Icons are the image of an application; the first thing you will see about an application is its icon. Many of the application’s characteristics must be reflected through its icon. If the image of the icon is excellent then, the first impression about an application is also excellent. In addition, the icons from inside the application must be of good quality and easy to understand; the end user should see from the start what is the function behind an icon, or if doesn’t see it from the start at least to find it easy to remember its function the next time he will use it. At the same time, all the icons of an application must be made on the same patterns, to be part of the same set of icons. They have a big role in enhancing end-user productivity and at the same time will increase the application’s overall success.
So, we have seen that the icons of an application play an important role in its success; that is why having good quality icons is important. Of course those icons for a software application can be also obtained free of costs: downloaded from the Internet or developed in-house. Using these free icons may be suitable for a personal application and not for a commercial one. For a commercial application you will definitely need professionally designed icons because they will have an enhanced effect over your application. The quality of professionally designed icons is categorically higher then the quality of in-house or free downloaded icons.
There are many advantages of buying stock icons against free downloaded icons. The most important advantage is their quality: the most minuscule details of stock icons are perfectly designed, their colors are bright and dynamic and their smooth edges and corners give them a highly professional look. Stock icons will make an application look modern and professional. Compared to stock icons, free icons are not that perfect. This happens not because the designer is not capable of making a better more perfect icon, but only because he does not intend to sell it. When you’re trying to sell something you strive for perfection in order to be sure that nobody will find any defects to your creation and you’ll have a lot of clients. Also, if the client is happy with your work he will come back for more and above this he will recommend you to others also, so the number of your clients will increase. And regarding the quality of the free icons, it is absolutely true that you cannot ever be certain of their quality because, in most situations, you don’t know the designer and his previous work, and how well intentioned he was when offering those free icons.

Another big advantage of stock icons against free icons is the fact that the professional designer is the one that takes care of the whole design process; all you’ll have to do is place the order and then directly receive the finished icons, without other involvement from your part. You will not have to take part of the design process; the designer is the one that will have to follow all the steps of the design process, steps mentioned in the first article “Professional icon design process†. So, if the designer takes care of the complete design process, the beneficiary of the icons will have much more time to work on his application or to take care of other important matters. Apart from that, the designer is the person that has the necessary experience to suggest the right concept for the icons, can take in consideration how the icon will appear in the context of your application, can think of the cultural impact of the icons and more other things.
Free downloaded icons have a limited number of sizes and formats. A person who designs free icons will not make them in all possible sizes and formats; he will choose few sizes and formats that are the most commonly used and design the icons accordingly. So, it might be possible that when searching for icons you will find one that fits perfectly to your application but unfortunately you cannot use it because it does not have the right size or the right format. This of course will be frustrating for you. That is why it would be better to buy stock icons that are made according to the size and format that you need. This method will not only save you precious time but will also put to your disposal all the types of icons that you need for the moment or in the future. Regarding the various version of icons – hot, disable and normal – the situation stands the same as for the sizes and formats of stock icons: it is better to have icons designed by a professional instead of getting some free downloaded icons.

When thinking of stock icons against free icons, another big advantage comes up: technical support. It is possible that you will never need the help of the technical support team, but it is also likely to need that help more than once. What can you do in the case you obtained the icons by freely downloading them from the Internet? The truth is that you cannot do much in such cases, but if your icons are designed by a professional designer that the situation is different. In most cases those designers offer technical support for free or against a fee for an unlimited period of time. Along with the technical support offered by the designer, stock icons will benefit also of the free upgrades. If, for example, you decide to make an upgrade to your application you’ll definitely need an upgrade of the icons used for the application, for the application to have a fresher look and be distinct from the previous version. This thing cannot be done in case you used free icons for your application, unless you decide to work with a professional for upgrading them.

As we have shown above, there are more advantages in buying stock icons against free downloaded icons: their quality is better, you don’t have to waste valuable time to look for and download them, they can be available in various sizes, formats, versions, and also the technical support is available any time. So, don’t think that you’ll save some money now by downloading free icons because in the long run you’ll actually spend more time and money.

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