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What developers wish designers knew before handing off a file
A well-designed site can still be difficult to build if the handoff isn't set up correctly. Most of the friction isn't about skill on either side, it's about assumptions that were never communicated.
Here is what makes a handoff smooth.
Fonts and colors should be defined in one place. If a designer uses twelve variations of a color across a file because they were adjusting as they went, a developer has to guess which one is correct. A defined style guide, even a simple one, removes that guesswork entirely.
Spacing and sizing should be consistent and intentional. Designs that use arbitrary spacing values are harder to translate into code that holds up across screen sizes. Round numbers and a clear grid make responsive development significantly faster.
States matter. Buttons have hover states. Forms have error states. Navigation behaves differently on mobile. If those states aren't designed, a developer will make judgment calls, and those calls may not match what the designer had in mind.
Content should be close to final. Placeholder text affects layout decisions. If the real headline is three times longer than the lorem ipsum, the design may not hold up the way it looked in the file.
The earlier a developer is brought in, the fewer surprises at build time. A quick conversation before a design is finalized costs nothing and can prevent a week of revisions.
The network for creativity
Join 1.25M professional creatives like you
Connect with clients, get discovered, and run your business 100% commission-free
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