The tools I use to plan new projects

"Everything begins with an idea" - Earl Nightengale

I’ve used many different tools to plan and introduce new features at Cornerstone, here are some of my favourites.

Google docs

In the early stages when the idea’s vague and they’re many different directions it could go, plain text is often best. In these cases I like to use Google Docs - perfect because it can be easily shared and discussed with other team members.

I use a small Docs addon called Page Sizer to give me a bit more working space.

One top tip is to make lists and number everything where possible. This makes referencing parts of the document much easier when working with others remotely - e.g. “On point 5a, I think.. “. The commenting feature of Google Docs should also be made use of.

HTML/CSS/JS

When I need more than just the plain text that google docs offers, I’ll occasionally write throwaway HTML/CSS/JS code. Using Bootstrap helps with styling - though the focus remains on the ideas rather than how pretty the concept looks! Here’s an example of something I worked on at Cornerstone.

Chrome’s developer console

When proposing a change to something that already exists, rather than doing a funny Photoshop job, a neat way is to use Google Chrome's developer console. See the example above, where I've added text to Apple's site.

Dynalist

A very unique program - I use it like a text-only version of a spider diagram. Having used visual spider diagrams before, I find too much time is inevitably spent trying to make things look pretty and connect together. With Dynalist, there are no distractions. Like Google Docs, it also exists on the cloud, making it very easy to share.

Axure RP

For bigger, more time-intensive projects that involve more elements, my favourite wire-framing tool is Axure RP. You can get very detailed and interactive with this mockup program. Here’s an example of a big Axure RP project for Cornerstone.

The sharing feature means it can be hosted online for easy sharing and user testing.

Those are my favourite tools for planning new projects. No tool is better than another - it’s just about being efficient by picking the right tool for the job. Sometimes, pen and paper alone does the trick. Good luck!