Componentes de un Sistema de Diseño

What are the main components of a design system?

A design system is not just a tool, it is the structural skeleton of how a digital product comes to life in a coherent and efficient manner.

Understanding this can drastically change the way you approach design and development projects.

Let's look at how we organize these components so that everything fits together seamlessly.

What are design tokens?

Design tokens are the building blocks of any design system. Think of them as the basic materials of a building that ensure stability and consistency.

• These tokens encompass key decisions, such as color choices.
• Not limited to one main color, consider entire palettes, including secondary shades and special states such as active or disabled, right down to colors for header and paragraph text.
• Everything must convey the visual and functional identity of the product.
• In addition to colors, typography is crucial.
• Define specific fonts, sizes, weights and styles. Each choice is made to ensure clarity and visual consistency.
• Likewise, spacing plays a significant role. Distances between buttons and text or between headings and content may seem subtle, but they are essential to maintain a balanced design.
• We cannot forget about borders and shadows, which, far from being minor details, give hierarchy, depth and realism to the interface.

Why are reusable components essential?

Reusable components are the cornerstone of any effective design system.

• From buttons to forms to cards, each component must be integrated in a consistent way.
• Consider buttons: they exist in different variations such as primary, secondary, or disabled, each with a clear purpose.
• Likewise, forms contain elements with predefined states, such as focused or error, ensuring predictable behavior and appearance.
• Cards are another essential component, ideal for displaying structured content.

Their consistency in visual structure allows for a uniform presentation of information, whether in an online store catalog or in blog articles.

The real magic of these components lies in their ability to be reused without the need to redesign from scratch, saving time and effort by ensuring a constant appearance and functionality.

What are interaction patterns?

Interaction patterns are the bridge between design and functionality.

Every interaction, whether it's a hover over a button, the opening of a drop-down menu, or the way error messages are displayed on forms, should respond in a uniform and predictable way.

These consistencies not only improve the user experience, but also build trust by ensuring that the application behaves the same way regardless of the device used.

What is the role of centralized documentation?

Centralized documentation is essential to turn a design system into a truly functional tool.

Without it, cohesion becomes fragmented, turning the process into chaos.

It is crucial that designers, developers and marketing teams have easy access to defined rules, components and patterns.

Tools such as StoryBook, Zeroheid or Notion facilitate this access, making documentation not only useful, but essential to the proper functioning of a design system.

Imagine the efficiency and clarity you can achieve by having all your design system information in one place.

This practice ensures that everyone speaks the same visual language and consistency is maintained throughout the project, promoting true collaboration and optimal workflow.