Date: April 15, 2021

Time: 1:00 PM EDT / 7:00 PM CEST

Strategies to Design at Scale and Iterate Products More Efficiently

Over the last few decades, companies have learned that they need to embrace digital transformation and release digital products that meet consumer expectations. As a result, developers have added a lot of UX professionals to their teams. The change has forced designers to rethink how they can design at scale without creating an impossible amount of work.

According to Erica Rider, UX lead for developer tools at PayPal, companies used to hire about 10 UX developers to every one designer. The designer would create what a product looked like. Then, developers would turn the designs into functional components. However, when supporting a great number of developers, the PayPal team needed to find the way to scale the design and support a lot of developers with a small design team. The only way was to enable product teams to do design on their own. That’s how now, three designers can work with about 1,000 developers on approximately 100 products.

As companies demand more from their designers, it becomes increasingly important for design teams to find strategies that let them scale design systems with little effort.

Recommended viewing: Scale design efficiently with DesignOps2.0, featuring Erica Rider

Integrate design and DevOps

The typical product design process doesn’t scale easily because it relies on several steps, including:

  • Product managers writing descriptions of their ideas and sending the descriptions to design teams,
  • Designers creating several versions of the ideas before they find a good design that matches the product manager’s concept,
  • Product designers sending their work to developers, who have to translate the designs into features that give the digital product exceptional usability, which isn’t always simple and fast.

Not surprisingly, the process involves a lot of back and forth before the project manager receives a completed prototype that works as intended.

Teams can improve the process by integrating design and DevOps. A version of this approach might include:

  • Define
  • Design
  • Develop
  • Evaluate
  • Deploy
  • Operate
  • Discover

The process repeats to continue improving the product until the company discontinues it.

Create a design system of approved components

Few strategies matter more than creating a design system of approved digital assets for your product ecosystem. A good design system will include:

  • Pattern libraries
  • Design patterns
  • Typography
  • Brand language
  • Coded components
  • Iconography

Ideally, anyone with a question about building the product should find the correct answer in the design system. No matter how many people you add to a team, the workflow remains efficient because the design system solves problems at the source.

Adopt strategic UX concepts to Design at Scale

Applying strategic design principles can also help scale design systems as needed. Strategic design can include several concepts. Some critical considerations when you need to scale design systems include:

Making searches global

When UX designers need to find UI components, typography, icons, and other assets in the design system, they shouldn’t have to wade through multiple search results.

Product teams that search for an asset shouldn’t get a dozen results related to a dozen products. They should get the correct result for the query. Multiple results will only create confusion among team members and stakeholders. At the very least, it will slow the DesignOps and DevOps processes. At worst, it will lead to inconsistent UX design that confuses users.

Implementing guardrails

A small team of designers cannot let developers overstep boundaries. Implement guardrails that prevent developers from making mistakes. Ideally, you will adopt design tools that make it easy for you to make rules and boundaries clear.

Reducing variables

Reduce variables to simplify the roadmap from design to iteration. The fewer options people need to consider, the easier it becomes for them to work efficiently. Now, you can design at scale without adding more members to your group.

Make design system changes global and automatic

Designers should revisit their design systems at least once every few years. Otherwise, they will spend time supporting products that look outdated.

Changing something in your design system, however, shouldn’t mean that developers need to update every product’s code. It should happen globally and automatically. When you change icons in your design system, the icons should automatically update in your product.

If your design tools don’t let you coordinate at this level, you will waste hundreds of hours. No one, including large corporations and small startup operations, can afford that much-wasted effort. It’s best to have a single source of truth tool that lets the developer change the code of a component to update all the designs with it. Automatically. 

Narrow the differences between prototypes and products

https://uxpincommunity.cdn.prismic.io/uxpincommunity%2F469f590d-d37e-4741-ba52-5d81a4693ced_merge_3.mp4

In an ideal world, you can’t tell the difference between a prototype and a finished product. How often does that happen, though?

When you use UXPin Merge, you can have trouble noticing any differences between your prototypes and products. That’s because you get fully interactive prototypes that use real data and you build your prototypes with already-interactive components that are in fact, live code. You can interact with the prototype just like your users will interact with your finalized product.

Scaling your design system happens much more rapidly when you can test prototypes instead of products. Explore, experiment, and make mistakes during the prototyping phase. Your efforts will lead to a better product that impresses users. Considering that the Google Play Store offers more than 2.5 million apps and the App Store has more than 1.8 million apps, you need to make a good first impression for your product to succeed.

Adopt UXPin Merge so designers and developers can collaborate easily

Adopting UXPin Merge is one of the most important ways to scale your design system strategically. UXPin Merge adapts to the way that your teams work. Your developers can import React.js component codes, add Material UI Design System to libraries, and create prototypes within a drag-and-drop environment.

UXPin Merge will also turn your designers’ work into HTML and CSS without any coding knowledge or support from DevOps as the components that they use are already coded. Designers can also reuse existing interactive components, stop recreating lines that have already been turned into code, and use real data to test their interaction designs.

Discover how much easier designing, developing, and prototyping become when you rely on a code-powered tool with new technology. You don’t need to worry about scaling your design system. Anyone on your team can access it to design at scale as your company’s needs evolve.

 

Discover Merge

How Design Systems Give Small Businesses a Fighting Chance

efficient design systems

At heart, design systems are all about efficiency.

Streamlining tasks, removing redundancies in the process, encouraging communication and collaboration — these money- and time-saving benefits are what makes designs systems so attractive to tech startups and small businesses. How attractive? According to our 2018 UX report, 69% of 3,157 designers surveyed said they were currently working on one for their company.

In an industry as competitive as ours, you can’t afford to waste any resources, especially if you’re still finding your foothold. When done right, design systems save countless hours of busy work and ensure greater product quality, to say nothing of how much easier they make your team’s lives. And they’re pretty easy to build from scratch, even if you’ve never seen one before.

what is a design system

Imagine this: Better products, lower costs, shorter timeframes, and happier workers, all for a small initial investment of time. So how do design systems work and — more specifically — how can they work for your company? Below we’ve laid out the top advantages design systems give small businesses.

Faster time-to-market

Design systems are, in essence, a centralized and communal collection of design components and assets. You want to add a slider on a new page? The design system will have all the guidelines on usage, visual examples, and even code snippets for copying-and-pasting.

Among other perks, using pre-existing components makes the product design process move much, much faster. Design and development becomes a simple matter of mixing and matching premade pieces, rather than creating everything from scratch. That frees up extra time for experimenting on better designs, or simply launching ahead of schedule.

Less errors

Another benefit of using prebuilt and standardized component is less errors. Because you’re copying from a master version, there’s no chance of making a mistake. As long as the components in your design system are accurate, their use in your products will be accurate.

This is especially good news for developers, who have all the code snippets they need right at their fingertips.

Consistency across the board

Consistency is vital to a user’s experience, but it can be hard to come by with multiple designers working separately. Design systems allow easy access to universal versions of design assets (and their rules) to keep everyone on the same page, and ensure components remain consistent from one page or section to another.

That also holds true for different products. Brands looking to build their identity can use the exact same assets for all their products, giving everything a unified feel and rewarding loyal customers with familiar usability.

Easier onboarding for new team members

Don’t forget that design systems also act as an official reference document for a company or brand. If your team-members ever forget stylistic preferences, a specific value for an asset, or need input on a tough design choice, they can find the answer to any question in the design system.

This goes double for new employees who have yet to learn the ropes. Especially for small companies that train new hires individually, onboarding is less time-consuming if the trainee handles much of the learning on their own. Think of design systems as a user manual, with all the instructions clearly written and easy to find. You choose how detailed to make your design systems, so you can also include other resources like style guides, color palettes, and pattern libraries — a one-stop reference for any question a team-member has.

Enhanced collaboration

During the initial creation of a design system — and its periodic updates — design systems get the right conversations started. Which logos go with different screen sizes? How do you want to handle the search function? What is the best accent color for call-to-action buttons? Simply setting out to make a design system forces your team to answer these questions, and make those answers easily accessible to everyone.

Having this kind of master reference guide also helps avoid miscommunication. By offering a definitive protocol and standards for otherwise ambiguous elements, design systems keep everyone on the same page. No guesswork, assumptions, or “going rogue.”

Design systems also do wonders for sometimes-problematic dev handoffs. Because technical specs are embedded in the document, there’s less confusion about how to build something in the backend, or whether it can be built at all. Designs systems give designers and developers a shared language.

collaborative design process
Photo by NESA by Makers on Unsplash

No version control problems

It’s understood that the design system is the official document: every time a change needs to be made, it’s made there. Whenever a bug gets fixed or a new design component is introduced, it’s recorded into the design system so that the next person to use it stays up-to-date automatically. We like to call it a “living document” because it’s always updating.

This format of using only one, agreed-upon master document also ensures that every update gets made to the same file. You never have to merge multiple files that were updated independently of each other by different team members. Whenever you pull from the design system, you know you’re always using the most recent version. This significantly reduces the margin for error.

Stronger, data-driven UX

So much of UX design depends on customer feedback. Different customer groups have different tastes and preferences, and they can be hard to keep track of, especially if your company is targeting more than one group.

Design systems help keep your UX data organized by optimizing your favorite patterns. Discovered your users favor thumb-friendly navigation on the bottom of the screen? All you have to do is update the design system, and every designer knows it’s the new norm going forward.

Also, since everyone shares the same components, you only have to modify one copy every time you make a small tweak. That’s a huge time-saver if you decide you want to introduce a new element or make a drastic change. Because every second counts with small teams, using premade, already-optimized components could be the deciding difference in whether you launch on time.

Final thoughts: How to build a design system

Design systems are a (relatively) new idea, so a lot of companies may be confused about how to build one. That’s why we’ve implemented special design system features into UXPin’s software.

For starters, our design system libraries feature easily lets you create design system modules and store assets at the click of a button. Our simple, intuitive interface makes it perfect for people who’ve never made a design system before. Collaborative teams also appreciate UXPin’s native communication features, with real-time update notifications and note sharing.

Try it out risk-free:

Join the world's best designers who use UXPin.

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Build A Design System from Scratch in 7 Steps

What do you think of faster project turnarounds? How about consistency in all of your products? Does better UX and customer satisfaction sound good to you? This isn’t some new miracle product that’s available to buy — but you can build it yourself.

Designs systems are sweeping the tech world right now, with advocates like Trello, Atlassian, Stacks, and Shopify (Check out a complete list of companies with links to their design systems here at Adele). This wave of popularity explains why 69% of designers surveyed in the 2017–2018 Enterprise UX Industry Report said that they either already had a design system or were currently planning on building one.

And why are design systems suddenly so popular, you ask? Because they’re exactly as effective as everyone says. The hype is real. Incorporating a design system in your company brings a variety of benefits:

  • Faster time to market. By breaking design elements into homogenized components, design systems make the whole process more efficient. Planning, designing, testing and coding are all streamlined to reduce wasting time.
  • Improved UX and customer satisfaction. They make it easy to keep track of what your users like and dislike, retaining the former and disregarding the latter. They ensure all your products use only the UX elements your customers prefer.
  • Better internal communication. As a standardized document, design systems minimize the amount of miscommunication. They keep everyone on the same page to avoid confusion.
  • Consistency across all products. Your loyal customers expect a certain level of excellence on all the products, apps, and sites you launch. Deliver consistent quality and familiar usability on every single product by using identical components.
  • Less version control issues. Updating the same bug on different products can get annoying, not to mention time consuming. With design systems, you update once and it populates all occurrences.

Design systems are a clear advantage to companies that have already implemented them, and in a few years they’ll be the norm. So how can you build a design system now to utilize their benefits yourself? We’ll explain how in just 7 easy steps… but first, let’s talk a little about what they are.

What’s a Design System?

Formally, a design system is a master collection of the key standardized documentation every company needs to, in the words of AirBnB Principal Designer Karri Saarinen, “define the overall design of the product.” This includes your usual documents like pattern libraries, guideline texts and styles guide, but also more technical aids like reusable codes for common components and other time-saving design assets.

The true beauty of design systems, though, is that all of the components in these areas are already optimized and coded. That means whenever you’re designing a new project or updating an old one, all the pieces you need are already ready — you just have to put them into place.

Textual documents like the style guide and rule guidelines are not exactly coded components, but we still recommend them. Including these documents creates an all-inclusive reference guide that covers every roadblock your designers might have. Whenever someone has a question, they can always refer to the design system.

Now, chances are you won’t have all these documents lying around already. Most companies compile these only as needed, so it’s common to have gaps and oversights. That provides one more advantage of creating a design system: an excuse to gather and formalize these materials for your company once and for all.

In this article, we’ll assume you need to create all of these areas — after all, this is a guide on building a design system from scratch. Startups especially have to tackle all these issues all at once, but even long-established companies may have ignored one or two (or ten) of these areas in their focus on fast growth. Either way, the 7 steps below can lead you to a fully functional design system, even if you’re starting from nothing.

7 Steps to Building a Design System

1. Evaluate your current UI inventory and note inconsistencies

The best place to start is evaluating what you already have. Which elements do you like? Which do you want to replace? Where are there inconsistencies between products or pages?

You’ll want to review every digital asset and all pre-existing reference materials. The end goal is to create a universal guidebook and resource library, so everything that can be included, should be included. Specifically, take a good look at:

  • Color schemes and how each color is used
  • Stylistic text choices, like specialized grammar selections, voice, etc. — choices that would be outlined in a style guide
  • Icon libraries
  • Photo libraries, both stock and custom
  • Other graphics, especially your logo — now is a good time to reevaluate your logo and make a new one if you were planning to
  • UI patterns (note which ones need to be updated)
  • Page templates

If you’re a new startup and don’t have any finalized design elements to review, think critically on each of these areas to determine the choices that best fit your brand. Later, you’ll have to create a master list anyway, so it’s never too soon to start deciding on these.

2. Get the entire team on board

True, you could do this step first before evaluating your UI inventory; however, we recommend looking for inconsistencies first to give your argument leverage if you’re met with resistance. Nothing like a laundry list of design inconsistencies to get naysayers on board.

Regardless of how many errors you collect, you should highlight to the team the efficiency bonuses of using a centralized design system. Repeat everything mentioned above in the introduction, and accent the amount of time and work a design system saves by streamlining the entire design process beginning to end.

A common complaint about design systems is that the company doesn’t have time to set aside on a side project, but the truth is design systems make up that time — and much, much more — in the long run.

3. Color palette

Now we get into the nitty-gritty of design systems: creating a master list of all your design choices, whether you’re choosing among existing elements or creating them from scratch. It goes without saying that you should rectify the inconsistencies from the first step before adding them in the master.

Your color palette is a good place to start. Maybe you’ve noticed the company uses more than a hundred different shades of gray. How much easier would it be if everyone just used one shade, and that one could be grabbed in a readily available design system?

Identify your chosen shades and hues for every color you use repeatedly, and write definitive guidelines for how to use them. Of course this includes your primary branding colors, but also pay attention to your secondary colors. For example, what color is your text? Your links? Special buttons? Backgrounds?

Remember to include HEX, RGBA, or HSL codes to be as precise as possible.

4. Typographic elements guide

Next, you want to review and finalize your typographic choices. If you already have a style guide, most of the work is done for you. If not, this free style guide eBook will tell you what you need.

Design systems can be more technical than static style guides, so take advantage of this. Note your preferred text sizes, spaces, fonts, etc., as well as any rules on where and when to use them. For example, how big are section headings in your blog articles? What font do you use for on-site calls-to-action?

Don’t neglect the fine details, like font weights, line heights, or custom kerning rules if applicable.

5. Graphic design assets

A well-made design system allows you to simply drag and drop visual components right into your new prototype. The more graphic design assets you collect in a design system, the faster your workflow for future projects.

Don’t forget to include the proper code snippets or any other documentation developers may need. This small inclusion is an enormous help during the development stage.

Among your graphic design assets, you’ll need libraries for

  • Icons — All the icons your products, apps, or sites use. Having a standardized icon library ensures consistency across your entire brand.
  • Photography — A single go-to reference for all your company photography, both custom images and purchased stock photos. Not only is it easier to pull these from a design system, it also allows workers to browse the selection for ideas and inspiration.
  • Illustrations — Likewise, compile all the custom illustrations you’ve commissioned, including page flourishes or border designs.
  • Branding images — This is a place for your standardized logos and other branding images, like mascots. Rules for logo usage can get strict, so it’s better to pull pre-approved images to ensure compliance.

Moreover, you may want to include a list of design principles for everyone to follow if they’re creating a new graphic asset. Sizes, colors, compatibilities, preferred file formats — having a rulebook helps ensure your company’s style remains intact in the future.

6. Pattern library

Finally, include a pattern library of all your common design elements, especially interactive ones. There may be some overlap between UI patterns and graphic assets. On the whole, your UI patterns are more advanced than stagnant visuals.

To be clear, UI patterns are any design elements you use consistently for the interface of your site, app, or product. For example, how you treat your search function is a UI pattern, including how the magnifying glass icon looks, whether the input window expands or remains open, where it’s located on the screen, and if you include placeholder text or not.

Don’t forget, once again, to include code snippets and other development documentation. This is even more significant for UI patterns, as they tend to be more technical.

When organizing your UI patterns, include usage notes to clarify the specifics of how to use it. It also helps to use screenshots or visual cues to make searching for them easier.

It also helps to organize your pattern library into subsections. Try categorizing them by function, such as “navigation,” or by type, such as “drop-down menus.”

7. Upload the select UI elements in a design system document

Lastly, you need to house your design system somewhere that’s convenient and easily accessible. The UXPin Design Systems platform was created for this in particular, with a template-like format where all you have to do is input your components in the appropriate space or upload them from Sketch.

You also have the options of dragging and dropping your elements into the prototyping software, which means easy, DIY designing and a fully-coded handoff to developers with complete documentation (full markup, information about imports, and names of javascript components, etc.). If you want to optimize your time-to-market, this all-inclusive solution is the way to go.

Conclusion

Design systems are a relatively new addition to the world of digital design, but they’re already changing the game. Given the depth of what they’re capable of, we can’t fully explain their usage here; this is just an introduction on how to get started.

This article originally appeared here on Medium.

UXPin is the design process tool that helps product teams around the world turn ideas into products faster.

With Merge, UXPin’s revolutionary technology, companies like PayPal can easily solve DesignOps challenges. UXPin Merge allows you to design with React components to achieve full consistency with the final product.

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UXPin Changelog July 2018 #10

In July, we’ve added a few features that allow building better high fidelity prototypes: new curve types for pen tool, loop for interactions, flipping elements. Also, we’ve released some enhancements to the UXPin Editor to improve the workflow. Details below.

Editor and Preview

  • [New] Asymmetric and disjointed curve types for pen tool.   Pen Tool Points with UXPin
  • [New] Possibility to switch elements height/width from the properties panel. Switch alt
  • [New] Possibility to flip elements horizontally/vertically. Flipping elements with UXPin
  • [New] Possibility to loop interactions.Looping interactions
  • [Improved] Updated icons for common elements on the layers list.layers list common elements
  • [Improved] Improved performance when dragging layers on the layers list.
  • [Improved] Elements added with shortcuts are placed so that their top left corner matches the cursor position.
  • [Improved] Moved distribute controls to alignment sections.
  • [Improved] Moved front/back controls to the top bar.
  • [Improved] More coherent shadows for all elements.

Desktop App 1.1.2

  • [New] More actions in the top bar menu.
  • Small bug fixes and visual improvements.

If you’re interested what we released in June, please check out Changelog 2018 #9.

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UXPin Changelog June 2018 #9

In June, we’ve released many features to improve the workflow in UXPin Editor and build better high fidelity prototypes. Details below.

Editor and Preview

  • [New] Redesigned properties panel split into separate styling sections.
  • [New] Context top bar menu – allows to group and ungroup the  elements, turn them into symbols and open the interactions panel quickly.Context top menu bar 
  • [New] Blending modes – allow to determine how two layers are interacting with each other.
  • [New] Spread support for shadows – helps control shadow contour.Spread support for shadows UXPin
  • [New]  Shortcuts for elements distribution: vertical (cmd/ctrl+alt+Y) and horizontal(cmd/ctrl+alt+X).
  • [Improved] Show/hide elements is now available in the layers section in properties panel. 
  • [Improved] Improved way of managing elements in layers depending if you click or double-click on the element.
  • [Improved] Dragging with cmd/ctrl pressed selects only elements entirely in selection bounds.
  • [Improved] Disable snapping with a key (cmd) modificator.
  • [Improved] Reorganised and shrank right-click menu in the Editor.
  • [Improved] Zoom control has been moved back to the top bar.
  • [Improved] Locked elements are selectable from the layers panel only.

Pen tool improvements

  • [New] Added 10 different types of endpoints for a path to create different arrows.Different paths for arrows
  • [New] Set the shape of ends and joins for any path.set shape fo ends and joints
  • [New] Set dashed line – allows to decide whether a path should be solid, dashed or dotted with precise control of each dash and gap length.Set dashed line UXPin
  • [New] Added start/stop options for stroke.
  • [New] Set the position of each path node directly from properties panel.

Design Systems

  • [Improved] Select the whole image and then delete it with backspace
  • Small bug fixes and visual improvements.

If you’re interested what we released in May, please check out Changelog 2018 #8.

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UXPin Changelog May 2018 #8

In May, we’ve focused on the improvements for Design Systems and UXPin Editor. We’ve also released a new version of a Desktop App (1.1). Details below.

Editor and Preview

  • [New] Line element.Line element UXPin
  • [new] Pen Tool – drag with Shift locks x/y axis. Pen tool used for shifting
  • [new] Pen Tool – pressing Shift adds a node in the middle of the path. Pen tool other actions UXPin
  • [new] Pen Tool – double-clicking on nodes creates a circle. Pen tool double clicking
  • [new] Set element rotation to any angle (including negative and > 360° values).  
  • [new] Possibility to group a single element and a single group to organize all layers typesGrouping layers
  • [fixed] Pasting elements multiple times using shortcuts wasn’t working.
  • [fixed] Symbols were refreshed on Preview inconsistently.
  • [fixed] Incorrect position of the element pasted inside a symbol.

Design Systems

  • [new] Support for emojis in DS documentation.
  • [fixed] Design System tile on Dashboard wasn’t refreshed after updating colors.
  • [fixed] JSON wasn’t generated for some Design Systems.

Desktop App v1.1

  • [new] Option to copy a Preview link from the top bar menu (Windows/Copy Link to Preview).
  • [new] Manage application windows from the dock/taskbar.
  • [new] More options added to the top bar menu.
  • [new] Options in the top bar menu are displayed depending on the area of UXPin (Editor/Preview/Dashboard/Design Systems).
  • [new] Minimal initial size of the window based on the screen resolution.
  • Other bug fixes and small visual improvements.

If you’re interested what we released in April, please check out Changelog 2018 #7.

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10 UXPin Product Updates You Might Have Missed

And now they’re here! From user requests to new features, big and small, we’ve shared some of UXPin’s updates from the last twelve months in one concise form.

 

1. Shadows

You can easily add shadows to the elements and customize their color, opacity, and relative position. It’s possible to combine multiple shadows together or create only inner ones. This heavily requested feature is available to all users.

2. Pen Tool

Use Pen Tool to draw shapes and icons directly in UXPin. Any drawn element can be viewed in spec mode and downloaded as an SVG. Creating custom icons and adding them to your design library has never been easier!

3. Tokens for Design Systems

Imagine this: your developers can have access to rich information with just one URL, opening possibilities for ultimate design consistency.

Now you can easily export your color and typography styles, as well as their full documentation, to JSON. For quicker exporting, you can use other popular formats including YAML, CSS, SCSS, LESS, and STYLUS, but without documentation.

4. Copy-pasting styles and interactions

Say no to tediously re-making interactions. You can now copy-paste them to elements with just a few clicks! You can also quickly apply entire styles (including color and typography) from one element to another, saving you so much time.

5. New pricing

We are excited to share that we now offer four different plans (starting from $9/month) with a variety of features tailored to your needs. Whether you’re working on a small project or with a complex design systems, we’re confident you’ll find the right fit among our new plans.

6. Resizing panels and UI redesign

Our UI has seen numerous iterations, but after our latest redesign we’re really proud of it. Not only is it slicker and more intuitive, but also it freed up a lot of screen space. We’ve also given you the freedom of customization — it’s possible to resize panels and toggle UI theme from light to dark. Great for contrasting your prototypes!

7. Performance updates

2017 was a year of constant performance improvements. Team dove into javascript and made dozens of micro-optimisations. Overall, we’ve decreased loading times by 30%, preview has become significantly stable, and complex design systems are scrolling smoothly. 2018 is no different and further upgrades are planned and scheduled.

8. In-app changelog

It was easy to lose track of our constant updates. Not a week passed without a deploy that addressed requests we heard or fulfilled our roadmap. With our in-app changelog, you will be notified every time an important feature or update is released.

9. Pasting from clipboard

The ability to paste an image directly from your clipboard into UXPin allows you to save precious time and makes prototyping even faster. Copy the image, paste it to UXPin, add interactions, send it to a client — a mockup is born!

10. Math operations

You can use basic math operations to determine the size or position of your elements. It’s also excellent when calculating proportions on the fly.

One more thing…

Last but not least, we’ve just launched our brand new desktop application. It has all the tools from the original browser version, in addition to some added improvements. Because it’s right on your desktop it’s always at hand — just one click away from your Dock or Taskbar. Having dedicated processes makes it faster and more reliable as well as uninterrupted from plugins and browser distractions.

You can get the latest versions here: MacOS, Windows.

 

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UXPin Changelog May 2018 #7

In April, we’ve released a Desktop App, a few enhancements to the UXPin Editor and Design Systems, and new versions of the Sketch plugin. Details below.

Desktop App

UXPin desktop app update and changelog

That month marked the release of our brand new desktop application that has all the tools you know and love from the original browser version. Download here for Mac or Windows.

Editor

  • [Fixed] Shadows for symbols not saving in the Design System Library.
  • [Fixed] Removed shadow and blur options for the hotspot element.
  • [Fixed] Editor freezing while using history (undo/redo) with Pen Tool.

Design Systems

  • [Fixed] Issues with selecting hex value from a Design System to copy it.

Sketch Plugin

  • [New] Support for masks created in Sketch (version 4.11.1).
  • [Fixed] Design System Library was not opening in some cases (version 4.11.2).
  • [Fixed] Plugin crashing without warning when users checked exportable options on some groups (version 4.11.3).

10 UXPin Updates You Might Have Missed

In case you missed it, we want to show you 10 UXPin updates we’ve released recently.

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UXPin Changelog April 2018 #6

In the past two weeks, we’ve released a few enhancements to the Design Systems (restricted access, export Design Systems in new formats), Editor (Pen Tool, resizable left panel), and in-app changelog in the Editor. Details below.

Design Systems

  • [New] Restrict access to Design Systems only to your team in UXPin. Restricting access to design systems
  • [New] Export Design Systems with documentation in JSON format.
  • [New] Export tokens in YAML, CSS, SCSS, LESS, and STYLUS formats. Export tokens
  • [Improvement] Create symbols with CMD + K shortcut (Alt+S also works).
  • [Fixed] Losing connection between symbols when pasting a symbol into a different project.

Editor

  • [New] Create any shape you want using Pen Tool. Pen tool
  • [New] Resize left panel, and its content will adjust accordingly.
  • [New] In-app changelog also available in the Editor.In-app changelog
  • [Improvement] Click on the changelog orange dot to get the “What’s new?”modal immediately.
  • [Fixed] Canvas was jumping after entering symbols or multistates edit mode.
  • [Fixed] Unwanted transparency after fill color was changed for a SVG element.
  • [Fixed] Stroke width was not copied correctly.

If you’re interested what we released in March, please check out Changelog 2018 #5.

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UXPin Changelog March 2018 #5

In the past two weeks, we’ve released a few enhancements to the symbols, new version of the Sketch plugin, visual improvements in the Editor, and new features in the Dashboard (iterations from iterations, in-app changelog). Details below.

Design Systems

  • [Improvement] Handling local and master symbols’ relations while using undo/redo.
  • [Improvement] Changes in nested symbols are synced across all parent symbols when pushed to the library.
  • [Improvement] Removing symbol when all elements inside were deleted.
  • [Improvement] Symbols keep connection to the Design System Library after duplicating the prototype.

Sketch plugin 4.11

  • [New] Exporting shapes as SVGs.
  • [New] Design System Library redesign.
  • [New] Exporting opacity as property which can be changed in the UXPin Editor.
  • [Fixed] Upon exporting from Sketch, additional export sizes are no longer added.  
  • [Fixed] Plugin supports the newest version of Sketch app (version 49).

Visual changes in the Editor

  • Added the Hamburger menu in the top left corner.
  • Moved Preview mode to the right (marked with Play icon).
  • Moved Zoom settings to the bottom left corner.
  • Added prototype name and active page.
  • Bottom left corner menu (Log out, Integrations, Shortcuts, Help&Tutorial, Add user) moved to the Hamburger menu in the top left.
  • Moved View options to the Hamburger menu.
  • Added Simple/Advanced mode to the View Options modal.
  • Redesigned tabs in the properties panel (Properties, Interactions, Specification).

Dashboard

  • [New] Creating iteration from iteration.
  • [New] In-app changelog notification with information about fixes or new features.

If you’re interested what we released in February, please check out Changelog 2018 #3 and Changelog 2018 #4.

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