February 10, 2026
Why Loom doesn't work for Figma design feedback
The problems with using Loom for design reviews and why I built a better alternative that lives in Figma.
As a designer, I've always struggled with giving good design feedback. Written comments in Figma often miss the nuance and tone. Screenshots feel static and disconnected. And recording a Loom video means jumping out of Figma, opening another app, figuring out what to share, and then sending a link that lives somewhere else entirely.
The design feedback workflow was broken. Here's why—and what I built to fix it.
The design feedback problem: Figma vs Loom
Every time I wanted to give design feedback or walk someone through a design, I had to choose between bad options:
- Stay in Figma and type out detailed comments that inevitably get misunderstood (no tone, no context)
- Switch to Loom and record a screen share, creating a separate video link disconnected from the design file
- Schedule a meeting and waste 30 minutes of everyone's time on feedback that could've been a 5-minute async recording
None of these design review methods felt right. Figma is where the design lives. Why can't voice feedback live there too?
What's wrong with Loom
Don't get me wrong—Loom is a great tool. But for design feedback, it has some fundamental limitations that drove me crazy:
The video is static. You record at one zoom level, and that's what viewers get. If they need to see more detail or want broader context than your recording provided, they're out of luck. They have to pause the video, go back to Figma, find the frame, then try to sync up what they're seeing with what you were saying.
The commenting workflow is broken. Sure, you can leave timestamped comments on a Loom video. But who actually goes back to Loom to check those? People work in Figma. They only visit Loom to record or watch a link, not to monitor follow-up discussions. So feedback threads just die there.
You can't interact during playback. Imagine you're watching someone walk through a design and you have a question about a specific element. You can't pause the video, click into Figma, leave a comment on that element, and then resume. You're stuck in Loom's world, disconnected from the actual design file.
Async work that actually works
I'm a believer in asynchronous work. Not because I'm anti-meeting, but because async work respects people's time and creative flow.
When you record feedback async, the viewer can:
- Watch at their own pace
- Pause and rewind when needed
- Review multiple times if something's unclear
- Respond when they're in the right headspace
But only if the async tool is actually built for the job.
Building what I wanted to exist
So I built Dot. It's simple: record voice narration while navigating your Figma canvas. The recording lives in the Figma file as a widget. Anyone with access can play it back—your voice synced with viewport movement through the design.
No external links. No expired videos. No separate tool to learn.
The recording is a native part of your Figma file, just like any other element on the canvas. And because it's in Figma, viewers can pause the playback, zoom in for more detail, leave comments on specific elements, then resume the recording. The feedback stays connected to the design.
Why voice + viewport matters
Text comments are great for specific feedback on individual elements. But when you're reviewing a flow, explaining an animation, or walking through a user journey, you need more.
Voice adds tone, emphasis, and context. The viewport tracking shows exactly where you're looking. Together, they create the feeling of sitting next to someone while they walk you through their work.
A better way to give design feedback
I built Dot to solve my own design feedback problem. If you're frustrated with:
- Typing long Figma comments that get misinterpreted
- Context switching between Figma and Loom
- Scheduling unnecessary design review meetings
- Static video recordings that viewers can't interact with
Then Dot might solve your problem too.
Record voice feedback directly in Figma. Your audio syncs with viewport movement. Viewers can pause, zoom, explore, and leave comments—all without leaving the design file.
If it saves you even one unnecessary design critique meeting a week, that's 30 minutes of your life back.