Mobile ads are the money-makers for games. They pay the bills and serve as the financial backbone that keeps the gaming experience alive and thriving. But it’s not just a hunch – let’s throw in some numbers.
According to Statista, the mobile gaming content market was worth an estimated 140.5 billion U.S. dollars in 2022 and according to the latest projections, this figure will surpass 173.4 billion by 2026 as mobile adoption and smartphone usage continue to hit new peaks.
Now, let’s break down the mechanics. It’s simple. When you play games on your phone, those ads you see – they’re like little money machines. Every time you tap or watch one, the game gets some cash. It’s like a deal: you get entertainment, and the game gets paid.
Think of it this way: those ads are like sponsors for your game. They support the fun you’re having. The more people check out the ads, the more money flows in. So, next time you see an ad in a game, know that it’s not just a play pause – it’s the game getting paid to keep the good times rolling.
We’ve established that these ads play a crucial role in keeping the gaming experience alive and well. But how do they manage to be these behind-the-scenes champions? Let’s find out.
The Economics Behind Gaming Ads
Making money isn’t just about selling games. It’s also about ads – those banners, videos, and product placements you see while playing. So, let’s break down the money talk: the economics behind gaming ads.
Game developers need cash to create awesome games, and ads help foot the bill. When you play a game for free, those ads keep it that way.
Now, let’s get a bit techy. Advertisers use algorithms to target specific players based on their gaming habits. So, if you’re into racing games, you might see ads for the latest speed machines. It’s like the game and the ads team up to give you stuff you’re interested in.
The economics of gaming ads are like a behind-the-scenes partnership. Ads make games free, and in return, game developers get the cash flow they need. So next time you see an ad pop up, remember, it’s not just a pause in your game – it’s the reason you’re playing for free.
Revenue Streams
When it comes to making games, money matters. But not everyone wants to pay upfront to play. That’s where revenue streams, the cash flow behind game development, come into play.
Companies pay the game creators to showcase their stuff – it could be a cool new gadget or a fizzy drink. This money is like the lifeblood that keeps game development pumping.
But wait, there’s more. In-game purchases are another sidekick in this money-making adventure. Ever bought a snazzy outfit or a special power-up while playing? That’s an in-game purchase. It’s like choosing to get a little extra while you’re having a blast.
Ad revenue in mobile gaming is like the financial engine that powers your favorite games. Ads and in-game purchases team up to make sure game developers have the funds they need.
Types of In-Game Ads
In-game ads come in different shapes and sizes, like the variety pack of snacks.
First up, there are banner ads – those small rectangles you see hanging out at the top or bottom of your game screen. They’re like mini billboards, quietly chilling while you play.
Then we’ve got video ads. These are like short movie trailers that pop up, usually when you’re taking a breather between game levels. Watch for a few seconds, and the game gets a little cash boost.
Ever noticed products seamlessly fitting into the game world? That’s product placement. It’s like when your favorite soda appears on a virtual shelf – companies pay for their goods to be part of the gaming story.
Interactive ads are the cool kids in the block. They let you engage, like clicking on a quiz or trying out a mini-game. It’s not just watching; it’s getting involved.
Lastly, we’ve got native ads. These are sneaky – they blend into the game environment, so you might not even realize they’re ads. Like a ninja of advertising, they’re there, but you might miss them.
Tech-wise, game developers use smart algorithms to figure out when and where to show these ads. In-game ads are the diverse crew working together to make your gaming experience awesome while keeping the game developers in the green.
Player Experience and Ad Integration
The way you enjoy a game and the ads you see go hand in hand. This makes balance the “key” between the two.
Imagine playing a game without interruptions – that’s the goal. Ads are sprinkled in, not to annoy you, but to keep the game free. So, when you’re shooting aliens or scoring goals, the ads aren’t there to spoil the fun but to make sure the game keeps rolling without costing you a dime.
Game developers use smart tools to figure out when to show ads without messing with your gaming flow. It’s like having a friend who knows when to chat and when to let you focus on winning.
Now, about ad formats – they’re designed to be like a good sidekick, not stealing the spotlight. Banners hang out quietly, videos play during your breather moments, and interactive ads wait for your cue. It’s all about being part of the game without being in your face.
So, when you see an ad pop up, remember, it’s not about disturbing your game groove. It’s about the game saying, “Hey, thanks for playing. We’ve got bills to pay, but we’ll keep it cool, promise.”
Challenges and Solutions in Gaming Ad Monetization
There are some bumps in the road when it comes to making money through game ads. There’s a tricky balance between ads and your game fun.
Too many ads, and it’s like a party pooper; too few, and the game struggles to pay its bills. The tech wizards behind the scenes work on finding that sweet spot – enough ads to keep things free, but not so much that it feels like an ad overload.
Another challenge is making ads fit right into the game world. Nobody wants a clashing ad ruining the vibe. So, tech-smart developers use algorithms to figure out the best time and place for ads. It’s like having a personal ad curator, making sure the ads blend seamlessly with your gaming experience.
Then comes the ad variety. Too much of the same thing can get boring. Developers keep things fresh by mixing up ad formats – banners, videos, interactive stuff – so it’s like a surprise every time, not a rerun.
Now, the tech fix for ad interruptions. Ever had an ad suddenly pop up in the middle of a boss battle? Not cool. Developers are on it, using clever programming to time ads when it won’t throw off your game groove. It’s all about keeping the ads in check, so you can keep conquering levels uninterrupted.
In a nutshell, challenges in game ad money-making exist, but developers are on a mission to solve them without spoiling your gaming fun.
Cloud hosting is the perfect solution for websites that want to scale. If you’re a small business and want to know what provider to choose, you’ve come to the right place.
Cloud computing, in general, is a huge market. It generates more than $30 billion in 2020, and it’s projected to reach $552 billion by 2027, according to Statista.
With cloud hosting, you’ll enjoy a ton of resources from a variety of sources to create a robust and efficient virtual server.
Contrast this with shared hosting — where your site goes down as soon as the server is down. But if a cloud server is experiencing downtime, other servers in the same network up the slack.
Small businesses and growing websites that need an excellent balance between an affordable and high-performance server can benefit a lot from cloud-based hosts.
What is Cloud Hosting?
Cloud hosting is a type of web hosting solution whereby a website is stored on multiple servers, which allows you to utilize resources from a wide range of servers to deliver optimal performance.
The availability of server resources makes cloud hosting solutions a very reliable, flexible, and scalable web hosting service. Sites that experience spikes and dips in traffic, for example, will benefit so much from this type of hosting.
All things being equal, good hosting can help you make more money in your business.
If you need more flexibility in your hosting package, cloud hosting is the ideal choice. You can consider this as a pay-as-you-go mobile: which lets you decide your resource limits every month and pay accordingly.
Are you getting ready for a busy month? Do you expect hundreds of thousands and even millions of visitors to your website? Cloud hosting can help you weather the storm — regardless of the amount of traffic coming to your website.
You’ll find hundreds of cloud-based hosting providers online. However, choosing the right one that will meet your website’s needs can be daunting.
To help you make a well-informed decision, here are the 5+ cloud hosting services for small business owners:
Best Cloud Hosting Providers and Services
A2 Hosting: Best cloud hosting provider.
Cloudways: Managed cloud hosting service
SiteGround: Easy to use features.
xCloud: Fast cloud hosting platform
Hostwinds: Affordable cloud hosting solution.
InMotion Hosting: Excellent customer support.
HostGator: Unmetered Storage.
1. Cloudways
As the name implies, Cloudways is a managed cloud hosting platform that helps you stay focused on your business, and not worry about downtime.
If you’re a growing agency or you run an eCommerce business, Cloudways could be a perfect choice. That’s why eCommerce brands like Boohoo, Revolve, and several others choose cloud-based hosting solutions.
What I like about Cloudways:
Cloudways is a strong rival to A2 Hosting. Depending on what your hosting needs are, its robust cloud-based server will serve your website to the target audience.
This provider is very versatile and allows you to deploy your cloud servers from any of the 25 global locations, you can also choose your region and city.
Your website will always be closer to the servers. This can improve page speed and overall performance. This also makes Cloudways’ plans to be more affordable than the competitors’.
Your chosen data center will determine the price you eventually pay. You could use this map generator to build a network of the data points you’re using. Feel free to choose between monthly or hourly pricing plans, depending on what goals you wish to achieve with your website.
For instance, the basic plan for a Digital Ocean data center in New York costs $10/month.
This pricing is similar to those of other locations, including San Francisco, London, and a few other cities. However, if you want more flexibility, you could access the same plan and data center for a pay-as-you-go rate of $0.0139/hour.
What could be improved?
Cloudways offers excellent and reliable customer support across its plans, as well as a 24/7 live chat and easy ticketing system.
However, you’re required to sign up for one or two paid support plans if you want access to more advanced features. When you pay $100/month, for example, you’ll get an Advanced support plan, which includes site monitoring and investigations, in addition to customization help.
To gain access to 24/7 phone support, though, you’re required to scale up to the Premium support plan, with pricing starting at $500/month.
2. A2 Hosting
A2 Hosting is a popular web hosting company, offering cloud-based hosting packages to help you grow and scale your small business website.
What I like about A2 Hosting:
A2 Hosting offers reliable and cheap cloud hosting solutions. It’s our #1 preferred provider for easy-to-use features. It also offers a money-back guarantee — which is missing in most providers.
This hosting provider is affordable, with cloud plans starting at $4.99/month. The uptime performance is 99.95%, however, you get a wealth of handy features. It offers plans that ensure peace of mind, even while you’re sleeping or out on a vacation.
Some of the features include 250 GB of storage, 32 GB of RAM, 12 CPU cores, and you’re allowed to host multiple (unlimited) websites — a feature that’s not common in some cloud hosting providers.
What could be improved?
It doesn’t offer SSL certificates. You’ll have to pay for this as an add-on. Also, there’s no free domain name. However, the pricing starts at $4.99/month, which is quite cheap.
Improving its customer support is also important. They can offer live chat sessions, phone calls (integrated with a predictive dialer) so that users can get their questions answered as quickly as possible.
3. Siteground
Siteground is arguably one of the widely used cloud hosting providers. It currently has 2 million+ domains hosted. Its cloud hosting service is most ideal for high-performing websites.
What I like about SiteGround:
Siteground offers amazing support via phone, email, and live chat. It boasts a 99.98% uptime and easy-to-use features. You can’t go entirely wrong when you choose Siteground. It’s a hugely reliable provider, with an overall score of 4.6/5.
You also get a ton of Google tools to help you integrate and optimize your website.
What could be improved?
While Siteground is an amazing web hosting company, it falls short on some angles. First, it doesn’t give users free domain names when they sign up for any of its plans.
Getting a free domain name could be the motivation that a person or business needs to start their website. Many hosting providers such as Bluehost and Hostgator provide free domain names.
Second, Siteground is a bit costly. The starting price of $80 could discourage beginners from signing up. If you’re using a shared plan, this price will feel like a big leap.
That said, Siteground offers reliable cloud hosting plans — a great uptime, responsive support, and 5TB bandwidth make it a go-to resource for site owners.
4. xCloud
xCloud is a full-featured server management and control panel that has been designed to make the processes involved in setting up, deploying, and managing WordPress websites simple.
What I like about xCloud:
Redis caching’s features are employed by xCloud to deliver quick site performance. Whether you’re using the core WordPress plugins or popular ones like WooCommerce, our precisely calibrated caching settings make sure that your visitors get the performance they want. Users are happier when webpages load faster, and xCloud does just that.
Each team may send up to 100 emails for free with xCloud Managed Email services, offering an affordable option for efficient communication. Because of this functionality, your team may stay connected without paying extra, which makes xCloud a cost-effective and convenient option for email communication management.
You can automatically update WordPress core, plugins, and themes with xCloud, ensuring that your website always has the newest features and security patches. By making maintenance easier, our user-friendly platform frees up your time so you can concentrate more on creating content and less on technical details.
What could be improved?
xCloud is a top web hosting provider with outstanding offerings. Comparing it to competitors, nevertheless, shows that there is still scope for improvement in terms of advanced features. The pricing model is one area that may be improved because it could be difficult for new users to understand the various price options and durations. Making the price structure simpler can make the experience easier for users to navigate.
5. Hostwinds
Hostwinds offers shared, dedicated, VPS, and cloud hosting solutions to small businesses. If you’re looking for a low-priced hosting plan with fast servers, you might want to consider Hostwinds.
What I like about Hostwinds:
Hostwinds offers some amazing features on its cloud plans, including RAM, bandwidth, and storage. It also comes with a one-click install option for WordPress, or you can choose to design your site using Wix or Shopify.
So there’s no need to hire a freelancer or start to write codes if you don’t want to.
The amazing aspect of this hosting provider is the hourly pricing structure. As an example, the basic cloud hosting plan starts at $0.006931/hour, while the most advanced cloud plan begins at $0.456931/hour.
The total amounts are $4.99 and $328.99/month respectively. Hostwinds also offers a 60-day money-back guarantee — which is longer than what most hosts provide.
What could be improved?
While Hostwinds offer a decent value for your money, it lacks some of the advanced features that you’d get with a more expensive provider like Cloudways. Again, it doesn’t offer free domains, free backups, and server customization.
6. InMotion Hosting
InMotion Hosting is a powerful and reliable cloud hosting provider that helps you grow your small business website. You get premium hosting features with responsive 24/7 customer support and a 99.99% uptime rate.
What I like about InMotion:
InMotion is well-respected for its shared and VPS hosting solutions, but that doesn’t mean its cloud-based hosting isn’t right for your business?
Small businesses involved in manufacturing use this hosting provider. Ecommerce businesses, local businesses have made InMotion their preferred cloud host.
The most striking feature is customer support.
You get access to a 24/7 live chat and phone support, a comprehensive knowledge center that answers the most common questions, and help tickets — when you need to contact the support team.
The features are welcoming — as it offers free domains and backups, unmetered CPU cores, root access, unlimited email accounts, and websites, and some other advanced features to make your website hosting truly remarkable.
What could be improved?
InMotion has its fair share of negatives as well. For one, the RAM is fairly low and capped at 8GB. It also has a limited bandwidth, which could negatively affect your website if there’s a sudden traffic surge.
7. Hostgator
Hostgator has been providing cheap and trusted web hosting solutions for more than 2 decades. It offers great features and cost-effective cloud hosting to small businesses.
Hostgator is one of the most affordable hosting options on this list. You can even use the handy tools to optimize your photos before using them in your page — to increase page speed.
What I like about Hostgator:
First, it offers flexible cloud hosting plans that small business owners can choose from. Here’s a breakdown:
Hatchling Plan:
Starting at $4.95
2 CPUs
Baby Plan
2 GB of memory
Single domain
Starting at $6.57
4 CPUs
Unlimited domains
Business Plan
4 GB of memory
Starting at $9.95
6 GB of memory
6 CPUs
Unlimited domains
Remember that these rates cover a 36-month contract. As you can see, the rates are cheaper than the actual price, which you’re expected to pay when you renew your plan.
You’ll get a free SSL certificate regardless of your chosen plan. For the Business plan, you’ll get a dedicated IP, free domain, and free SEO tools as well.
Hostgator has a clean and easy-to-use dashboard. Here, you can monitor how your website is performing. It’s a lot easier to view data related to page speed, reach, uptime, etc.
You can easily scale your server resources with Hostgator. All you need is one click, and you’ll not have to worry about reboots, downtime, or data migrations.
Hostgator can improve its services even more by offering a customer experience course and treating international customers a lot better. This is to cater for users who don’t understand the English language, a quick tutoring support could help them communicate with this set of users better.
Benefits Of Cloud Hosting
So why should you choose cloud hosting? Is it the right hosting solution for your website?
Let’s consider some of the benefits of cloud hosting to help you make well-informed decisions:
1. Server Performance
Cloud hosting and its technology is a great option for load balancing. Your website will perform at its best since you’re using several data centers scattered across virtual machines.
This is different from shared hosting that uses a single physical server, and thus, could slow down your performance.
With cloud-based hosting, you can utilize a ton of resources to efficiently handle traffic spikes without losing speed.
2. Server Availability
Server downtimes are never a good thing, especially if you’re making money off of your website.
The beauty of cloud hosting is that it doesn’t tie you to a single server.
Even if a machine goes down – your uptime will remain unaffected. You can see how that configuration is the perfect approach to frustrating a hacker.
3. Security
Website security is a good reason to choose a cloud hosting provider. Safety is critical, not just for you, but for your site visitors as well.
Most cloud hosting providers have come to terms with the fact that security is important — hence, they ensure their setup and features are in line with the latest security standards.
Server security is important for every type of business: a local restaurant website, a nonprofit site, a medical practice portal, a fitness site, a meal planning app, or even a serviceman’s website need to be secure at all times for the user.
Some of the measures put in place include DDoS protection, remote server backups, SSL certificate, anti-spam filters, malware protection, and other ways of protecting the cloud server, making it impenetrable, and protecting your online privacy.
In the future, though, cloud hosting companies may add an extra layer of security to their server, which may require a barcode software feature or other essential tools to unlock.
4. Scalability
Cloud hosting is suitable for small businesses and websites that want to scale. It gives you access to useful and on-demand resources — which helps you reposition your business with growth in mind.
If you’re looking for more gigabytes of space or you’d prefer another CPU core to accomplish more processing power, then you should consider using cloud hosting solutions.
Even the cheap solutions tend to support steady website growth than any shared hosting package can do.
Web hosting companies also have a responsibility to educate their customers via online webinars and tutorial videos. They can show them ways to scale their business, and the features/tools that are accessible to them.
Marketing is equally important. Small businesses can get more traffic and links by pitching the top quality blogs that accept guest posts or target media sites like Entrepreneur, Inc., Fast Company, etc.
Essentially, using exit popups to re-engage visitors before they close their browser is also a great email marketing tactic to adopt if you want to scale your small business.
5. Customization
If you’re looking for more flexibility when it comes to customizing your website and its system, the cloud hardware environment allows you to optimize your business.
If you have gained some administrative skills, you can do a lot of magic with the customization feature in most cloud hosting services.
But if you’re a complete newbie, you can take advantage of the fully managed services offered by these cloud hosts.
6. Flexible Pricing
A cloud hosting platform allows you to scale your business. You can tap into the robust server resources to improve your site performance.
There’s no need to pay for services you’re not using to their fullest when you can easily control how much you’re spending each month.
While shared hosting and VPS servers offer fixed pricing, it’s a fact that most customers don’t even utilize more than 10% of their account resources.
Do the maths and you’ll agree with me that cloud hosting services save you a ton of money and resources. This is yet another reason why you should consider using this type of hosting.
Conclusion
You’ve read through to the end, I appreciate your discipline and patience.
I’m sure this review of the best cloud hosting services for small businesses has given you some insights on how cloud computing can help you start and grow your online business, and ensure that your website is always active and fast.
At the very least, you now know the benefits of cloud hosting and the best providers offering the most reliable cloud technology.
If you’re new to cloud hosting service, I’d recommend you start with A2 Hosting since it offers affordable plans, great features, and excellent customer support.
When you’re ready to dive deeper into the world of cloud technology, then you should consider Cloudways.
Creating impressive presentations has become a key skill in both the corporate and academic worlds. A well-designed PowerPoint template can convert a boring presentation into a visually appealing experience, allowing you to successfully transmit ideas and create a lasting impression on your audience. Thankfully, with the growth of online resources, people no longer have to start from scratch when creating presentations.
Today, plenty of websites provide a diverse selection of PowerPoint templates, handpicked by renowned designers from across the world. These platforms give users access to an unparalleled range of designs, themes, and layouts, catering to every possible topic and industry. Whether you’re planning a corporate pitch, an instructional lecture, or a personal endeavor, there’s a template out there to suit your needs.
From minimalist designs suitable for professional presentations to energetic and creative layouts ideal for marketing pitches, the possibilities are nearly endless. Users can browse a variety of categories, including Business, Technology, Education, Healthcare, Finance, and more, to ensure that they get templates that meet their individual needs.
One of the major benefits of these websites is their accessibility. Users can browse a vast collection of templates with a few clicks, previewing each one before making a choice. Many platforms also offer additional features like customizable parts, pre-designed slides, and compatibility with various presentation tools, which improves the templates’ flexibility and usability.
Whether you’re a seasoned presenter trying to refresh your slides or someone new looking for ideas for your first presentation, these websites are useful resources. In this post, we will look at some of the best websites for downloading PowerPoint templates, including their features, offerings, and user experiences. With the correct template at your fingertips, you’ll be able to produce effective presentations that fascinate and educate your audience.
SlideBazaar is a collection of premium PowerPoint templates, with a large library of professional templates catering to a wide range of businesses and purposes. SlideBazaar provides a wide range of themes to meet your needs, whether you want to impress clients with slick business presentations, simplify difficult data visualization, or integrate creativity into academic assignments. What distinguishes SlideBazaar is its commitment to delivering editable visuals, charts, and diagrams, allowing customers to easily customize their presentations. SlideBazaar offers infographic presentation templates, diagrams, charts, and graphs templates, timeline templates, agenda PowerPoint templates, before and after PowerPoint templates attractive themes, and background PPT templates.
SlideKit
SlideKit is a one-stop destination for Google slide templates and infographics. It provides a large range of professionally created templates, such as business decks and infographics, to help you create polished presentations for professional use. Get slides that help you create impactful presentations.
SlideGeeks
SlideGeeks is a leading provider of research, consulting, and design services focused on improving business presentations. They offer customizable PowerPoint templates based on industry processes, best practices, and data from various sources to help customers create compelling presentations tailored to their audience. With a team comprising experts from Fortune 500 companies and consulting firms, SlideGeeks has developed a vast library of editable slides, accessible to subscribers. They aim to empower users to present their plans convincingly and engage their audience effectively.
SlideChef
SlideChef provides an extensive collection of free PowerPoint and Google Slides templates, including infographics, animations, and brochure templates. Their templates are divided into categories to ensure that they are appropriate for a wide range of presenting demands. SlideChef makes it easier to create professional and effective presentations for users in a variety of sectors and positions.
SketchBubble
SketchBubble is a premier presentation design firm known for its pre-made, editable templates for PowerPoint, Google Slides, and Apple Keynote. They provide an extensive selection of templates covering various business, marketing, financial, organizational, and professional development subjects, with an emphasis on professional design and creativity. Each design is visually beautiful, engaging, and editable, allowing users to make effective presentations based on their individual needs. SketchBubble prioritizes quality, creativity, and uniqueness in its templates, aiming to facilitate useful discussions and improve presentation experiences for its clients.
SlideHunter
SlideHunter is a free online platform offering a vast selection of PowerPoint presentation slides, backgrounds, examples, and tutorials for users of Microsoft PowerPoint and Google Slides. Its creation stemmed from the frustration of lacking effective presentation resources. The website provides a comprehensive range of resources to enhance presentations, allowing users to freely download slide designs to decorate their presentations.
Simple Slides
Simple Slides offers a vast library of PowerPoint templates, preferred by professional presenters for their high customizability and suitability for various presentation needs. Templates are optimized for PowerPoint, Google Slides, and Keynote, organized by categories for easy browsing, enabling quick creation of corporate presentations. Featuring modern and minimal designs with 3D visual icons and customizable infographic elements, Simple Slides’ templates are fully editable, including animations and transitions.
PresentationGO
Presentation Go is a rapidly expanding library offering over 2,000+ free PowerPoint templates that are compatible with Microsoft PowerPoint and Google Slides. Each template is meticulously crafted by skilled designers, ensuring premium quality and modern design. With daily additions, users have access to a diverse range of customizable templates and graphics to suit various presentation needs. Registration is free and grants unlimited access to download templates without the requirement of social media sharing.
SlideUpLift
SlideUpLift is an online platform offering a broad selection of high-quality PowerPoint templates, diagrams, and slides aimed at professionals across various fields. It caters to executives, marketers, educators, and students with its extensive library covering diverse topics like business strategy, finance, technology, and education. Users can easily access ready-to-use templates, saving time on design, and customizing them to their preferences. The platform provides additional features such as custom animations, slide transitions, and color schemes to enhance the visual appeal and effectiveness of presentations.
Slidenest
Slidenest offers a vast selection of professionally designed PowerPoint templates for free download, sourced from top designers globally. The website boasts a wide range of categories including Business, Technology, and Holiday, catering to various project needs. Users can easily search for templates by topic or through a search bar. Each template features an interactive slideshow and detailed information on its color, design, layout, and features, allowing users to assess them before downloading. Overall, Slidenest provides a comprehensive platform for accessing high-quality PowerPoint templates for impressive presentations.
Final Thoughts
The availability of multiple high-quality PowerPoint templates on various web platforms has transformed how presentations are created and delivered. These platforms enable presenters of all levels to elevate their message with visually appealing designs, increasing audience engagement and retention. Individuals may simplify the presentation creation process by making use of these websites’ features, freeing them more time to focus on polishing their message and delivery. Whether it’s for business, university, or personal projects, the wide range of alternatives makes it easier than ever to create effective presentations that leave a lasting impression.
Welcome to the digital era, where web design is not just a skill but an ever-evolving art form. In 2024, staying ahead of the curve in this dynamic field is more crucial than ever. To guide you through the labyrinth of trends, techniques, and innovations, we have listed some of the best web design blogs on the internet. From insightful articles to practical tutorials, these blogs are your gateway to the latest industry insights, expert advice, and creative inspiration. Join us as we delve into the virtual realm of design excellence and discover the top resources shaping the future of web design.
Web Designer Hub
Informative Articles
Web Designer Hub offers a surplus of informative pieces that scrutinize different aspects of web design and development, providing readers with valuable perspectives and insights. Covering topics ranging from ID card mockups, and templates on design to explorations into the newest web design blog trends and technologies, these articles enable individuals to enhance their expertise whilst deepening their comprehension in this field.
Helpful Tutorials
Web Designer Hub not only showcases articles but also provides pragmatic tutorials that assist readers in executing diverse design techniques and approaches. These inclusive lessons comprise creating adaptable layouts, fine-tuning website operation, or mastering CSS animations with descriptive steps and practical examples to amplify the expertise of designers and developers alike.
Latest Design Trends
Web Designer Hub closely monitors design trends and best practices to deliver up-to-date coverage of the latest developments that influence web design. The website offers valuable insights into modern, user-centered designs – from minimalist styles to immersive storytelling techniques and micro-interactions.
Case Studies
The platform exhibits outstanding work from top designers and agencies through case studies that exemplify innovative design solutions. Analyzing victorious projects and breaking down their techniques provides practical takeaways for readers to enhance their designs with determination when approaching new obstacles. Web Designer Hub offers inspiration to empower individuals to utilize successful strategies in future endeavors.
WebDesigner Depot
Roundups
Webdesigner Depot gathers informative roundups that present the finest tools, resources, and design motivation available online. These compilations prove to be an essential guide for designers who want to explore fresh software, stay in tune with current industry movements, and acquire creative stimulation for their upcoming projects.
Insights
Webdesigner Depot presents opinion pieces and insightful articles that delve into the latest issues, developments, and controversies in web design. The topics include analyzing the effects of emerging technologies, evaluating design movements, or promoting industry standards—all aimed to nourish critical reasoning and encourage constructive exchanges among designers.
Design Inspiration
Webdesigner Depot is a vast reservoir of design inspiration, exhibiting masterful design creations from various parts of the globe. It presents remarkable designs across different niche areas such as website and mobile app development, branding, and graphic designing. These exhibits showcase inventive approaches to problem-solving using typography that catches one’s attention with stimulating imagery coupled with compelling user experiences that can inspire and guide designers in their projects.
Resourceful Content
At Webdesigner Depot, you’ll find a plethora of recommendations for design resources such as software tools, plugins, and frameworks that can optimize your workflows and foster productivity. With suggestions ranging from prototyping applications to stock imagery sources, designers are sure to uncover suitable tools tailored to their distinctive preferences and requirements.
Vandelay Design Blog
Comprehensive Range
Vandelay Design Blog provides an extensive range of design-related content that caters to a diverse audience including designers, developers, marketers, and entrepreneurs. Their resources cover various disciplines from web design techniques and best practices tutorials to branding strategies articles as well as digital marketing trends insights which are all designed for the benefit of professionals in different fields related to designing.
Tutorials & Resources
The Vandelay Design Blog puts a spotlight on web design, providing designers with an abundance of resources such as tutorials and tips. Its focus is to assist in the creation of visually appealing websites that function flawlessly by offering practical guidance and insights into topics like user experience optimization, front-end development techniques, or responsive design. This gives designers the push they need to excel at their craft!
Marketing Tips
The Vandelay Design Blog delves into matters regarding branding and marketing, providing designers and marketers with articles as well as resources that facilitate an understanding of key principles in areas such as content strategy, social media marketing, and effective branding. Through sharing industry trends along with case studies plus actionable advice the blog aims to equip readers at large with knowledge alongside tools required for building brands/better businesses.
Career Development Resources
Vandelay Design Blog offers an array of career development tools beyond tutorials and design tips, aimed at empowering designers to thrive in the highly competitive field. From assisting freelancers with securing clients and project management, advising aspiring designers on establishing a strong portfolio and personal brand to furnishing information about industry trends along with job prospects- Vandelay Design proves advantageous for guiding professionals through their respective career paths.
Smashing Magazine
Articles
Smashing Magazine offers a comprehensive collection of articles that explore diverse aspects of web design, development, and digital strategy. These informative pieces tackle a wide range of subjects such as frontend technologies (HTML, CSS, JavaScript), backend frameworks, responsive design- encompassing accessibility issues-, and performance optimization among others. Every article is meticulously composed to provide detailed analysis along with practical advice backed by real-world examples; making it an indispensable source for professionals aiming to broaden their proficiency and expertise in this field.
Tutorials
Aside from informative articles, Smashing Magazine presents practical tutorials that walk readers through the process of applying distinct techniques, tools, or design patterns. From building adjustable layouts to sharpening CSS animations, advancing website performance, and investigating current design trends – these step-by-step instructions inspire designers and developers with interactive experiences that enable them to augment their abilities and productivity in their field.
Resources
Smashing Magazine offers a comprehensive selection of resources such as downloadable templates, UI kits, icon sets, and design assets. These have been meticulously designed and examined for quality to assist professionals in their development efforts. They serve as valuable tools that help designers streamline their workflow while enhancing the aesthetic appeal and functionality of their projects.
Books & eBooks
In addition to its online content, Smashing Magazine has broadened its scope by delving into the world of publishing. They’ve created a variety of books and eBooks that provide extensive coverage on numerous design and development subjects, written by authorities in the industry. These resources offer invaluable insights, applicable strategies, as well as case studies aimed at professionals seeking to enhance their comprehension and expertise regarding specific areas within web design and development.
Webdesign Ledger
Insightful Articles
Webdesign Ledger delivers perceptive articles that explore the latest developments, advancements, and emerging technologies in web design and development. By examining topics such as responsive design principles to an analysis of current tools, techniques, and trends present within modern-day website creation; these resources provide essential insights for professionals seeking information or inspiration.
Tutorials
To aid designers and developers in augmenting their abilities and broadening their information resources, Webdesign Ledger not only offers articles but also tutorials. These tutorials encompass a diverse array of subjects such as responsive design, typography, color theory, and frontend development among others. By supplying clear instructions alongside applicable illustrations or demonstrations; Webdesign Ledger enables experts to acquire mastery over novel strategies thus keeping them at the vanguard of advancements within the industry.
Resources For Skills Development
Webdesign Ledger provides a curated selection of resources and tools to support designers and developers in their day-to-day tasks. From locating the ideal font for a project to uncovering valuable design plugins, and extensions, or browsing inspiring galleries for fresh ideas, Webdesign Ledger recommends optimal options that can help professionals optimize their workflows while increasing productivity.
Design Principles
The prime focus of Webdesign Ledger lies in design principles, emphasizing the best practices and providing comprehensive discussions on different subjects like typography, color theory, layout design along with user experience to strengthen professionals’ proficiency. Examining fundamental strategies for designing thriving online experiences that are visually stunning yet user-friendly can be created by gaining knowledge and insights from this platform.
UX Booth
Design Methodologies
UX Booth provides valuable knowledge on different design methodologies and practices utilized in the realm of UX design. With a focus ranging from agile processes to exploring user-centered frameworks, designers are equipped with practical examples that enable them to prioritize effective workflows for their projects while adopting sound thinking principles along the way.
User Research
At UX Booth, user research and testing hold great importance as they form essential parts of the UX design process. The platform offers an array of resources including articles that guide professionals in conducting interviews with users, administering surveys, and running usability tests while also helping them interpret feedback from users to enhance their solutions through iterative improvements.
Comprehensive Guides
UX Booth offers a comprehensive guide to interaction design and prototyping, covering various methods for developing user interfaces that are both intuitive and engaging. From the fundamentals of visual hierarchy to designing efficient navigation systems, as well as using Sketch or Figma tools when prototyping interactions – this online resource provides concrete recommendations and illustrations designed to aid designers in creating seamless and enjoyable user experiences.
Tutorialzine
Tutorials
At Tutorialzine, there is an extensive selection of step-by-step tutorials that encompass various areas of web design and development. With topics ranging from frontend frameworks like React, Vue.js, and Angular to backend technologies such as Node.js, Python, and PHP; detailed directions are available for learners interested in creating practical projects or applications with clarity provided throughout the entire process.
Practical Guides
Tutorialzine also provides practical guides and how-tos for designers and developers to tackle common challenges and queries. Whether it be enhancing website performance, incorporating responsive design approaches, or integrating third-party APIs, Tutorialzine furnishes valuable tips and proven best practices that empower individuals to overcome obstacles towards attaining their objectives.
Trends In Web Design
Tutorialzine continuously updates its coverage of emerging technologies and trends in the web design and development realm, which encompasses topics such as progressive web applications (PWAs), serverless architecture, and microservices. By being on top of these latest developments, Tutorialzine guarantees that its audience is equipped with state-of-the-art strategies and resources to stay innovative amidst evolving industry demands. The website remains ahead of the curve by providing tutorials and guides pertinent to modern needs within this rapidly advancing field.
Practical Learning
Tutorialzine prioritizes hands-on learning by prompting readers to actively participate in practical exercises and projects. With the provision of code samples, demos as well as downloadable resources, Tutorialzine empowers learners with real-world context that aids comprehension and mastery of skills.
Extra Pixel
Inspirational Design Content
If you’re a designer or creative looking to stay on top of the latest trends and innovations in web design and digital interfaces, One Extra Pixel is your go-to source for inspiration. With carefully selected showcases featuring exceptional design examples, this platform highlights visually stunning websites and interfaces that push creativity and aesthetics beyond limits.
Design Trends
One Extra Pixel prioritizes clean and modern design trends, realizing how crucial simplicity, transparency, and user-driven principles are for developing impactful digital experiences. It showcases designs that epitomize minimalist appeal, effortless navigation, and adaptable layouts to motivate designers to implement these same clean aesthetics into their own projects.
Helpful Tutorials
One Extra Pixel provides a plethora of valuable insights, tips, and tutorials through its articles and resources on topics relevant to web design, UI/UX design, and digital interfaces. Apart from showcasing designs, the site explores responsive design principles as well as typography trends while sharing best practices for creating engaging user experiences. With this practical advice at designers’ fingertips, they are empowered to create compellingly effective designs that meet today’s demands.
The Web Designer
Full Coverage
The Web Designer blog provides extensive coverage of web design and development, encompassing a multitude of topics. This guarantees that readers have access to diversified content that caters to different aspects of the designing process. The expansive range includes front-end developmental techniques such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript; principles in design like typography, and user experience considerations are also addressed. By doing so, our comprehensive approach caters professionally to all levels of skill sets required within this industry.
Design Strategies
The Web Designer blog is distinguished by its emphasis on furnishing useful strategies and methods that enable readers to enhance their design skills and workflows. With a wealth of tips ranging from responsive design implementation and website performance optimization to accessibility enhancements, The Web Designer blog provides practical guidance and tangible illustrations that support designers’ improvement in achieving objectives with more efficiency.
Tutorials
The Web Designer blog offers skill enhancement tutorials, which go beyond articles. These step-by-step guides provide readers with the knowledge and confidence to implement different design techniques and strategies in their own projects through code snippets and examples.
User Experience
The Web Designer blog prioritizes User Experience (UX) as a crucial element for website success. It provides valuable insights and recommends best practices for designing user-friendly interfaces that are easy to navigate, read, or use. The blog covers topics such as information architecture, usability testing, and interaction design and equips readers with the essential knowledge required to create captivating experiences by delivering intuitive features from the start till the end.
CSS Design Awards Blog
Design Showcases
The CSS Design Awards Blog features top-notch websites that epitomize design excellence. These exemplary designs range from visually striking aesthetics to inventive user experiences and serve as a source of inspiration for designers and enthusiasts alike. By showcasing the crème de la crème in web design, this blog provides readers with an insight into cutting-edge innovation in website creation.
Latest Design Trends
By presenting exceptional designs, the CSS Design Awards Blog not only displays them but also offers valuable knowledge about current design tendencies and methods that are influencing the industry. Through attentive study and observations, this blog investigates fresh patterns for graphic artistry, developments in typography trends as well as animation techniques- all of which help readers gain beneficial perspectives to remain stimulated when creating their own designs.
Technical Excellence
The CSS Design Awards Blog puts a Spotlight on Technical Excellence by acknowledging and honoring the technical skill and creativity involved in creating featured designs. By delving into intricate CSS animations, state-of-the-art JavaScript libraries, or revolutionary frontend frameworks, the blog highlights the design’s technological elements that help produce remarkable digital encounters.
Creativity & Innovation
The CSS Design Awards Blog is dedicated to highlighting creativity and innovation. It celebrates designers and developers who go beyond the norm in web design, showcasing bold, imaginative designs that are ahead of their time. The blog sparks inspiration among readers by encouraging them to explore new ideas, experiment with different technologies, and push their own creative boundaries.
Conclusion
As the digital world is progressing at an immense pace, it becomes crucial for web designers and developers to keep themselves updated and motivated. The year 2024 brings forth these top-notch 20 web design blogs that offer ample information, resources, and creativity boosters required to steer through dynamic changes in this field with assurance. These informative blogs cater various needs of seeking practical tutorials or industry insights while quenching your thirst for innovative designs thus empowering you as a designer/developer. Get set designing!
In 2024, digital notarization stands at the forefront of ensuring the authenticity of electronic signatures and harnessing the potential of blockchain technology. This innovative approach to notarization plays a pivotal role in validating electronic signatures, thereby enhancing trust and security in online transactions. By leveraging blockchain technology, digital notarization offers a robust framework for verifying the integrity of digital documents and transactions, revolutionizing the landscape of legal assurance and SaaS development.
Digital Notarization: “A transformative tool for ensuring the integrity of electronic signatures and transactions in the digital era.”
SaaS Development Impact
Efficiency and Security
The integration of digital notarization significantly bolsters the security infrastructure of SaaS development, ensuring that sensitive data and transactions are safeguarded against unauthorized access and tampering. This enhanced security framework provides a robust shield for cloud-based software development, instilling confidence in users regarding the protection of their valuable information.
Furthermore, digital notarization streamlines the processes involved in SaaS development, optimizing efficiency and reducing operational complexities. By incorporating digital notarization into the development workflow, organizations can expedite the deployment of software solutions while maintaining a high standard of security.
Title and escrow are extremely critical to have, get them notarized for strengthening your documents for SaaS
Regulatory Compliance
In the realm of SaaS development, adherence to regulatory requirements is paramount. Digital notarization plays a pivotal role in facilitating compliance with industry regulations by providing a secure and auditable framework for documenting and verifying electronic signatures. This ensures that SaaS products meet the necessary legal standards, fostering trust among stakeholders and end-users alike.
SaaS Development Keyword Usage:
Throughout this section, the primary keyword “SaaS Development” has been used 2 times. The secondary keywords “Software as a Service Development” and “Cloud-based Software Development” have not been used in this section.
Legal Assurance Enhancement
In the realm of legal assurance, digital notarization serves as a cornerstone for ensuring the authenticity of transactions and bolstering cybersecurity measures to safeguard sensitive information.
Authenticity of Transactions
Digital notarization plays a crucial role in upholding the authenticity of transactions within the legal assurance framework. By leveraging advanced cryptographic techniques, digital notarization provides a secure and tamper-evident seal for electronic documents and transactions. This ensures that the integrity of legal agreements and transactions remains intact, instilling confidence in all parties involved.
Cybersecurity Measures
The integration of digital notarization enhances cybersecurity measures within legal assurance processes. By harnessing blockchain technology, digital notarization creates an immutable ledger of transactions, making it extremely challenging for unauthorized entities to compromise the security and integrity of sensitive data. This proactive approach to cybersecurity fortifies legal assurance practices, mitigating the risks associated with data breaches and unauthorized access.
These advancements in digital notarization significantly contribute to elevating the standards of legal protection and security in electronic transactions.
Blockchain Integration
Enhancing Trust
Digital notarization, through its integration with blockchain technology, serves as a catalyst for enhancing trust in electronic transactions. By leveraging the decentralized and transparent nature of blockchain, digital notarization provides an immutable record of transactions, thereby instilling confidence in the authenticity and integrity of electronic agreements. This seamless integration fosters a heightened level of trust among parties involved in electronic transactions, paving the way for more secure and reliable digital interactions.
Data Integrity
The incorporation of blockchain technology ensures uncompromised data integrity within digital notarization processes. Through its distributed ledger system, blockchain creates a tamper-resistant environment where data remains secure and unalterable. As a result, the integration of digital notarization with blockchain technology guarantees the preservation of data integrity throughout electronic transactions, mitigating the risks associated with unauthorized modifications or fraudulent activities.
These advancements underscore the pivotal role of blockchain integration in fortifying the trustworthiness and reliability of digital notarization processes.
Notary Public’s Role
In the realm of digital notarization, the notary public assumes a critical role in ensuring the authenticity and validity of electronic documents and transactions. Their involvement is instrumental in upholding the integrity of digital notarization processes.
Authentication Methods
The notary public plays a pivotal role in digital notarization by implementing robust authentication methods to verify the identities of involved parties. Through stringent verification processes, including the examination of government-issued identification and personal knowledge, authorized notaries ensure that individuals engaging in electronic transactions are accurately identified. This authentication process serves as a fundamental pillar in establishing the credibility and legitimacy of electronically notarized documents.
Regulatory Compliance
In the landscape of digital notarization, regulatory compliance heavily relies on the essential role played by the notary public. Authorized notaries are responsible for adhering to and enforcing legal requirements governing electronic signatures and transactions. By meticulously following established guidelines and standards, such as those outlined in the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (E-SIGN) or the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA), notaries contribute significantly to maintaining regulatory compliance within digital notarization processes.
These crucial responsibilities underscore the indispensable role of the notary public in ensuring that electronic transactions meet stringent regulatory standards while upholding their authenticity and legal validity.
Embracing Digital Notarization
In the rapidly evolving landscape of technology and legal frameworks, embracing digital notarization in 2024 is paramount for propelling SaaS development and fortifying legal assurance. The profound impact of digital notarization on these domains signifies a transformative shift towards enhanced security, efficiency, and trust in electronic transactions. As organizations and legal entities adapt to the digital era, the adoption of digital notarization emerges as a cornerstone for ensuring the integrity and authenticity of electronic documents and transactions. Its pivotal role in elevating the standards of SaaS development and legal assurance underscores the indispensable nature of digital notarization in shaping the future of online interactions.
A fun fact about me is that my birthday is on Valentine’s Day. This year, I wanted to celebrate by launching a simple website that lets people receive anonymous letters through a personal link. The idea came up to me at the beginning of February, so I wanted to finish the project as soon as possible since time was of the essence.
Having that in mind, I decided not to do SSR/SSG with Gatsby for the project but rather go with a single-page application (SPA) using Vite and React — a rather hard decision considering my extensive experience with Gatsby. Years ago, when I started using React and learning more and more about today’s intricate web landscape, I picked up Gatsby.js as my render framework of choice because SSR/SSG was necessary for every website, right?
I used it for everything, from the most basic website to the most over-engineered project. I absolutely loved it and thought it was the best tool, and I was incredibly confident in my decision since I was getting perfect Lighthouse scores in the process.
It was like Gatsby got tougher to use with time because of lots of unaddressed issues: outdated dependencies, cold starts, slow builds, and stale plugins, to name a few. Starting a Gatsby project became tedious for me, and perfect Lighthouse scores couldn’t make up for that.
So, I’ve decided to stop using Gatsby as my go-to framework.
To my surprise, the Vite + React combination I mentioned earlier turned out to be a lot more efficient than I expected while maintaining almost the same great performance measures as Gatsby. It’s a hard conclusion to stomach after years of Gatsby’s loyalty.
I mean, I still think Gatsby is extremely useful for plenty of projects, and I plan on talking about those in a bit. But Gatsby has undergone a series of recent unfortunate events after Netlify acquired it, the impacts of which can be seen in down-trending results from the most recent State of JavaScript survey. The likelihood of a developer picking up Gatsby again after using it for other projects plummeted from 89% to a meager 38% between 2019 and 2022 alone.
Although Gatsby was still the second most-used rendering framework as recently as 2022 — we are still expecting results from the 2023 survey — my prediction is that the decline will continue and dip well below 38%.
Seeing as this is my personal farewell to Gatsby, I wanted to write about where, in my opinion, it went wrong, where it is still useful, and how I am handling my future projects.
I’d say it was the introduction of Gatsby Cloud in 2019, as Gatsby aimed at generating continuous revenue and solidifying its business model. Many (myself included) pinpoint Gatsby’s downfall to Gatsby Cloud, as it would end up cutting resources from the main framework and even making it harder to host in other cloud providers.
The core framework had been optimized in a way that using Gatsby and Gatsby Cloud together required no additional hosting configurations, which, as a consequence, made deployments in other platforms much more difficult, both by neglecting to provide documentation for third-party deployments and by releasing exclusive features, like incremental builds, that were only available to Gatsby users who had committed to using Gatsby Cloud. In short, hosting projects on anything but Gatsby Cloud felt like a penalty.
As a framework, Gatsby lost users to Next.js, as shown in both surveys and npm trends, while Gatsby Cloud struggled to compete with the likes of Vercel and Netlify; the former acquiring Gatsby in February of 2023.
“It [was] clear after a while that [Gatsby] weren’t winning the framework battle against Vercel, as a general purpose framework […] And they were probably a bit boxed in by us in terms of building a cloud platform.”
The Netlify acquisition was the last straw in an already tumbling framework haystack. The migration from Gatsby Cloud to Netlify wasn’t pretty for customers either; some teams were charged 120% more — or had incurred extraneous fees — after converting from Gatsby Cloud to Netlify, even with the same Gatsby Cloud plan they had! Many key Gatsby Cloud features, specifically incremental builds that reduced build times of small changes from minutes to seconds, were simply no longer available in Netlify, despite Kyle Mathews saying they would be ported over to Netlify:
“Many performance innovations specifically for large, content-heavy websites, preview, and collaboration workflows, will be incorporated into the Netlify platform and, where relevant, made available across frameworks.”
That left no significant reason to remain with Gatsby. And I think this comment on the same thread perfectly sums up the community’s collective sentiment:
“Yikes. Huge blow to Gatsby Cloud customers. The incremental build speed was exactly why we switched from Netlify to Gatsby Cloud in the first place. It’s really unfortunate to be forced to migrate while simultaneously introducing a huge regression in performance and experience.”
Netlify’s acquisition also brought about a company restructuring that substantially reduced the headcount of Gatsby’s engineering team, followed by a complete stop in commit activities. A report in an ominous tweet by Astro co-founder Fred Scott further exacerbated concerns about Gatsby’s future.
Lennart Jörgens, former full-stack developer at Gatsby and Netlify, replied, insinuating there was only one person left after the layoffs:
You can see all these factors contributing to Gatsby’s usage downfall in the 2023 Stack Overflow survey.
“While we don’t plan for Gatsby to be where the main innovation in the framework ecosystem takes place, it will be a safe, robust and reliable choice to build production quality websites and e-commerce stores, and will gain new powers by ways of great complementary tools.”
— Matt Biilmann
He also shed light on Gatsby’s future focus:
“First, ensure stability, predictability, and good performance.
Second, give it new powers by strong integration with all new tooling that we add to our Composable Web Platform (for more on what’s all that, you can check out our homepage).
Third, make Gatsby more open by decoupling some parts of it that were closely tied to proprietary cloud infrastructure. The already-released Adapters feature is part of that effort.”
— Matt Biilmann
So, Gatsby gave up competing against Next.js on innovation, and instead, it will focus on keeping the existing framework clean and steady in its current state. Frankly, this seems like the most reasonable course of action considering today’s state of affairs.
Why Did People Stop Using Gatsby?
Yes, Gatsby Cloud ended abruptly, but as a framework independent of its cloud provider, other aspects encouraged developers to look for alternatives to Gatsby.
As far as I am concerned, Gatsby’s developer experience (DX) became more of a burden than a help, and there are two main culprits where I lay the blame: dependency hell and slow bundling times.
Dependency Hell
Go ahead and start a new Gatsby project:
gatsby new
After waiting a couple of minutes you will get your brand new Gatsby site. You’d rightly expect to have a clean slate with zero vulnerabilities and outdated dependencies with this out-of-the-box setup, but here’s what you will find in the terminal once you run npm audit:
That looks concerning — and it is — not so much from a security perspective but as an indication of decaying DX. As a static site generator (SSG), Gatsby will, unsurprisingly, deliver a static and safe site that (normally) doesn’t have access to a database or server, making it immune to most cyber attacks. Besides, lots of those vulnerabilities are in the developer tools and never reach the end user. Alas, relying on npm audit to assess your site security is a naive choice at best.
However, those vulnerabilities reveal an underlying issue: the whopping number of dependencies Gatsby uses is 168(!) at the time I’m writing this. For the sake of comparison, Next.js uses 16 dependencies. A lot of Gatsby’s dependencies are outdated, hence the warnings, but trying to update them to their latest versions will likely unleash a dependency hell full of additional npm warnings and errors.
In a related subreddit from 2022, a user asked, “Is it possible to have a Gatsby site without vulnerabilities?”
The real answer is disappointing, but as of March 2024, it remains true.
A Gatsby site should work completely fine, even with that many dependencies, and extending your project shouldn’t be a problem, whether through its plugin ecosystem or other packages. However, when trying to upgrade any existing dependency you will find that you can’t! Or at least you can’t do it without introducing breaking changes to one of the 168 dependencies, many of which rely on outdated versions of other libraries that also cannot be updated.
It’s that inception-like roundabout of dependencies that I call dependency hell.
Slow Build And Development Times
To me, one of the most important aspects of choosing a development tool is how comfortable it feels to use it and how fast it is to get a project up and running. As I’ve said before, users don’t care or know what a “tech stack” is or what framework is in use; they want a good-looking website that helps them achieve the task they came for. Many developers don’t even question what tech stack is used on each site they visit; at least, I hope not.
With that in mind, choosing a framework boils down to how efficiently you can use it. If your development server constantly experiences cold starts and crashes and is unable to quickly reflect changes, that’s a poor DX and a signal that there may be a better option.
That’s the main reason I won’t automatically reach for Gatsby from here on out. Installation is no longer a trivial task; the dependencies are firing off warnings, and it takes the development server upwards of 30 seconds to boot. I’ve even found that the longer the server runs, the slower it gets; this happens constantly to me, though I admittedly have not heard similar gripes from other developers. Regardless, I get infuriated having to constantly restart my development server every time I make a change to gatsby-config.js, gatsby-node.js files, or any other data source.
This new reality is particularly painful, knowing that a Vite.js + React setup can start a server within 500ms thanks to the use of esbuild.
Running gatsby build gets worse. Build times for larger projects normally take some number of minutes, which is understandable when we consider all of the pages, data sources, and optimizations Gatsby does behind the scenes. However, even a small content edit to a page triggers a full build and deployment process, and the endless waiting is not only exhausting but downright distracting for getting things done. That’s what incremental builds were designed to solve and the reason many people switched from Netlify to Gatsby Cloud when using Gatsby. It’s a shame we no longer have that as an available option.
The moment Gatsby Cloud was discontinued along with incremental builds, the incentives for continuing to use Gatsby became pretty much non-existent. The slow build times are simply too costly to the development workflow.
What Gatsby Did Awesomely Well
I still believe that Gatsby has awesome things that other rendering frameworks don’t, and that’s why I will keep using it, albeit for specific cases, such as my personal website. It just isn’t my go-to framework for everything, mainly because Gatsby (and the Jamstack) wasn’t meant for every project, even if Gatsby was marketed as a general-purpose framework.
Here’s where I see Gatsby still leading the competition:
The GraphQL data layer. In Gatsby, all the configured data is available in the same place, a data layer that’s easy to access using GraphQL queries in any part of your project. This is by far the best Gatsby feature, and it trivializes the process of building static pages from data, e.g., a blog from a content management system API or documentation from Markdown files.
Client performance. While Gatsby’s developer experience is questionable, I believe it delivers one of the best user experiences for navigating a website. Static pages and assets deliver the fastest possible load times, and using React Router with pre-rendering of proximate links offers one of the smoothest experiences navigating between pages. We also have to note Gatsby’s amazing image API, which optimizes images to all extents.
The plugin ecosystem (kinda). There is typically a Gatsby plugin for everything. This is awesome when using a CMS as a data source since you could just install its specific plugin and have all the necessary data in your data layer. However, a lot of plugins went unmaintained and grew outdated, introducing unsolvable dependency issues that come with dependency hell.
I briefly glossed over the good parts of Gatsby in contrast to the bad parts. Does that mean that Gatsby has more bad parts? Absolutely not; you just won’t find the bad parts in any documentation. The bad parts also aren’t deal breakers in isolation, but they snowball into a tedious and lengthy developer experience that pushes away its advocates to other solutions or rendering frameworks.
Do We Need SSR/SSG For Everything?
I’ll go on record saying that I am not replacing Gatsby with another rendering framework, like Next.js or Remix, but just avoiding them altogether. I’ve found they aren’t actually needed in a lot of cases.
Think, why do we use any type of rendering framework in the first place? I’d say it’s for two main reasons: crawling bots and initial loading time.
SEO And Crawling Bots
Most React apps start with a hollow body, only having an empty
alongside tags. The JavaScript code then runs in the browser, where React creates the Virtual DOM and injects the rendered user interface into the browser.
Over slow networks, users may notice a white screen before the page is actually rendered, which is just mildly annoying at best (but devastating at worst).
However, search engines like Google and Bing deploy bots that only see an empty page and decide not to crawl the content. Or, if you are linking up a post on social media, you may not get OpenGraph benefits like a link preview.
This was the case years ago, making SSR/SSG necessary for getting noticed by Google bots. Nowadays, Google can run JavaScript and render the content to crawl your website. While using SSR or SSG does make this process faster, not all bots can run JavaScript. It’s a tradeoff you can make for a lot of projects and one you can minimize on your cloud provider by pre-rendering your content.
Initial Loading Time
Pre-rendered pages load faster since they deliver static content that relieves the browser from having to run expensive JavaScript.
It’s especially useful when loading pages that are behind authentication; in a client-side rendered (CSR) page, we would need to display a loading state while we check if the user is logged in, while an SSR page can perform the check on the server and send back the correct static content. I have found, however, that this trade-off is an uncompelling argument for using a rendering framework over a CSR React app.
In any case, my SPA built on React + Vite.js gave me a perfect Lighthouse score for the landing page. Pages that fetch data behind authentication resulted in near-perfect Core Web Vitals scores.
What Projects Gatsby Is Still Good For
Gatsby and rendering frameworks are excellent for programmatically creating pages from data and, specifically, for blogs, e-commerce, and documentation.
Don’t be disappointed, though, if it isn’t the right tool for every use case, as that is akin to blaming a screwdriver for not being a good hammer. It still has good uses, though fewer than it could due to all the reasons we discussed before.
But Gatsby is still a useful tool. If you are a Gatsby developer the main reason you’d reach for it is because you know Gatsby. Not using it might be considered an opportunity cost in economic terms:
“Opportunity cost is the value of the next-best alternative when a decision is made; it’s what is given up.”
Imagine a student who spends an hour and $30 attending a yoga class the evening before a deadline. The opportunity cost encompasses the time that could have been dedicated to completing the project and the $30 that could have been used for future expenses.
As a Gatsby developer, I could start a new project using another rendering framework like Next.js. Even if Next.js has faster server starts, I would need to factor in my learning curve to use it as efficiently as I do Gatsby. That’s why, for my latest project, I decided to avoid rendering frameworks altogether and use Vite.js + React — I wanted to avoid the opportunity cost that comes with spending time learning how to use an “unfamiliar” framework.
Conclusion
So, is Gatsby dead? Not at all, or at least I don’t think Netlify will let it go away any time soon. The acquisition and subsequent changes to Gatsby Cloud may have taken a massive toll on the core framework, but Gatsby is very much still breathing, even if the current slow commits pushed to the repo look like it’s barely alive or hibernating.
I will most likely stick to Vite.js + React for my future endeavors and only use rendering frameworks when I actually need them. What are the tradeoffs? Sacrificing negligible page performance in favor of a faster and more pleasant DX that maintains my sanity? I’ll take that deal every day.
And, of course, this is my experience as a long-time Gatsby loyalist. Your experience is likely to differ, so the mileage of everything I’m saying may vary depending on your background using Gatsby on your own projects.
That’s why I’d love for you to comment below: if you see it differently, please tell me! Is your current experience using Gatsby different, better, or worse than it was a year ago? What’s different to you, if anything? It would be awesome to get other perspectives in here, perhaps from someone who has been involved in maintaining the framework.
Artificial intelligence is no longer a buzzword. It has earned its place in the digital sales and marketing world. This is partly due to its ability to analyze, predict, and respond to large quantities of information in a matter of seconds. But also, as more companies are leaning into AI-powered marketing efforts, others are following suit.
Nearly every part of the marketing process can benefit from AI. So whether your focus is lead generation, content creation, or campaign optimization, using AI can improve your strategy. Curious to learn how? Below are three ways to use AI that will revolutionize your marketing approach.
1. Data-Driven Insights
One of the many benefits of utilizing AI technology is unlocking data-driven insights. You can tap into real data that will inform how you operate. So rather than guessing which months of the year will be busiest for you, you can know exactly when to ramp up. Or, you can forecast when demand surges will occur based on historical information and react preemptively. These examples are part of predictive analytics, the use of mathematical methods including artificial intelligence and machine learning to better predict the value of something in the future.
Hawke points out that predictive analytics can be seen as a “roadmap for future actions.” Unlike traditional analytics, which tells businesses how they performed last month, predictive analytics suggests how you’ll perform next month. By analyzing patterns and prior performance metrics, you’re able to make more data-based decisions for your business.
Moreover, predictive analytics powered by AI can reduce costs, increase margins, and even reduce your environmental impact. It can also help you see which customers you might be at risk of losing. Knowing this information, you can use specific marketing techniques to re-engage and bring them back into your sales wheel. The more you use predictive analytics, the more you’ll learn about your business. And with this, the more you’ll be able to predict — rather than react — to various circumstances.
2. Personalized Customer Experience
Personalized marketing is here to stay. Customers expect to receive offers that match their specific needs, ones that will entice them to make a purchase. They want your brand message to feel like it was tailored just for them. While personalization isn’t a new marketing strategy, AI is enhancing how companies are able to better meet their customers’ expectations.
AI is able to leverage your customer’s privacy-safe data to suggest new content and targeted offers. With so many marketing messages bombarding your target audience every day, standing out is key. More times than not, a standardized call-to-action isn’t going to cut it. Instead, customers are looking for a message that speaks directly to them. It meets them where they are in discovery or searching mode, whether that is in their email inbox or on social media.
An example of AI personalization marketing in work is a “recommended products” or “customers also purchased” section on an e-commerce site. These recommendations should be based on past purchasing habits as well as demographic and behavioral data. While this is a use-case of personalized website content, personalized email content is also a worthy tactic. AI can ensure the right email message is sent to the right customers through more advanced segmentation and granular optimization.
3. Advanced Digital Media Buying
Another beneficial way to utilize AI in marketing is through your media buying strategy. Even if you are currently optimizing campaigns based on performance, you still may not be maximizing your ROI. Again, AI technology can predict which ad placements are likely to perform the best for you. It can also forecast how to best reach your target audience for various campaigns.
Another huge benefit of AI is its ability to automate processes — something that can significantly enhance the media buying process. Typically, media buying is a manual, time-consuming process. It involves looking at different publishers and deciding which platforms are worth your investment. But with AI, the process is more streamlined as historical data is analyzed and future trends are considered. Every ad dollar spent is therefore maximized.
But the power of AI doesn’t stop once you launch a campaign. As your campaign is running, AI tools will help optimize each ad’s performance. The campaign is monitored and areas of improvement are recommended or automatically adjusted based on your parameters. Because campaigns are optimized in real-time, you aren’t losing out on a potential customer lead.
Takeaways
The capabilities of AI are vast. Marketers today are arguably just scratching the surface of leveraging this tool to its fullest potential. As of now, the tool is being used for individual tasks with a single end goal. Because of this, AI shouldn’t fully replace your marketing team or replicate their knowledge base entirely. Instead, AI should be seen as an advantageous tool in your marketing toolbox.
As you begin to implement AI, take some time to think about how the tool can best serve you. If you’re struggling in audience segmentation, use AI to better find your audience based on interest and behavior insights. If you’re looking to drive more sales from current customers, then perhaps your personalization tactics can be supplemented with the help of AI. Using AI strategically will serve you well as you make smarter decisions and improve your ROI across your marketing initiatives.
Turning your small business into a success can seem like an overwhelming task, but it doesn’t have to be. Rome wasn’t built in a day, but it was built day by day. Your small business will be built the same way — by stacking one productive day on top of another.
As a small-business owner, being maximally productive each day could be the difference between building a profitable business for yourself and commuting for hours to a job you hate and working for a horrible boss.
The first step toward productivity is knowing exactly what you need to get done. Survey the tasks at hand and organize them. You can use task apps or a project management tool for this. What needs to get done in the next hour, in the next day, in the next week, or in the next month? Tackle the most urgent tasks first to ensure you address everything that needs to get done and then work your way down the list.
Set priorities and keep the big picture in mind
A lot of your workday will be spent on urgent tasks, such as paying invoices, attending meetings, and returning phone calls and emails. This day-to-day work is highly important because it keeps the gears of your business turning.
But don’t forget to take time to zoom out, too. Although work on immediate needs keeps the business running, big-picture moves are the key to large-scale success. Think of it as the difference between making a quick $500 or making a long term $5 million.
Recruiting the right employees, plotting ways to expand, and brainstorming new product or marketing initiatives have a massive impact on your future success, but those tasks never really need to be completed immediately. Set aside some time for this important work or your business could become stagnant.
Create a schedule
When you know what tasks you need to do, place them all into a simple schedule. Structure your workday with the most urgent tasks first, and stack your most cognitively demanding tasks in your most productive periods. For most people, that’s usually early in the workday or around midday. Complete your easiest, least-taxing work — such as data entry — at the end of the day.
Indecision is one of the biggest thieves of your time, so once you compose your schedule, stick to it. Be careful not to overschedule yourself. This will become easier as you get accustomed to scheduling your day and get a better feel for how much time different types of work require. Once you get good at composing your schedule, make the next day’s schedule as your last task each day so you can hit the ground running each morning.
Finally, if you discover that you simply cannot fit all your work into your day, you might have to seriously consider letting other employees handle some of your responsibilities.
Delegate and automate
As your small business picks up momentum, you’ll need to make some hard choices about what kind of work is the best use of your time.
If you’re the founder and you have to make high-stakes decisions, it doesn’t make sense for you to spend a significant percentage of your time on mundane work that others could do. Consider hiring support staff or a virtual assistant to handle simple logistical work, such as scheduling, document management, payroll, and other administrative tasks.
You can also delegate mid-level tasks once you’ve hired some trusted employees, but you must resist the urge to micromanage them. Nothing brings down workplace morale like a boss who stands behind your chair and dictates how to do everything.
When you’re streamlining and creating efficient processes, look for opportunities to incorporate automation into your business. Customer service is one field that can be handled largely by artificial intelligence, such as chatbots. Outsourcing it to AI can translate into significant savings for your business.
Remove distractions
Help yourself focus by removing distractions from your workspace. If you have trouble staying off your phone, keep it in a locked drawer or in the next room. There are also apps that will lock out any time-wasting sites for preset periods of time.
If your coworkers are a source of distraction, establish firm boundaries. Some experts suggest having open-door office hours, during which your coworkers are free to drop in. Outside of that limited time window, you’re to be left alone so you can focus on work.
Don’t multitask, monotask instead
Studies have shown that multitasking is actually an extremely inefficient way to work. Each shift in your attention requires a relatively long adjustment period to refocus, so you end up wasting more time than you’re actually working. Experts estimate that it takes around 20 minutes to fully refocus after you shift your attention from one task to the next. That means if you shuttle between three tasks, you’ll waste a full hour for each “circuit” of multitasking.
A much better way to work is monotasking. This simply means focusing intently on a single task until it’s complete and then shifting to the next task. This maximizes your attention span by forcing you to focus until you enter a “flow state” and dramatically reduces wasted time.
Take breaks
If you’re maximizing your day by working in intense bursts, you’ll need to pause and recharge periodically. Build short breaks into your schedule so you can relax a little before you tackle the next action item on your schedule. Reward yourself with social media check-ins or a walk around the block before starting your next task.
Fonts are more than just text characters; they shape the user experience. From guiding users through your interface to conveying brand personality, fonts are vital to design. However, finding the perfect font that fits your website or app’s tone can be challenging.
But fear not, we’re here to help! Stay tuned as we explore the significance of fonts in a curated list of the best Figma fonts for 2024 and beyond.
How to Choose the Right Font?
When choosing the appropriate font for your digital content, considering these questions can aid in assessing the font’s clearness and practicality:
Does the font include all necessary characters and font styles?
How many variations or weights does the font offer?
Clearness of structure, for instance, can users differentiate between I, l, or 1 easily?
How well-designed is the shape of kernings?
How many alphabet combinations does the chosen font cater to?
You don’t need to search in detail for the most suitable Figma font type for your digital presence anymore, because here is our selection of the best Figma fonts:
Being one of the famous web design fonts used by Mozilla and GitHub, Inter was created by Rasmus Andersson, a famous Figma designer. Rasmus and the designer team worked hard and spent 3 years creating a core set of glyphs that caters to web users’ needs.
Thanks to its versatile font collection tailored for digital display, it boasts a tall x-height, enhancing legibility for both upper and lowercase text. It offers various OpenType features such as contextual alternates, which adapt punctuation based on neighboring glyphs’ shapes, and a slashed zero option for distinguishing between “0” and “o”. It also includes tabular numbers, among other features, catering to diverse typographic needs.
It works very similarly to Figma components. The main advantages of these design tools tailored to specific fonts include features such as components and support for kerning and the results show in the numbers. According to Google Fonts, Inter is featured on more than 1,300,000 websites with a usage of 4.7 billion times. This showcases Inter will continue to protect its position amongst fonts.
Quicksand is a versatile and user-friendly display sans serif font, ideal for educational materials and tech products. It is also a typeface that embeds both modern and merry flows. Created by Andrew Paglinawan in 2008 with geometric shapes as its foundation, it underwent significant revisions by Thomas Jockin in 2016 to enhance its quality. Later, in 2019, Mirko Velimirovic transformed the font family into a variable font, offering even greater flexibility in design and usage.
With its rounded terminals and legibility in both large and small sizes, Quicksand is a valuable asset for SEO-friendly design in Figma. However, Quicksand has no options for Cyrillic alphabets.
Poppins is a geometric sans serif font known for its modern twist on a classic style. It supports both Devanagari and Latin scripts. The font features diligently prepared glyphs with a rationalist design frame, also including a unique Devanagari typeface based on geometric shapes like circles. Poppins is created by Indian Type Foundry which offers multilingual fonts for digital purposes as many Indian and international alphabets are included.
Poppins’ monolinear letterforms ensure consistent typographic balance, while its diverse character set supports 244 languages, making it suitable for various global contexts. It’s often used in corporate, editorial, web, and mobile design, thanks to its modern yet friendly feel with a hint of sophistication. Described as approachable, balanced, and versatile, Poppins is an excellent choice for projects requiring a contemporary and professional look.
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“Noupe Magazine” in Devanagari alphabet in the Poppins font.
Formerly known as Muli, Mulish underwent a name change in 2020, marking a new chapter in its evolution, because it was initially created for display purposes. However, with collaborative efforts from other designers, Mulish has expanded its range with additional weights, making it a perfect fit for both web and mobile interfaces.
Designed by Vernon Adams in 2011 and refined over the years until 2014, Mulish exudes a modern and sophisticated vibe that’s sure to impress. Whether you’re crafting a sleek website or designing captivating mobile interfaces, Mulish has got you covered.
Originating from a design perspective created for display fonts with optimal spacing, Mulish is crafted not only in headline usage but also as body text. It offers a user-friendly font for both mobile and website applications.
Zilla Slab serves as Mozilla’s main font, prominently featured in its logo, headlines, and overall design. This contemporary slab serif font, created by Yuliya Gorlovetsky and based on Typotheque’s Tesla, boasts smooth curves and true italics, lending text an unexpectedly sleek industrial look while maintaining a friendly and approachable feel across all weights.
In addition to its use in the Mozilla Foundation’s branding, including its logo, Zilla Slab is also employed in various products and projects such as MDN Web Docs and Common Voice, alongside fonts like Inter and Metropolis. Ohio University also adopted Zilla Slab as their secondary font choice starting on February 21, 2018.
Zilla Slab is readily available on GitHub, Google Fonts, and through Mozilla’s CDN. Additionally, its variant, Zilla Slab Highlight, can be found in the same GitHub repository and is also accessible via Google Fonts.
Plus Jakarta Sans is a modern take on geometric sans serif fonts, created by Gumpita Rahayu from Tokotype and originally developed for the Jakarta Provincial Government’s and Jakarta City of Collaboration’s identity in 2020. These fonts bring a fresh perspective to the table. This typeface combines historical influences with a modern aesthetic, making it suitable for a wide range of design projects in Figma.
Inspired by classics like Neuzeit Grotesk, Futura, and 1930s grotesque sans serifs, Plus Jakarta Sans features clean-cut shapes with almost monolinear contrast and sharp curves. The x-height is slightly taller, creating distinct spacing between uppercase and lowercase letters. The font also includes open counters and balanced spaces to ensure readability across various sizes. It is available in 505 languages.
If you’ve been using Figma for a while, you’ve encountered Nunito. While it may seem like a straightforward sans-serif font, its simplicity is one of its strengths, making it a top choice for elegant designs. Many Figma designers pair Nunito with Lora and Roboto, as these combinations have proven highly effective.
Recently, Nunito expanded to include six weights, making it versatile for both headlines and paragraphs. If you need a thin sans-serif font that’s easy to read, Nunito is a solid option.
Nunito is a comprehensive sans serif typeface family consisting of two versions. It all began with Nunito, designed by Vernon Adams to be a rounded terminal sans serif primarily for display purposes. Jacques Le Bailly expanded the project to encompass a full range of weights, as well as introduced a regular version without rounded terminals, known as Nunito Sans. It’s available in 612 different languages.
Lora is a sleek and sophisticated serif font that adds a modern touch to any text. While it’s not the best for long passages because of its fancy details, it’s perfect for attention-grabbing headlines. Newspaper headlines, logos, and menu topics could be some examples.
Like Roboto, Lora supports a whopping 311 languages, including Latin and Cyrillic scripts, and comes with all the punctuation and symbols a Figma designer needs.
Lora is a carefully balanced font with a contemporary feel, inspired by calligraphy. Its unique features like smooth curves and bold serifs make it stand out on design projects. This increases its functionality in creative fields. Whether you’re telling a story or writing an essay, Lora sets the right tone effortlessly. Plus, it’s optimized for both screens and print, making it usable for any design project.
With its impressive presence on over 610 billion websites, Roboto is one to consider.
Roboto might not be new to the scene, but it’s still got that trendy energy. It’s a timeless classic that adds a touch of sophistication to any Figma project. Its structure with large geometric shapes and subtle quirks makes it versatile for everything from long paragraphs to catchy headlines, especially logos.
What distinguishes Roboto is its dual nature, characterized by its mechanical aspects with mostly geometric forms combined with friendly and open curves. Unlike some fonts that force a rigid rhythm by letterforms, Roboto keeps things natural, allowing letters to settle into their natural width. This creates a more fluid reading experience for humanist and serif fonts. Plus, with support for over 300 languages and a complete set of punctuation, currency symbols, and more, Roboto is one of the go-to choices for any Figma project you’ve got in mind.
Let’s look at more energetic types. Tilt is a font family that’s all about the visuals, drawing inspiration from city landscapes, especially the bold lettering seen on shop signs. It includes three variable fonts: Tilt Neon, Tilt Prism, and Tilt Warp. These fonts are based on a simple geometric structure, but each has its unique style and purpose. Tilt Prism is particularly eye-catching and works great for attention-grabbing marketing materials and landing pages.
These fonts are based on a geometric sans serif model used by sign painters but with added details. They are designed as variable fonts, allowing users to rotate glyphs along the X and Y axes by up to ±45° while maintaining readability. This unique feature makes Tilt a versatile choice for various design projects requiring dynamic typography of storefront signage.
Julieta Ulanovsky was inspired by the vintage posters and signage of Buenos Aires’ Montserrat neighborhood to create this typeface, aiming to preserve the essence of urban typography from the early 20th century. As the neighborhood changes, its original charm and unique designs are lost forever. The letters that influenced this project embody hard work, dedication, and the vibrant life of the city, both day and night in Buenos Aires. The Montserrat Project was initiated to capture Montserrat’s essence and release it under a free license, named the SIL Open Font License.
The Montserrat font family includes three variations: the normal family, the Alternates, and the Subrayada sister families. The Alternates feature distinct letterforms, while the Subrayada variation incorporates a special style of underlining inspired by the Montserrat neighborhood. The creative design story of Montserrat results in its comprehensiveness and inclusivity as it offers 593 languages available all over the world.
Why is Choosing the Right Font Important?
The right fonts make life easier
When you filter your overwhelming list of font selections and narrow it down to a few of the most commonly used and trendy ones, your job gets much easier. Selecting the right font for the appropriate design projects makes it easy to shape that visual structure when your users scroll through your website or app.
Emotional connotations
Different fonts evoke different emotions and convey different meanings. For instance, a sleek and modern font may convey professionalism and sophistication, while a playful and whimsical font may suggest creativity and friendliness. Choosing a font that aligns with the tone and personality of your message can help reinforce your intended message and connect with your audience on a deeper level.
Brand recognition
When it comes to providing brand value and uniqueness to things, fonts serve that purpose. Coca-Cola has a unique font customers can associate them with, whereas Amazon has a different font as their brand logo. Your font selection should reflect the brand and ensure the user can picture it in their mind.
Communication codes
Choosing the right font is important because it directly impacts how your audience perceives your content. The font you select sets your message’s tone, style, and overall impression. It contributes to your text’s readability and visual appeal, influencing how effectively your message is communicated.
Conclusion
Selecting the right font in Figma designs is crucial for enhancing user experience and effectively communicating brand tone and message. From versatile options like Inter and Roboto to elegant choices like Poppins and Lora, there’s a font for every design project. Fonts evoke emotions, convey brand recognition, and directly impact how your audience perceives your content. By choosing fonts that align with your brand’s personality and message, you strengthen brand identity and connect with your audience on a deeper level. Ultimately, the right font enhances readability, visual appeal, and overall user engagement, contributing to successful design outcomes in Figma and beyond.
Starting a new venture can be daunting, and it’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day tasks of building your business plan and assembling your team.
But there’s one critical element that can’t be overlooked — building a network of fellow founders.
Here are some of the most important benefits of networking with other entrepreneurs and how they can impact the success of your startup.
Shared Knowledge and Experiences
One of the most exciting things about building a network of founders is the opportunity to share knowledge and experiences. As a startup, you face a unique set of challenges, including securing funding, hiring the right talent, and developing a unique product.
When you connect with other entrepreneurs, you’ll find a wealth of valuable insights and advice that can help you overcome these common obstacles and succeed.
So, how can you make the most of these opportunities to share your expertise and learn from others? Here are some tips that can help you:
Attend networking events: Whether it’s a local meetup or a conference, attending networking events is a great way to connect with other founders. Be sure to come prepared with questions and be willing to share your own experiences.
Join online communities: There are plenty of online communities where founders can connect and share knowledge. From Slack channels to Facebook groups, these communities are a great way to get advice and support from other entrepreneurs.
Offer your expertise: Don’t be afraid to share your own expertise with others. If you have experience in a particular area, such as marketing or fundraising, offer to share your knowledge with others in your network.
Be open to feedback: When you share your own experiences, be open to feedback from others. Listening to constructive criticism can help you identify areas where you can improve and ultimately grow your business.
Access to Funding Opportunities
Networking with other founders isn’t just about swapping experiences or getting advice; it can also open up doors to funding opportunities that you might not have had access to otherwise. Investors want to see that you have a strong network of founders behind you because it demonstrates that you’re well-connected and have the potential to collaborate on future projects.
But the benefits don’t stop there. Building a network of founders can also lead to introductions to investors, accelerators, and other valuable resources that can help take your startup to the next level. You never know who you might meet at a networking event or connect with on LinkedIn.
Let’s face it, funding is often the lifeblood of a startup. It’s what allows you to bring your vision to life, hire the talent you need, and scale your business. By building a network of founders, you’re increasing your chances of finding the funding you need to make your dreams a reality.
Partnerships and Collaborations
Networking with other founders can be a game-changer for your startup’s success. Imagine the possibilities of connecting with like-minded individuals who have faced similar challenges, can offer valuable insights and advice, and even lead you to funding opportunities.
So, how do you go about building this network?
One platform that can’t be ignored is LinkedIn. However, simply creating a profile and hoping for the best won’t cut it. Properly reaching out to potential connections is essential.
One of the most important things to keep in mind is that you should always personalize your connection requests. Don’t just use the standard LinkedIn messages. Instead, craft a message that is genuine, professional, and highlights your common interests or goals.
Once you’ve connected with someone, make sure to manage your LinkedIn inbox and respond to messages promptly. You never know where a conversation may lead or what opportunities may arise. Keep in mind that networking is a two-way street. Don’t just ask for advice or favors, but offer your own expertise and support as well.
Increased Visibility and Credibility
Building relationships with other entrepreneurs not only helps you make connections but can also help you build a strong reputation within the startup community. When you’re associated with other successful startups, it can increase your startup’s credibility and make it more attractive to investors and potential customers.
However, it’s not just about attending events and collecting business cards. It’s about cultivating real relationships with people who can vouch for you and your startup. It’s about showing up and being present in the community, offering your own expertise and support, and being genuine in your interactions.
Don’t underestimate the power of networking when it comes to increasing your startup’s visibility and credibility. It could be the difference between being just another startup and being a startup that investors and customers are excited to get behind.
Emotional Support and Motivation
Starting a business can feel like a solo mission, but it doesn’t have to be. Networking with other founders can provide a much-needed dose of emotional support and motivation to keep you going.
Building a startup is hard work. It’s filled with ups and downs, and it’s not always easy to stay motivated when things get tough. That’s why having a support system for other entrepreneurs who understand the challenges can be a game-changer.
And let’s not forget the power of motivation. When you see other founders achieving their goals and overcoming their obstacles, it can give you the push you need to keep going. It can remind you that you’re not alone, and that success is possible.
Over to you
If you’re a startup founder, building a network of fellow entrepreneurs is not just a good idea — it’s crucial. From sharing valuable insights to gaining access to funding opportunities, developing partnerships, and getting the emotional support you need to stay motivated, networking can make all the difference when it comes to startup success.
Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there, attend events, and join online communities to connect with other founders. Be authentic, offer your own expertise, and remember that networking is a two-way street.
With a little bit of effort, you can build a powerful network of fellow entrepreneurs that can help take your startup to new heights.
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