If you work in any type of creative career field, you need to show off your work to potential employers or clients. Therefore, building a portfolio is possibly one of the most important things that creatives can do. You may have some great work to showcase, but not know how to build the perfect portfolio. That’s OK — this information will make it much easier!
How to Build a Portfolio
A portfolio is a way of showing future employers, the tangible skills that you have to your name, as well as the existing network that you possess. What makes having a portfolio a more important addition to your professional profile, is that a resume is a statement of skills, whereas a professional portfolio is a way of actually highlighting pieces of work and achievements that you have created.
The way you set your portfolio will entirely depend on what you are trying to apply for. Therefore, it is advised to create multiple drafts, just so that you can really hit each and every possible employer with the skills that they require and are searching for.
Profile Information
The first step of your portfolio is to compile all the information about yourself, including aspects from your resume, highlights of your career and networking, as well as what you can offer the reader, in terms of being creative. Make sure to include your contact information too, because if you leave your portfolio on professional networking platforms like LinkedIn for example, many recruiters will most likely take a browse through, without you actually applying for anything.
Include Your Most Relevant Work
Often it would be easier to think that just compiling all your pieces in one portfolio and then leaving it to the interested parties to browse through, would be enough, right? This however, is not the case. Including examples that you can confidently break down and discuss in potential interviews, in addition to pieces where previous organisations and employers will vouch for you if your future employers reach out to them. Often when you take all this into consideration, you will be left with up to 7-8 pieces max to include, and that will often be more than enough.
Remember Rewards and Achievements
If in the time of your professional relationships, you were shortlisted for an award of some kind, in addition to huge accomplishments within your career, such as working with huge publications such as Vogue, Elle (for example), it would definitely be worth listing these in your portfolio. Employers like to see candidates that have really worked with multiple networks, and hey, even if you volunteered with these organisations, it reflects even better on you and your work ethic. So, do not be shy in including them all!
Separate Content by Genre or Style
Even if you have just a few pieces to show off, ensuring that you present your portfolio with appropriate headings, makes navigating your portfolio all the more easier. Making your portfolio presentable, depending on the niche and genre of your employment search, can make all the more difference. For example, if you are applying for a graphic designer role, it would make every sense that your portfolio is creatively enhanced with your strengths and design touches. Making external changes and touches will make sure you are unforgettable, whenever someone decides to come and take a look.
Once you have your portfolio put together, you’ll be unstoppable. Just remember that it’s always a good idea to have a digital version online as well as a physical copy that comes with you to interviews. This will ensure that you can show off your talents at any time.
If you finish and are satisfied with your collation of pieces for your portfolio, why don’t you head on to CSGOBook, for some serious gaming and skin gambling as a reward for finally getting this huge task out of the way?
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When you finally finish assembling your portfolio, you will be unstoppable. You should have both a digital version that can be found online and a hard copy that you bring with you to interviews. This will make it such that you may exhibit your abilities whenever you see fit.