The tools I use, and why I choose them
Software is only as good as the intent behind it. Over 11+ years, I've curated a focused stack across whiteboarding, prototyping, user research, AI synthesis, usability testing, and analytics — each chosen for speed, clarity, and team alignment.
Whiteboarding & Flow Mapping
How I align multi-disciplinary teams before anyone opens a design canvas.
Miro
Why I use it: Multi-stakeholder workshops, infinite-canvas system architecture, and customer journey mapping for multi-role products (like Placecom & Apptunix). Best for collaborating with non-designers.
FigJam
Why I use it: Real-time team flow sketching, rapid affinity mapping, and instant vector copy-pasting directly into Figma design files without losing structure or styles.
Sketchapp
Why I use it: Legacy file conversion, native macOS interface design, offline component library inspection, and historical project file maintenance.
Interface Craft & Visual Design
From component libraries to high-fidelity visual assets, vector identity, and responsive UI.
Figma
Why I use it: Primary design driver for 8+ years. Tokenized component libraries, auto-layout design systems, interactive variants, and real-time developer handoff.
Adobe Photoshop
Why I use it: High-fidelity visual asset editing, photo retouching, background removal, texture creation, and image manipulation for marketing hero assets.
Adobe Illustrator (AI)
Why I use it: Primary vector tool for custom icon design, graphic design work, brand identity marks, and scalable vector artwork.
Framer
Why I use it: High-fidelity micro-interactions, responsive web animations, and publishing production-ready landing page concepts with code-like accuracy.
Canva
Why I use it: Rapid marketing collateral creation, social media banner templates, client brand asset handoff, and collaborating with non-design marketing teams.
Motion, Prototyping & Video Craft
Bringing interfaces to life through motion design, interactive flows, and video walkthroughs.
Adobe After Effects
Why I use it: Micro-interaction motion design, UI animation prototypes, Lottie file exports, and high-impact case study video walkthroughs.
Adobe Premiere Pro
Why I use it: Product video editing, timeline sequencing, voiceover sync, and narrative walkthroughs for client proposals and portfolio case studies.
Form Building & User Research
Gathering quantitative and qualitative feedback directly from target audiences.
Balsamiq Wireframes
Why I use it: Rapid low-fidelity wireframing during client discovery sessions to focus purely on content hierarchy without visual distraction.
Typeform
Why I use it: High-completion conversational surveys, customer onboarding questionnaires, and interactive feedback forms.
Google Forms
Why I use it: Quick, zero-friction internal team surveys, user research recruitment forms, and raw data export directly to Google Sheets.
SurveyMonkey
Why I use it: Enterprise user surveys, NPS benchmark tracking, and quantitative statistical analysis for multi-region product launches.
AI Acceleration & Synthesis
Accelerating research synthesis, image generation, and behavior analytics with AI tools.
Freepik (Magnific AI)
Why I use it: High-resolution AI image upscaling, generative asset enhancement, and detailed texture synthesis for marketing collateral.
Sider AI
Why I use it: Contextual browser AI assistant for rapid copy drafting, competitive research summarization, and translation verification.
Microsoft Clarity
Why I use it: Session recordings, rage-click heatmaps, scroll depth tracking, and user behavior analytics on live web applications.
Usability Testing & Architecture
Validating usability task flows and information architecture before final code implementation.
Maze
Why I use it: Unmoderated usability testing on Figma prototypes — measuring task completion rates, heatmaps, and clickpaths before shipping code.
Lyssna (UsabilityHub)
Why I use it: 5-second visual clarity tests, first-click testing on key CTA screens, and headline comprehension validation.
Useberry
Why I use it: User task flow analytics and interactive prototype recording to observe drop-off points in mobile app onboarding.
Optimal Workshop
Why I use it: Card sorting and tree testing for Information Architecture (IA) restructuring when organizing dense navigation trees.