Easy to Use Tools and Resources to Make Your Work More Efficient
How to deal with procrastination? You can read all the books and articles you want to about dealing with it. Yet, there's always something, a website project, for example, that you're still reluctant to tackle.
Maybe it's the tools you're working with, and you need a few new ones to make work easier? Or maybe it's your resources, for the same reason?
It's not easy to stay up to date with all the latest and greatest tools and resources on the market. But you still have to try! It is not just for the sake of surviving the competition. It is more to avoid those bouts of procrastination as well.
Here's a collection of our 15 favorites that should make your next project a little easier. They're suitable for designers and developers, pros, and beginners.
Proto.io
Proto.io is a complete prototyping tool that you can use for low-fidelity prototypes, wireframes, or mockups, or for ultra-high-fidelity prototypes that look and feel the same as real websites or apps. Prototypes can be built directly on Proto.io using the editor tool; or, you can import a design directly from Sketch or Photoshop to work with. No matter which option you choose, no coding skills are needed to create prototypes on this tool.
You can add any of the commonly used transitions or gestures to your prototype before testing it on an iPhone or iPad, an Android table, an Apple watch, or any other commonly-used mobile device.
Single-click sharing allows you to share your prototypes with key project stakeholders, and get comments or video feedback from users. Proto.io has a partnership with several popular platforms that allows you to get timely user feedback, so you can refine your design before submitting it to development.
Proto.io is available on a 15-day trial basis at no cost to you, nor is a credit card required.
SITE123
This modern website builder features a rich selection of responsive, ready-made design styles and layouts. SITE123 also features a WYSIWYG editor, so you can immediately see any changes you make on the screen, making the design effort quite simple and intuitive.
The intuitive interface allows you to speed up the design process through a modular approach, in which you can take text, video, gallery, blog, and other modules, and customize and arrange them to build your website.
SITE123 is also multilingual, a feature a growing number of clients like to see. It also has an additional feature that will both website builders and their clients happy; a built-in app market you can use to integrate external applications, such as analytics tools, marketing tools, and live chat, into a website, thereby increasing it usability and value.
SITE123 is offered a no cost. Paid plans are available.
Xfive
Xfive is a provider of development services for teams working on large projects, multiple projects, or are experiencing bursts periods of work, and could use extra help. Xfive also offers its services to those working single or small projects, whether the design work is being accomplished by a team or an individual.
Xfive (formerly XHTMLized) has been in the development business for 10 years, they have a worldwide staff of professional developers, and they can partner with you by taking on large projects, acting as an extension to your design and/or development team.
Xfive also offers team rental services for businesses that need a full-time developer, but don't want to hire one. They will help you if you have a single project with a completed design to submit, or if you want to submit a project to them to “try their services out”.
Pro
Pro gives you an excellent, and somewhat unique way of building highly custom sites on WordPress. This industry-first “app”, is intended mainly for creative web design and development professionals.
Its features include 3 primary building tools (header, footer, and content) plus 30 premium tools consisting of Themeco- and 3rd party-developed plugins. Pro users also have access to Apex, a community of and for creative professionals.
wpDataTables
You're no doubt proficient at building complex charts and tables. Being confronted with a task of creating tables based on millions of rows of data, with the expectation of producing charts or tables that are responsive, interactive, clearly readable, and easily editable, could however, give you a massive headache.
wpDataTables will do the heavy lifting for you, and do it quickly. Furthermore, its learning curve is flat.
Webflow
You can use Webflow as a prototype builder, you can use it to design websites, and, since it handles the development work for you, you can build ready-to-go websites as well. No coding is necessary, and since your high-fidelity prototypes feature HTML/CSS coding, once they can precisely mimic what you want in your final product, you're done! Your prototype that works like a real website, becomes the real website!
Ultra
Ultra provides a fast and easy way to build a website, which is exactly what you need when your client represents a startup. Fast and easy is good; because the dynamic nature of startups, whose rapid growth often means rapid change, is reflected in their websites.
Ultra's innovative, pre-designed content row approach not only enables you to build a website fast, but also to make changes on the fly if needed. The rows are customizable and responsive.
FFonts
A site featuring a large number of free fonts is somewhat rare. Even if you find one, like FFonts, where do you find the time to search for the font you want? With FFonts, it's not a problem.
The several thousand quality free fonts they offer are neatly categorized in sensible, meaningful categories. This is a good resource to have handy.
WhatFontIs
You should consider adding WhatFontis to your toolkit as well. This free service is handy to have when you come across a “must-have” font style, but don't know its name. If this has happened to you before, you know how frustrating a search can be.
With WhatFontis, it's merely a matter of submitting a sample of what you're looking for. You'll either get the font's name of a selection of close matches.
Pressmate
Pressmate makes a good partner for web designers who are heavy WordPress users, or are responsible for maintaining large and complex, or multiple websites. This premium WordPress support service's mission is to help teams, agencies, and businesses maintain their websites and tools by providing WordPress core, theme and plugin updates.
Pressmate also performs hacking and malware cleanup services, security services, website performance monitoring, and cloud backups.
BBT Drag and Drop Email Builder
If you're involved in e-mail marketing campaigns, or provide templates for those who are, you'll find the BBT Drag and Drop Email Builder will save you time, and help improve conversion rates. You'll also be able to make rapid changes in response to your perceived customer preferences.
With the builder, you can create your own templates from scratch, or take advantage of Big Bang Theme's set of ready-made templates.
Stockfresh
This up-and-coming stock photo agency will make a nice addition to any web designers toolkit. Stockfresh offers millions of quality photos and vectors at prices you'll find very competitive.
Several purchasing plans are available, plus you'll find customer support to be helpful and friendly should you have a question or need assistance. Stockfresh plans to expand its inventory of design goodies soon.
Aurora
Aurora HDR is not only for professional photographers who want to touch up and occasional photo, or make dramatic changes using special effects. This HDR photo editor for Mac is a great tool for web designers looking to add a distinctly professional touch to their website images, or use Aurora's multiple special effect capabilities to jazz things up
A PC version is scheduled for release shortly.
SnapPages
SnapPages is not only a drag and drop website builder that's faster and better than most, but it's been designed from the ground up for mobile applications; plus, it's a great tool for bloggers too.
The latest version, SnapPages 3, is fully responsive and easier than ever to use. Since your website will be fully hosted in the cloud, it can quickly be accessed at any time, no matter where you are.
Goodie
Goodie is a software development platform specializing in simple WordPress websites, single-page websites, coding e-mail templates, and similar small projects. When you submit a project to Goodie, you don't just sit and wait for the final product to arrive.
Instead, you work directly with the developer to make sure all questions are answered and any problems encountered are resolved. Goodie performs its assigned tasks quickly, and for a previously agreed-upon, fixed price.
In Conclusion
Does your design toolkit have any empty spaces? Are you looking for a tool or resource that will serve you better than what you presently have? Congratulations - this is your chance!
Perhaps you've come across the one thing that will encourage you to get started on that project you've put on the shelf. Any of the presented candidates can become a great companion in your everyday job.
Each project was tailored to make your work easier and enhance your productivity. Let us know what do you think!
